Missing

YSABELL'S POV

Umalingawngaw sa aking tenga ang nakapangingilabot na tawa ng lalaking nakamaskara. Prente itong nakaupo habang humahagikgik na ipinupukpok ang hawak niyang ballpen sa mesa.

Gia waves her hand to the TV in front of us. "Okay, enough of the joke. You guys harmed half of us already," iritableng saad niya kasabay ng pagbuntong-hininga.

The guy crossed his legs. His simple movements are enough to cause chills throughout my whole body. He places his hands on his knees and I notice that he's wearing white gloves to hide his skin.

"I told you, it's a game." his voice is playful yet eerie. He's chuckling between his thoughts, but his tone is tremendous. Enough to make us all tremble in fear.

Naglakad si Danielle sa harapan mula sa aking likuran. "Don't you fucking get it? We are injured!" she yells while gritting her teeth. Her fingers are digging on her jeans and God knows how much those pink nails could wound anyone's skin.

"I owe you an apology, Danielle. Our little friends just got carried away by the situation. They didn't mean to hurt any of you," usal niya saka biglang natawa. He cuff his mask using his left hand while his right hand remains on his knee, still holding a pen.

They know her name- our names.

Nagpantig ang tenga ko sa aking narinig kaya marahas akong tumayo without realizing that my ankle is injured. I wince in pain at muli akong napasalampak sa sofa.

"Stupid," bulong ni Leighton.

Noah rushes toward me. His wounded shoulder is now wrapped with bandage and he's not wearing any shirt so I can fully see his muscles twitching as he stride his way on my direction.

"A-are you o-okay?" he asks when he finally reached me. He scans my ankle na ngayo'y nagsisimula na ulit mamula.

"Another stupid," Leighton mumbles while crossing his arms.

Hindi ko na lang siya pinansin at ibinaling ko ang aking tingin kay Noah. "Yeah," saad ko ngunit kinontra ng aking mga kilos ang sinabi ko dahil biglang kumirot ang aking sakong kaya napahawak ako rito habang pinipigilan ang aking pagngiwi.

"Mag-iingat ka kasi," naiiritang saad ni Ylise saka niya ako inirapan. I'm certain that she's annoyed with me, or maybe the situation is pressuring her that's why her emotions are affected.

I understand her, though.

Narinig ko ang mahinang boses ni Leighton. His legs are crossing each other and his hands are on his knees. He's clearly imitating the man inside the television.

"They didn't mean to hurt us? So what was the axe supposed to do, then? Act as a baseball bat and our heads as the ball because it is a game, huh?" he forces a laugh but the rage on his voice is evident.

Mas lalong lumakas ang tawa ng lalaki. Narinig ko ang pagbagsak sa sahig ng hawak niyang ballpen nang mapahawak ito sa kaniyang tiyan habang humahalakhak. "I like your humor, Leighton," he utters between his chuckles.

"I'm not kidding. Especially to a coward who wears a mask just to hide his ugly identity. Though I don't blame you, it was your parents' genes fault," Leighton answers in a stern tone while staring at the TV.

The man abruptly stops from laughing. He even stopped moving. He just remained silent for a couple of seconds while staring at the light above his head.

"Did you just call me stupid?" he mumbles in a serious tone. Muli na namang dumaloy ang takot sa aking katawan kasabay ng pagdampi ng tono ng kaniyang boses sa aking tenga.

"You're not just ugly and stupid, you're deaf also?" Leighton asks while faking a laugh. He's not showing any fear, but he's clenching his fists.

"Leighton, stop it," awat ni Danielle sa kaniya ngunit inirapan lang siya nito.

"What a coward," sabat ni Ylise habang nakatitig sa TV. I'm not sure if she's pertaining to Danielle or the man inside the television. Agnes grips her shoulders to stop her from talking.

"Ylise, isa ka pa!" sigaw ni Gia sa nanginginig na tono. Clay is patting her back because she's trembling badly at hindi matigil sa pagtulo ang kaniyang pawis.

Agnes enters the kitchen. Kumunot ang noo ko no'ng una ngunit nakita ko siyang lumabas dala ang plangganang ginamit niya kanina. She walks toward me at nang nasa harapan ko na siya ay lumuhod siya.

"Kailangan mong mag-ingat sa susunod," saad niya sa nahihiya ngunit kalmadong tono. Well, being impulsive in this kind of situation won't do any good. Me and my swollen ankle are the living examples of that phrase.

Tango lang ang tanging naisagot ko sa kaniya.

Ylise shouts, "What? They're treating us like puppets on their hands and we're supposed to let them do that?!" sigaw niya dahilan para matigil si Agnes sa paghaplos ng aking namamagang sakong.

"Don't fight with each other. In this game, you should be allies," the man suddenly utters kaya sabay-sabay kaming napaharap sa kaniya.

"What do you mean?" Noah asks with confusion at nagsimulang kumunot ang noo ng bawat isa.

Umayos ng upo ang lalaki. "Let me explain how the game works," saad niya habang mahinang tumatawa.

He claps his hands like a king at may naglakad na anino mula sa likod niya. When the light strikes his body, I notice that it's the guy who climbed our tree.

The guy who let us escape.

May iniabot itong papel sa kaniya habang paika-ika itong naglalakad. "Thank you, you can now rest," saad ng lalaki sa kaniya nang tanggapin nito ang papel sa kaniyang mga kamay.

Then, in a span of seconds, biglang umalingawngaw ang putok ng baril mula sa speaker. Nanlaki ang aking mga mata nang unti-unting dumaloy ang dugo mula sa ulo ng lalaki pababa sa kaniyang maskara.

They knew... that he helped us.

And they killed him.

They are murderers.

"Ooops! Hahahaha!" biglang tumawa ang lalaki nang bumagsak ang trabahador nito sa kaniyang tagiliran. I see the man behind him holding a revolver that's pointed at the head of our only ally... who's now a cold corpse.

We all gasp in shock. In this moment, alam na naming lahat na hindi lang 'to simpleng laro. No one utters a word. After witnessing someone dying, who can react? We are all afraid that if we say anything, the trigger might taste his finger and the bullet will run outside the TV and be planted on one of our heads.

"You know what I hate the most, Jake? Traitors," he utters while chuckling, never glancing at Jake.

I've watched my lola died before, but the scene that I just witnessed right now really blew my mind as well as the gang's. Walang kurap silang nakatitig sa TV kung saan may taong walang habas na binaril. Their eyes are combination of confusion, shock, and tremor. None of their shoulders are moving.

Masyadong natuon ang atensyon ko sa lalaking nakahandusay sa sahig. I can't see him anymore, but his shoes are still peeking on the TV. Lifeless. Because of us.

The cough of the man startle me, all of us.

"Let's get back to the business," he says at tumingin ito sa papel na hawak niya.

He nods uncountably before he glances at us. "Let me introduce myself first."

"I am the gamemaker," maarte niyang itinuro ang sarili niya habang humahagikgik. "And these are my pawns," he adds then he peeks at those two guys on his back.

"Call the caretakers," wala sa sariling usal ni Danielle habang tulalang nakatitig sa TV.

"Nah ah," the gamemaker shakes his head. "Those are my pawns, too." he chuckles.

I knew it!

I knew it all along that there's something wrong. I'm not just delusional. It's not because of my illness. Everything that I noticed is fucking real! But they told me to keep calm so here we are, stuck in a Casa with these creepy people whose definition of fun is death.

"This is insane! Why are you doing this to us?!" hindi makapaniwalang tanong ni Ylise habang hawak-hawak ang ulo niya. Tumayo si Agnes at lumapit sa kaniya para aluhin siya.

The gamemaker ignores Ylise and he proceeds on his explanation. "The game has three levels," he says in his usual playful tone.

Itinaas niya ang kaniyang hintuturo. "And for the first part, we entitled it The Medieval Era," saad niya saka mahinang pumalakpak. His pawns are just sternly standing behind him, disregarding the dead body on their feet. Both of them are still carrying their deadly equipments and I'm sure that they are not just two.

"A-anong ibig mong sabihin?" tanong ni Clay.

"What did the Medieval people do to those who sinned?" he asks then he lets out a creepy chuckle.

"Why don't you cut the drama and just say it?" sabat ni Leighton sa naiiritang tono.

Tumawa ito sandali bago muling nagsalita. "They punish them," he utters then he lets the paper fly in the air freely na tumama pa sa camerang nasa harap nila.

Everyone gasp except for me and Leighton. I'm more bewildered than afraid.

My eyebrows furrows, "I thought it's a game? Then why are you punishing us?" I ask with fake braveness.

"It is indeed a game, Ysabell. But I never said that you are the players. You are just the chess pieces and we... are the ones who will be controlling you," he mumbles in a deep low tone.

No one reacted.

Lahat kami'y natigil dahil sa sinabi ng gamemaker. We know that this isn't a joke. No person who is sane will kill just for fun. No one. And these people who are playing us on their palms, I don't think they are humans.

Ylise's voice made everyone turn their heads on her. "So, that's all? We're supposed to die here the way you want it?" he exclaims with disgust and a fake laugh.

"I never said that we'll kill you, Ylise. Punishment is different from death," he answers while clasping his fingers together.

"S-so anong dapat naming g-gawin?" nauutal na tanong ni Agnes habang marahang itinataas ang nanginginig niyang kamay.

Narinig ko ang mahinang pagtawa ng gamemaker bago ito sumagot. "Obey, play with the rules clearly given... and survive," saad nito dahilan para sabay-sabay na magsitaasan ang mga balahibo sa aking katawan.

I thought that's all he's about to say, but the gamemaker continues his words before the TV shuts off. "Clues will be given once the chess piece had been chosen. Don't ever try using the keys given to you, those could only be used outside... and you're currently stuck inside. Have a good night, sinners."

This isn't good. None of this is.

Narinig ko ang impit na pag-iyak ni Gia at sumunod naman sa kaniya ang hagulgol ni Danielle.

"Will you stop?" iritableng saad ni Leighton kay Danielle.

Danielle tried to speak between her sobs. "Don't you understand Cody? We're about to die here-" she didn't finish her phrase because she was interrupted by her cry.

"Will your tears open the doors and set us free?" he asks grumpily.

Nabigla ako nang marinig ko ang biglaang pagsasalita ni Clay. "Stop being so insensitive, Leigh-"

"Don't you dare call me that," pagbabanta ni Leighton sa kaniya habang dinuduro siya nito, "As far as I remember, we don't know anything about each other so shut your mouth," he adds.

"Cody, stop-" Danielle was cut off by Leighton's voice.

"No! How dare he-"

We are all startled by Agnes' voice that bangs the whole Casa.

"Tang ina manahimik kayo!" sigaw niya dahilan para mapakurap ako ng ilang beses. Gia— who's crying, drops her jaw in shock.

Wala ni isang kumibo sa amin.

Dire-diretso lang kaming nagtungo sa aming kaniya-kaniyang mga kuwarto dahil sa pagkabigla sa nangyari. Danielle and Noah helped me to walk because of my injured ankle. I can feel the tension between the two of them which says that there was really something that happened between them, but I disregard that fact even if it hurts me, we have a more important business to settle here.

It's funny that even Leighton the bitch, became silent when Agnes was at rage. All of us are shocked because of her sudden shriek.

Nang maisara ni Danielle ang pinto ay bigla siyang natawa. "Did she just shout?" hindi makapaniwalang tanong niya sa akin.

Tumango ako, but my reaction didn't change. We shouldn't be calm in this situation. We're not safe.

"Danielle-"

"Yeah, I know. I'm just trying to lighten up my mind from what just happened."

I sigh. I don't know what to say because I'm also dumbfounded.

"It's just that, my mom, she's waiting for me," she says then she bursts out in tears.

I want to console her, but then I realized that there's also one person who I left at home, and I promised him that we will meet after two weeks.

Dad.

He didn't want me to go. He wanted me to stay. His hugs, I know he was begging that I'd decide to stay with him for the rest of my suspension weeks.

But I didn't.

Unti-unting tumulo ang luha sa aking mga mata. I have no idea what will they do to us, but I'm certain that they're trying to kill us. I can not only see it, but I can feel it, too.

This isn't just a normal game.

Those people, are deadly dangerous.

Danielle sniffs when she sees me weeping. Napayuko ako at tinakpan ang aking mukha gamit ang aking mga palad.

"Hey," she mumbles as she kneels down to meet my face. Hindi ko pa nakakalimutan na halos lahat sila'y pinagmukha akong tanga dahil wala ni isa sa kanila ang nagsabi sa akin tungkol sa nakaraan nila ni Noah pero hindi ko kayang magalit kay Danielle, lalo pa't nakikita ko kung paano siya mag-alala sa akin ngayon.

She cups both of my cheeks using her cold and trembling palms. I know she's terrified, too. But here she is, consoling me, the one who did nothing but trouble.

"It's okay." she wipes my tears away even if she's crying, too.

"We can get out of here," piyok na saad niya kahit pa nararamdaman kong imposibleng mangyari iyon.

"After two weeks," dagdag ko sa sinabi niya. We can't make a call to anyone because there is no signal here. We're lost. All we can do is to wait for Danielle's drivers.

"Yeah." muli na namang napahagulgol si Danielle nang mapagtanto niya ang aking sinabi.

After an hour or two of weeping, we decided to finally sleep.

Rinig ko ang malalim na mga paghinga ni Danielle senyales na natutulog na siya. I can't sleep yet. My mind is still occupied with things that are impossible to happen in real life.

We're stuck in an enclosed Casa that's far from the city. We were surrounded by freaks who intended to make us their chess pieces into their deadly games. We have no connection with the modernization.

And Danielle and Noah had a past that only I didn't know.

I'm so effed up. I'm done. May mas ilalala pa ba 'tong nangyayari sa 'kin ngayon?

I check my phone. 9:56 P.M.

Maaga pa, and my body is not tired yet. Maybe because I slept in the tree house a while ago, or maybe I'm just terrified that something bad will happen again if I let my guard down.

Bumuntong hininga ako saka ko ibinaba ang aking phone sa tabi ng aking unan. That's when I noticed the picture on the back of its case.

A blurry picture of me and my dad that was taken today, when I was still beside him, when I was still at home. How I wish I could turn back time and stay with my dad instead of going out with them.

I pick the photo out and stare at it. I don't want to take my eyes off of my dad. I'm afraid that if I do, I won't be able to see his face again.

I shut my eyes before a pile of tears came out of them. The least thing that I need to be right now is to be weak. I need to fight and stay strong in order to see my dad again.

Because I promised him that we will meet after two weeks.

Muntik na akong mapasigaw sa gulat nang biglang mamatay ang ilaw.

I thought Danielle did it, but then the speaker on the ceiling rumbles before a sound comes in.

It's them.

"Time to sleep, sinners," says a man in playful tone with a chuckle. The gamemaker.

They have control of everything, even on our own rooms.

Muli kong tiningnan ang phone ko.

10:00 P.M.

So 10 is the time to sleep, huh. What a bunch of manipulative bitches.

I flinch when I hear a familiar sound buzzing. Muli na naman akong kinilabutan dahil sa nakakatakot na tono nito. Another song is being played.

He sees you when you're sleeping

And he knows when you're awake

It's not the usual Christmas song that will make you feel home and sense the breeze of Christmas. The voice is haunted and its eerie tone is enough to make anyone will hear it shiver.

He knows if you've been bad or good

So be good for goodness sake

Tinakpan ko ang aking mga tenga pero hindi ko natakasan ang nakapangingilabot na tono ng kanta.

You better watch out!

You better not cry

You better not pout, I'm telling you why

I want to scream.

Ask what's wrong with them and why are they doing this to us.

But I didn't. I don't want to wake Danielle up because she will hear the music and she'll suffer, too. She's also tired to still take this bullshit and I know how fragile she is so I need to stay quiet.

'Cause Santa Claus is coming to town

I close my eyes and forced myself to sleep. I cover my face with the white pillow and this time, I let my tears to fall down.

--

I check upon myself the moment I wake up. Kumpleto pa naman ang parte ng aking katawan kaya napahinga ako nang maluwag.

I take a look at my phone and kiss the photo in it before I stand up. Danielle is not on her bed anymore. It's just 9:12 in the morning yet it seems like everyone's awake already.

I stride outside our room and noticed that everyone's sitting in the living room except for Gia and Danielle. I didn't ask where they are because I can smell the aroma of fried bacon and egg from the kitchen.

I scoot beside Leighton because I don't feel like sitting with Noah. He's in between Agnes and Clay. Ylise is probably sleeping because she's not in the kitchen, either.

"Who told you that you can sit here?" Leighton blurts out while he's scrolling through his downloaded podcasts. His earphone is on his head and I can hear the song playing on it.

Then I remember what happened last night. "Did you guys heard a song, too?" I ask, ignoring Leighton's mock.

"Y-yeah," answers Noah, but I didn't react.

"Ysabell-"

"Not today, Noah. Not today," I spit before standing up and walk towards the television.

There's no remote that I could use to turn this on, so I walk back to the sofa like a stupid brat and slumps my butt beside Leighton. He gives off a mocking chuckle so I glare at him.

"Shut up." I glare at him, but he just shakes his head while laughing.

Noah tried to walk towards me, but he's withhold by Danielle's voice from the kitchen. "The breakfast is ready!" she calls out.

Tahimik kaming naglakad patungo sa dining area. It's funny how the number of chairs are equal to eight. Is it a coincidence or they planned everything? I know they are after us and not other people.

But why?

Why us?

Because we're sinners?

It's what the gamemaker always call us. Sinners.

I realized his words. One thing is for sure. Whoever is doing this, knows us well... even our sins.

"We only have these at the refrigerator," saad ni Danielle habang marahang ibinababa ang isang platong puno ng bacon. The smoke that comes from it makes me hungry.

Ylise walks with plates on both of her hands that has the rice and scrambled eggs with onions. "I can't believe I can cook," she exclaims with a sigh of satisfaction as she puts the food down.

"Let's eat!" Gia announces while holding a fork on her right hand. She's sitting beside Clay and I am beside Noah, unfortunately.

I'm not mad anymore, but I just don't feel like talking about that matter this time is a good idea.

Noah offers me a slice of an egg at hindi na ako nag-inarte pa't tinanggap na ito. We can continue fighting once we get out of here.

"Thanks." I didn't mean to sound rude, but my voice came out blatantly.

"Y-you're w-welcome." hearing his nervous tone made me feel guilty.

I can't take this anymore.

I'm not that cruel to make him feel guilty all the time. We need to reconcile as soon as we could because we are both suffering and feeling the uneasiness. Especially because we're stuck in the same house, and we're surrounded by demons.

Binitawan ko ang hawak kong tinidor and I slid my left hand down, looking for his. I entwine our fingers and when I notice that he flinches, I squeeze them.

"It's okay," I mouth with a smile before letting go of his hand, but he grips them to hold on.

I smile, then I proceed eating using my right hand.

Danielle whispers while jostling herself on the middle of the table to prevent her voice to be heard by those freaks. "So, when does the game starts?" her voice changes a bit because she's munching a bacon and rice on her mouth.

"We all have no idea, stupid."

Danielle rolls her eyes at Leighton, "I just hope this is all some sort of joke," she says with a sigh that almost made her choke because of the rice. Inabutan siya ng tubig ni Agnes.

Leighton replies. "They killed one of them. Do you think that's a joke? That— that blood's a joke?" he exclaims irritatingly while pointing his forehead, exactly where the blood comes from the man who helped us.

"Ang aga-aga ang sungit ng bading na 'to," Gia says while taking a bite on the bread she's holding.

"Mind your own monkey business," he spits before focusing on his headphone.

Gia just laughed and jabs a piece of scrambled eggs in front of her. Inabot niya ito sa plato ni Clay pero hindi ito tinanggap ng huli. "Hindi ako kumakain ng itlog, babe," he hesitantly utters.

"What a pussy," says the bitch. Leighton.

Gia looks at Clay with a bewildered face, "What? Didn't you-"

"I don't f-feel like eating it today. P-please," he answers that almost came out like a whisper but I can read his mouth.

Gia nods even if she's confused. "Yeah, sure. Take the bacon instead."

I can feel the tension between them, but I just ignore it. What's so interesting with a person who hates eggs?

The speaker screeches, and I close my eyes because I don't want to hear their voices at this early in the morning.

"Good morning, sinners. The game will start in any moment today," saad nito bago tuluyang nawala ang tunog.

We all gasp, frightened and puzzled.

"Have you, have you tried the keys?" I ask while staring at them.

"Yeah," Ylise answers. "None of them fits the hole."

Danielle starts crying and Gia is now rubbing her back. Same thing's happening between Ylise and Agnes. They seems pretty close now. And I think that's good.

We ate in silence.

What can we do?

Nothing.

We just only have to wait until the game starts. And figure out how this shit works.

How their game works.

I let go of Noah's hands at inihilamos ko ang aking kamay sa aking mukha. I don't know if I should be terrified or what because I have no idea what will happen today.

I just let my tears go, silently.

If they're really trying to kill us, then it's bullshit. It's total bullshit. I'm not afraid of dying. I'm afraid of leaving dad alone and not fulfilling my promise to him.

I just can't take the thought that someday, a parent may will be grieving to the corpse of his child— that is if he will be able to find it, and I'm terrified that person might be my own father. He already lost his mother, his wife, and fuck them if he will be losing his daughter this early.

I feel hands on my shoulders. Noah speaks, "It's okay. N-no one can h-harm you as l-long as I'm h-here."

This is the second time that he said this line to me. If the first one made me feel safe and relieved, this moment, I feel anxious. I know that I'm not safe in this place.

We're not.

And he can't do anything to prevent those guys who wanted to harm us.

But I just nod and smile at him. Ayoko nang dumagdag pa sa iniisip niya.

We finished our breakfast and minded our own businesses. Danielle and Gia tried to call their parents, but they both failed. On the other hand, Leighton and Ylise are thinking how we can open the glass covering of the house because it doesn't have any keys. I think it works electrically.

We tried breaking it using the sofa, but the sofa almost fell into pieces, so we stopped.

Their security is unbreakable.

We can't get out of here. I see no openings that might be used as our way outside. The windows have grills and I know that there's something on them. An electrocution if someone tries to sneak out? I don't know, I can't risk myself just to figure it out.

The television can't be opened because we can't find the remote, so we have nothing left to do but wait for them to start their game.

But I hope this day will pass with us being unharmed.

I decided to wash the dishes dahil wala akong ibang magawa at makausap.

Naalala kong hindi pa pala nahuhugasan ang pinagkainan namin kanina kaya nagtungo na ako sa kusina.

There, I notice someone.

Clay is in the kitchen.

And he's eating boiled eggs.

He stares at me for a second, then he realized that I'm paying attention to the bitten egg on his hand so he abruptly hides it.

I thought he wasn't into eggs? So why does he seems delightful eating it?

Before I could even ask a question, the speaker rumbles, creating a creek sound that's so painful for our ears.

Napatakip ako sa aking tenga at gano'n din si Clay dahilan para mabitawan niya ang hawak niyang itlog.

What now?

I'm expecting to hear the gamemaker's voice, but I hear nothing except for a song. Not the one that they played last night. It's a different one.

But it's familiar to my ears.

I heard this song already.

Nanlaki ang aking mga mata nang mapagtanto ko kung saan ko unang narinig ang kantang ito.

It's the song that one of the pawns was singing, the guy who helped us.

The guy who was shot to death.

When you're alone and life is making you lonely

You can always go

Downtown

Unti-unting nagsitaasan ang mga balahibo sa aking katawan. I give Clay a terrified look and he gets it.

The game is about to start.

Tatakbo na sana kami para pumunta ng living room pero natigil kami nang makitang nag-uunahang makarating sa kusina ang aming mga kasama.

When you've got worries all the noise and the hurry

Seems to help I know downtown

"What the fuck is that?!" Leighton shrieks while shaking his feet as if he's trying to get rid of something on his body.

Just listen to the music of the traffic in the city

Linger on the sidewalk where the neon signs are pretty

What's happening to them?

What did they see?

How can you lose?

Nagtungo sila sa kinaroroonan namin ni Clay at isiniksik nila ang kanilang mga sarili sa amin dahilan para mauntog ang aking ulo sa frying pan na nasa likuran ko.

The lights are much brighter there

You can forget all your troubles, forget all your cares

The impact is so strong that it made me feel dizzy. I fall into my knees at narinig ko ang pagtawag nila sa aking pangalan.

So go downtown

Someone is shaking my shoulders, but I can hear nothing but the sound of the song.

Things will be great when you're downtown

I try to stand up when I regain my strength. Noah is helping me, but I can't still clearly hear his voice.

No finer place for sure downtown

I don't know if I'm just hallucinating, but I can see green gas that's coming towards our direction.

I glance at them, and they all have the same facial expressions, they're all terrified.

It's not hallucination.

It's real.

Everything's waiting for you

Unti-unting lumapit sa amin ang kulay berdeng usok at nang dumikit ito sa aking balat ay muli akong nakaramdam nang matinding pagkahilo.

It's not just a simple green colored gas. I can smell the strong chemical in it that's making everyone unconscious.

Narinig ko ang pagbagsak ng isa sa amin na sinundan ulit ng isa pa, but I can't move my head to see who that are. My body is now paralyzed because of the gas that entered my nostrils.

Kasabay ng pagkapal ng usok ay narinig ko ang pag-ubo ni Agnes. I think her asthma is attacking her.

In a matter of seconds, we are all lying on the floor.

Naramdaman ko ang pagbigat ng talukap ng aking mga mata. I tried to fight it, but I can't. Masyadong malakas ang epekto sa aking katawan ng usok na iyon.

Before I close my eyes, I saw someone entering the kitchen.

But it's not one of us, it's one of them.

Because he's wearing a mask.

--

I woke up with a swollen head. Nahihirapan man ay pinilit kong tumayo mula sa aking pagkakahiga.

I thought that I was just dreaming, but no.

I'm still in the kitchen.

And everyone is still lying on top of each other, their faces are exhausted and soaked in sweat.

I can't remember anything.

Ang tanging naaalala ko lang ay naisipan kong maghugas ng plato.

Then, I saw Clay eating an egg even if he said that he doesn't eat one.

That's all I remember, the rest are blurry.

I want to ask Clay why did he say that. I know that it's just an egg, but his actions are telling me that it's not just a simple matter.

I know there's something deep behind his words and I want to know what it is.

But I'm afraid that I can't ask him that

question anymore.

Because Clay... is missing.