THE GUY was very tall, thin, and he looked pale. His entire face was filled with bluish tattoo up until his neck and arms, but what creeps me the most was the way he opened his mouth and revealed his tongue… it was long that it almost reached his neck. And the minute I saw it, I froze.
I blinked several times, believing that all these was just a product of my imagination, that maybe I was just too worn-out that I began hallucinating. But each time I would open my eyes, I would see him through the mirror… looking at me like a predator who had found its prey.
And it was me.
When I realized that, I screamed. I struggled to move when his tongue became longer. And when they were about to reach me, I ran out of the comfort room. I could hear him laughing while chasing me. I swear I have never been this afraid before.
“There is no use running away, princess. Your guardian is not here. So, don’t exhaust yourself anymore. Come, be my meal and I will grant you a quick and painless death.”
His voice made all the hairs on my body rose. It sounded so deep like it just came from the ground. I don’t get what he was talking about and I don’t care anymore. I just kept running while screaming my heart out until I bumped into something hard. And then I heard the creepy guy cussed.
“Damn it! Why is it you again?”
When I looked up, I was relieved when I recognized the man whom I bumped into. It was the stranger from last night. His handsome face was grim as he lifted his hands and gently wiped my tears away. I did not even realize I was crying. I held onto his jacket and in a shaky voice, I whispered, “Please help me. I’m so scared.”
“Hush, I’m here. Everything will be all right, I promise. I will end this soon, Alison. For the meantime, be a good girl and close your eyes.”
I was still sobbing when I nodded and followed him. I don’t know why but I feel like I could trust him. His dark expression, his gentle hands, and his tender voice were an odd combination. But those things did help to soothe my nerves. I had so many questions but now was not the right time for them.
I was not really sure what happened next. I just felt the stranger walked past me. And then I heard the sound of loud metal screeching and the creepy guy begging for his life.
“No! I will not do it again, I promise! I will not bother this human again! Please spare me! If you want, I will leave this country right away and you will never see me again-“
“I don’t remember giving you an option,” I heard the stranger say in a cold voice. The creepy guy shrieked and then there was silence.
All I could hear now were steps approaching my direction.
“It’s over. You can open your eyes now.”
When I saw the stranger finally standing before me again, my legs gave out. It could either be from hunger, exhaustion, stress, or fear. But before I could fall on the cold, hard floor, the stranger caught me and took me in his arms. That’s when I realized that my whole body was still trembling. He carried me and put me on the couch.
“W-what just happened? Who’s that person? Is he even a person? Why is he after me? How did the both of you get in here? And what happened to him?”
“I’m sorry,” he said instead as he used the back of his hand to wipe the sweat off my forehead. It was cold inside my office but I was sweating profusely.
“For what?”
“I’m sorry you had to see that. I’m sorry I came a little late. He’s gone now. He will never bother you again. This won’t happen again, Alison.” He looked straight into my eyes. His blue eyes brightened. “You saw nothing and heard nothing. You had a long day at work and now you are about to come home. And when you get there, you will eat to your heart’s content and have a full rest afterwards. That’s all you have to think about, that’s all you have to know. And that’s all you have to remember.”
I blinked when he snapped his finger. And when I opened my eyes again, I was alone in the office.

“AND NOW, he’s coming back to me, saying that he’s still in love with me. He said he just had a problem he needed to deal with that’s why he left me. But I don’t know whether to believe him or not. I still love him but it still hurts. I’m afraid to try again. Because if we love someone, we won’t hurt them, right? And we won’t leave them. Isn’t that what love is about?”
I shook my head while listening on the stereo. I was inside my car but there was a heavy traffic. And I badly wanted to go home. The last thing that I needed at the moment was to listen to someone else’s problem, especially when I was having problems of my own. The rumors about the Cabrera hotel kept escalating. I had planned to meet with the aggrieved party but she declined my invitation many times.
Tonight was my first time to listen to something again to distract myself even for a while. I usually listen to my favorite bands to relax. It looks like Jasper took the CDs in my car without telling me. He was the only one who would do that. We like the same bands, but it seems like my baby brother lost his own CDs again.
The last time I listened to the radio was during my teenage years, when I was with Aunt Bettina. We used to write together in her wooden balcony in her vacation house in Roxas City. She was the only one who knew that being a hotel director was not my dream.