2 – Figlett Town

It was just a tiny speck in the distance now, and our car tumbled down a rocky road. I turned my head behind me and saw two other cars following close behind. Looking around me, I saw that Jason was fast asleep with his mouth wide open.

In the front of the car, my parents were quietly having a conversation. When my dad saw me wide awake, he said:

"We still have another hour until we get there. Why don't you get some rest?"

I agreed, partly because I was already so tired from staying awake for so long.

The next thing I knew, I was being shaken awake. Rubbing my eyes groggily, I saw that we were parked in a small parking lot in front of a apartment. My parents and my brother were already outside, waiting for me.

I got out, walked over to the hood of the car, and took my luggage out.

Someone grabbed my shoulder.

I whirled around, and was surprised to see it was Riley. Anna was also close by, chatting with my parents.

"We're staying here with you." he said, looking very happy.

We did our special handshake, and went to find our rooms. It turned out that Riley and Anna's rooms were right next to mine. They accompanied me up and when I knocked on my room door, my parents opened it.

I mouthed see you later to Riley and Anna, and entered the hotel room.

My parents were examining every detail of the room and I understood why. There were so many cool things here that we couldn't afford back in the city.

"Oh my god! Look at this leather recliner chair!" my mom shouted in another room. My dad put down a piece of silverware and quickly joined her in marveling at it.

"It is kinda pretty" I agreed.

There was a patio and I opened the sliding glass doors and walked outside.

The sun shone brightly down on me, and that's when I realized how hungry I was. Apparently the snacks I brought wasn't enough to satisfy my hunger.

My stomach made a gurgling noise, and Jason looked at me. I could tell we both needed to eat, but my parents didn't seem like they needed to. Luckily, the hotel host had already placed some food on the table with a welcome slip. I took out the sandwich, and broke it in two. Handing one piece to Jason, I stared around the town from the patio.

The thing is, it looked completely normal. It's not like I didn't trust Anna, its just I knew that she liked to read old newspapers for fun. It kind of seemed funny that I was actually scared for a moment when she told me about the "strange occurrences".

There was a knock at our door. My dad opened it, and in walked a hotel assistant. Or at least that's what she looked like to me.

"Hey there, I hope you are enjoying your stay currently." she said in a cheery tone, addressing everyone in the room. "Just wanted to check in with everyone, made sure nobody had any pressing questions."

"Your food's really good." Jason said while munching on his sandwich, "do you have any good restaurants?"

She looked at him, and smiled.

"There is a small restaurant a few blocks north from here called The Snail Factory. We recommend new visitors to go there. They have some really delicious snails that I have tasted before."

"Anything else?"

Nobody said anything for a few seconds. The silence was broken when my dad said:

"Nope, but thanks for checking in!"

She turned around, and left the room.

A few moments later, there was another knock at our door.

This time, it was actually Riley. He walked into the room and sat down on a chair right next to me.

"Did someone just come over to your room?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, a women came in and recommended a restaurant to us." I told him.

I looked at the shocked expression on his face. I had a feeling about what he was about to say.

"Weird. That's exactly what happened to me as well."

"You mean she also went and told you guys the same things?"

"Yeah."

We both sat there, pondering it for a moment. He looked at me and opened his mouth but no words came out. I knew what he was thinking, and it was the exact thing I was thinking as well. Maybe it wasn't a coincidence. Maybe it was on purpose. Something sinister.

Jason tapped me on the shoulder, which woke me up from my train of thoughts. My mom and dad were reading some magazines, oblivious to the conversation that Riley and I just had.

I cleared my throat.

"Hey mom and dad, can I go on a walk with Riley and Anna?"

They both glanced up at me and mumbled "sure".

"We'll meet up at The Snail Factory at 6:00 PM for dinner." I told them.

Riley and I got up, and opened the door.

"Let's go get Anna, and then talk about this strange coincidence." I said to Jason who nodded.