Chapter Text
I made my way down to the shoreline, the rhythmic sound of crashing waves, the refreshing air, and the sun against my skin.
My family had left me in the hotel lobby, and only after they made it to the beach did they decide to text me. I spotted my sister waving frantically, her long braids whipping around in the ocean breeze.
Or maybe it wasn’t her. I assumed so anyway.
“Over here!” she called, her voice not hers.
I yelled back, “I'll be there in a second.”
I quickened my pace, being tossed around and spun. Until I reached the volleyball group, it didn't occur to me that she wasn’t yelling out to me, but to her teammate. But I decided to bother her anyway.
“Tiana, do you know where-” I had barely gotten out before I was struck with a volleyball. It struck me to the ground like lightning, too hard.
The lady wasn’t my sister; she seemed annoyed, standing back with her arms crossed, while the other girls helped me up. Just as I stood up, I felt dizzy and the world shifted on its side.
The ground beneath me seemed to shimmer, and the scene around me warped like a blur. I felt myself shift in place, engulfed by an unknown force.
When my vision cleared, I found myself standing on a smaller, lonely beach, the air fresh as ever, and an untouched scene. Quieter. Too quiet. The kind of silence that eats at you.
The sea looked hand-painted, and the air buzzed with something. I quickly looked over at the shack— not a cabin, but just wrong. Like it had always been there, even when it didn’t.
My heart raced as I looked around. The sign beside it read, “Punishment Island,” the letters carved deeply into the wood, almost as if they had been etched by the living. Was someone here?
I looked back at the water behind me I seemingly came from, but the painted sea stretched for miles. Before I could gather my thoughts, he appeared. ARGON.
I didn’t know him, but his name just shouted at me. And he definitely knew me. His long hair floated like it was underwater, eyes that didn't blink, just bore through me like I was something he’d already decided.
My lungs betrayed me; I gasped like I was drowning, but the air slipped in anyway, as normal as ever. The next thing I knew, I was an inch from his face. Then he just grabbed me. His hands were warm, too warm.
I shouted, “Wait! Let me go!”
But the words were left in the air, unheard, ignored. He dragged me toward the shack, and I stumbled, the sand turning cold under my feet. The more I tried to calm myself, the worse it got. The world spun.
I could hear my heartbeat, but I couldn't feel it. And somewhere behind me, I swore I heard someone laughing. But then I didn’t anymore. Then nothing.