8. The Truth

Aaron: Sorry, I don't get it

George: No point lying about it now. I don't know if I was a detective in my life but the clues were too obvious to overlook. The knife the old woman had was stained before she stabbed you and the only one bleeding in that room was her. The girl on the floor wasn't bleeding at all. I can't be too sure but what I do know is when the old woman fell, I saw she was bleeding from two places so Aaron, why did you do it?

Aaron: …

George: I'm guessing you called us not because you needed protection. What you in fact needed were witnesses. If we ran into you and two corpses on the floor, you'd have a shit ton of explaining to do but I digress. Why did you kill your wife?

Aaron: So I couldn't even act that out properly. I got back the memory just after we left Jeremiah's talent show. I couldn't have guessed I would come up next and in my house nonetheless. It's almost like N set me up.

George: …

Aaron: That wasn't my wife, George.

George: What?

Aaron: Well she wasn't my wife for very long. There is no need to keep secrets from you now, it's up to you to tell the rest or not. She was one of 7, the 6th to be specific. 7 to me is the perfect number. If you remember everything I told you and you are at least observant, you'd know my life was well set up. Best grades, best looks… this isn't me bragging but I had to keep myself in order. When I was 18, I was practically already ahead of all my peers and I mean way ahead. I wanted to experience a lot of females so that I could get the most suitable candidate. Race, color, age, I had to find out what would make the perfect woman for God's perfect man. Of course, she had to be smart too. I won't bother you with stories of the rest but basically when I was done with them, I took them back home so we could get down to it.

George: It?

Aaron: You should know what I mean.

George: ...

Aaron: Sex. Most times they would say no and want to leave but I'm an impatient man. So I just had to get them unconscious whether by drugs or force. By the time they wake up, they get whiny and that's why I make short work of them.

𝙂𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣'𝙩 𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜.

George: You're crazy.

Aaron: Crazy? I can't bother explaining to people that can't see things from my perspective. The old lady you saw?

George: Yes

Aaron: That was the 5th one's mother. I don't know how she managed to track me but fortunately she wanted to take me down herself and not get the police involved. I was already done with my 6th then she barged in. Unfortunately for her, I was armed with my knife, I normally use that knife to cut samples off my other wives.

George: Wait, you call them your wives when you didn't get married?

Aaron: Wives has a nice ring to it, no? Anyways she walked towards me with a gun in hand, I was already scared for my life at that point but I remembered. If there was anyone with insane luck or rather a blessing, it was me. I threw the knife and it hit her neck successfully. Before I could run towards her to get it back, she pulled it out and turned my own weapon back on me. I knew she didn't have long though; her gun even fell out of her hands then you know what happened from there.

George: But if your encounter with your 6th was that short, when did you have the time to take the picture I saw in your room?

Aaron: What picture?

George: There was a picture of the both of you in your room upstairs.

Aaron: No, that's impossible. You didn't get a good look at her face, right? I know I took a picture with one of my wives. She actually stayed with me the longest but she wasn't the one for me. They do look a bit alike if I think about it. I'm actually surprised that I remember this much. What I can't just put my finger on is how I died.

George: …

Aaron: George, are you scared of me?

𝙂𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙖 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝.

George: Aaron?

Aaron: Hmm

𝙂𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝘼𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙣'𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙝𝙚'𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚.

George: Aaron, I know I am not one to judge anyone here but all those people you murdered did nothing wrong and you don't even care about the consequences. Their families are living with one less member and that's on you.

𝘼𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙣 𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙗𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙨.

George: Not a word of this to any of them. Especially Lisa, she thinks you're cute but I'll tell you this. The next event you get, you're staying there. I don't give a f**k if you died by a f******g shark attack.

Aaron: I could have stayed back but you decided to not let me.

George: Oh please, you knew we would stop you and also I wanted to hear why you did it. Sighs… Why am I getting angry when I could be even worse than this trash? Let's catch up to the rest.

Aaron: I didn't care about this road bullshit before but now I will make sure I witness the darkest secrets you have, George. I wonder how Lisa will take it.

George: What makes you think that bothers me? I don't even know what the end game to all this is. A wish? I'm sure he's not going to let us go back to life so what's the point?

Aaron: He is probably having a field day watching us. Well I'm…

𝘼𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝.

Aaron: My tooth

George: Hmm?

Aaron: The tooth you punched out of my mouth is back. I can't even feel any pain from your gorilla punch anymore

George: I think we should tell the guys about this. LISA! JERRY!

Jeremiah: Can you stop calling me Jerry??

George: Come on over, we got something to show you.

𝙅𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙖𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙇𝙞𝙨𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢.

Lisa: What?

Aaron: Look at this tooth.

Jeremiah: Mmhmm…

Aaron: It was in my mouth before but now it's back in my mouth.

Lisa: …

Jeremiah: … Is this some sort of magic trick?

George: For the love of... His tooth was knocked out of his mouth and it regenerated or something.

Lisa: Ohhhh but how did he lose the tooth in the first place?

George: That's beside the point. The point is there's something going on and there's only one person that can explain it to us.

Jeremiah: Yeah but he isn't here right now. It's not like we can call his name and he would pop out like some genie.

Lisa: I know, right?

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙥 𝙜𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣.

Jeremiah: Am I the only one that thought…

N: No, you weren't.

𝙉 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬𝙨 𝙪𝙥 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙅𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙖𝙝. 𝙅𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙖𝙝 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙥𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙞𝙣 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙘𝙠 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚.

N: I am here and it's only because you have finally discovered something else. Remember how I said I wouldn't let you kill anyone on my watch?

George: Yeah I can remember that coming up.

N: Considering this is the afterlife, you should know that there is no such thing as dying a second time. As far as you are walking on this road, your bodies will always regenerate no matter the damage or effects of time so as to let you finish your journey. Speaking of time, I'm sure it's hard for you to keep track of it since it's always dark here. So permit me to inform you that you have been walking for 2 years. 2 years in the normal time you were accustomed to.

𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙. 𝙂𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚'𝙨 𝙚𝙮𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙛 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙇𝙞𝙨𝙖 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘼𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙣. 𝙅𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙖𝙝 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙗𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙉'𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝.

N: Yes. It should seem crazy considering how much time you spend in an event but let me ask you, haven't you noticed anything different about yourselves since you walked through my door? If you can remember, Lisa wasn't always so pushy and aggressive. She was shy and kept fainting a lot. The only thing that isn't getting reset to its original state here is your mind. You're now getting back in touch with yourselves and I'm sure some of you are already scared of what lies behind your doors.

Aaron: So what if we decide to not move from this spot. What happens then?

N: Feel free to do so. When the road crumbles and falls, you can be a part of it. You'll just be forced to relive the memories of all who have walked upon it and didn't make it to the end. Feel free to talk as much as you like but do not stop moving forward. Now I take my lea…

Lisa: What's the endgame to all this?! Why are we forced to do this?

N: Goodbye.

𝙉 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨.

Lisa: You mean this could go on forever?

Jeremiah: No, calm down. He said the options were limited, right?

George: Limited could range from 100 to a million, Jerry. Hah this is f***ed.

Lisa: I don't want to do this anymore, Jerry. Think of something.

𝙅𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙖𝙝 𝙜𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙇𝙞𝙨𝙖 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙪𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙢 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣.

Jeremiah: It will be fine, don't worry. Let's keep moving

George: Aaron? You're been awfully quiet.

Aaron: …

George: Sigh, let's get moving.

Jeremiah: Yeah. Let's go guys.

𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝟱 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙨 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙧. 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙥 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝟭𝟬 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙤 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙮.