Part-1
"Wake up, young man!"
"Hey! Wake up!"
Oh.. Is it morning already!? I did tell Mom not to wake me up. Today's a day off.
"Hey wake up!"
"Mom! Just let me.. " I barely open my eyes and see a scary old man at a few cm away from my face.
"Argh!" I exclaim upon seeing his face. He gets away from my face.
"Finally awake, huh?"
He goes back and sits down on a wooden chair in front of me.
I get up suddenly and take a hazy look around myself. I am surprised and shocked at the same time. What I see is barely light in a closed wooden box. A house built of wood. And I find myself lying on an unfamiliar bed, which I shouldn't be.
"Wh.. Who are you and whe..where am I ?" stammering a bit I question him.
"You are in my house!" he answers with a you-should-have-known tone.
"Argh!.. My head!"
"It should be fine! Now that we have already cured you, you should be able to dance like a peacock."
What he is saying is confusing me more. Why am I here? I should be home..
And that's when it hit me that I was stabbed in my stomach.
I raise my shirt to see the wound...but to my surprise, it is gone, and I have a really confused look at my face right now.
"Wha..what is going on?!"
I question him to get a proper answer.
But he doesn't reply and sit silently on his chair.
The old man is probably my grandfather's age, wearing a robe with a unique colouring of both azure and black with silver on the egde of it's border. The style of his clothing is very familiar to me; it is just like the mages. He carries a staff made of wood. The holding end is spiral-shaped. I wonder if he is a mage. Am I at a cosplay event? Is this the setup of a play?
I take a look around. The surroundings is astonishingly unrecognisable to me. It's a wooden house. No electric appliances. Nothing. Not even a fan. Now that I notice it, I know why I am soaking in sweat. There are lamps to illuminate the house instead of led lights or bulbs. And what's more surprising is that the lamps aren't working with fire.
Fireflies! They are locked inside the lamps to keep the house glowing.
I am really suspicious of this right now. I need to know what is going on.
"Hey! Just answer my question. Will you? Where am I and what is going on here? What is this place?"
The old man again refuses to answer and just stares at me with his scary gloomy eyes.
"You know you can't be popular with kids if you have that look on your face."
He stays silent again. Even the mocking doesn't affect him.
"Hey, is this a prank? You are gonna regret it! Anyone here! Help me!! This old man is trying to kidnap me! Anyone! Help!!!" I shout for help as if I have the upper hand in this situation. This will surely shake him.
"...."
Why isn't he speaking anything, and why does he look even scarier now.
"He..helppp!! Anyone.. Please..! "
I need to get out of here. I am not safe here. I slowly try to slide down the bed.
(Thack*)
he taps his stick on the floor.
I quickly go back into bed.
(Gulp)
"Hey just speak already or I will call the police!" I try to threaten him but he doesn't even flinch.
(Footsteps approaching)
I hear someone running down to this room.
I try to keep my eyes on this old man and ensure that he doesn't try anything weird.
Someone shows up at the entrance of the door infront of me. But I blur the person from my vision.
"Thank God! You are fine!" an unfamiliar and sweet voice reaches my ear.
I slowly take my eyes off the old man.
I see her.
She is the boy cut girl from the park.
What is she doing here and how she is alive? Wasn't she stabbed and announced dead? Why is she here with this old man?
And right! I was stabbed too! I should be dead right now. Then what exactly is going on here!!!
Part-2
She stands at the entrance wearing a poet shirt with furls, shoulders exposed and brown jeans. Her hairs are styled differently.
She is looking elegantly beautiful in that outfit.
Whats more is that she is the very girl I tried to talk to everyday and now here we are, facing each other.
She walks toward me and says -
"Do you feel anything strange in your body?"
I am not feeling very well. My wound disappeared and everything is confusing to me.
"Yeah.. It seems everything is alright." I answer.
"I am glad you are okay!" she gives out a sigh of relief.
She sits on the chair beside the old man and says-
"Grandpa! Thank you for coming on a short notice. If it hadn't for you I don't know what I would have done."
"Nothing to worry about that. It's my duty to take care of any problem of yours. Also it is rare to see a human here." playing with his beard he said.
So the oldman is her grandpa. And what did they mean by that!? Aren't they human too?
"Ugly young man, you didn't have to put yourself in danger to save my granddaughter."
Hey! Now who's ugly? And saving his granddaughter?
Oh.. Yes! Back at the station. I did save her but I was the one who got stabbed and I myself counted my last breath.
"Yes! I did save her."
"You don't know how much I am grateful to you." she says.
I look toward her. We make eye contact and I get flustered and look down.
Get your head together; the mystery of my death still remains.
"Ho! Even if he hadn't saved you, you would still be alive. I don't know what you are grateful for." Shrugging her off he says.
"Geez.. Grandpa! Let me thank him properly. He risked his life for me, so I, at least need to show gratitude toward him."
What are they yapping about?
"Hey! I don't understand what's going on? Why am I still alive and what are you both talking about?" nervously I ask him.
Suddenly the air between them changes.
She looks toward her grandpa with a worry face.
Her grandpa stares right at me.
"As my granddaughter said, I am thankful too for what you did back there even though it was unnecessary. But by saving my granddaughter and letting yourself die, you displayed pure courage and a stunt of bravery. So I appreciate you for that. "
I don't think that's necessary. Because I don't think that if it were another person I would have done the same. Putting myself in danger to save someone's life I'm not capable of doing something like that.
Even I am surprised I pushed her away, and let myself become a sacrifice. My body moved on it's own. Anyways, I am really glad she is safe.
He continues -
"My granddaughter is naive and too kind for her own good."
She pouts after hearing this.
"She doesn't want anyone to get hurt because of her. And how the things turned out, you died and she immediately brought you here, in 'Alexandria- the land of gods and goddesses' which is a different world and doesn't have any connection to your world that is earth."
Different world? What prank are they pulling on me. I get a little nervous after hearing this.
"Eventually, it's all my fault. I didn't know what to do, so I brought you here. I am sorry if you are angry with my solution." She bows her head as she apologises.
Ahh.. I get it now 'Alexandria' is the name of this hospital. And she's apologizing for this type of setup.
"No! No! It's not your fault. Actually, I should be thanking you for saving my life."
Yeah! She doesn't need to feel sorry. I don't know which hospital it is but I am gonna sue them after this.
"Don't get so happy, ugly boy! "
He stands up and gets close to me
In an intimidating voice he continues-
"She wasn't supposed to bring you here. There isn't any single species of you."
He's freaking me out! What's going on in this hospital?
"Wha.. What are you talking about?!"
I nervously question him.
He backs off.
"So, as I was saying, you will be in our care for the next 6 months. After that my granddaughter will send you back to where you belong."
So I will be hospitalised for the next 6 months. But I will be more comfortable if they change this setup.
"Everything is cleared now. So I will take my leave now."
"Ahemm!!" Boycut girl gestures to her grandpa.
"Ha! Right, also be grateful to my granddaughter for waking you up, otherwise you would have returned to your world by losing your precious 6 months."
"I am not talking about that, why would you even tell him that." she replies angrily.
I guess she helped me from not getting into a coma.
Ahh!! I am a big fan of hers now.
"Oh! I forgot to take your packed dinner with me."
Boycut girl hands over a packed box to her grandpa.
"Also! Come here for a sec, ugly boy!"
Just drop the 'ugly' prefix! You old hag.
"If you ever tried anything funny on my granddaughter, then I will rip you to pieces and feed that to the stray dogs of hell."
Scary!!
"I..I understand."
"See you after 6 months then. Be careful my child."
"I will, grandpa."
Ha! Finally he is leaving. I can take a breather now.
He taps his stick on the ground once and suddenly wind flows through his clothes. Green flames start emerging from his back.
They convert into a sphere, engulfing him from all sides. It shrinks rapidly making him disappear. This all happens in a sec.
He.. He vanished...?!
I am left alone in an awe.
It was at this moment that I realised my life had taken a huge, interesting turn.
Amazing...!
So they were telling the truth. I am in a fantasy world.
"Sorry! My grandpa is a little weird."
"Yeah.. " (Little..?!)
"My name is 'LUCILLE KATE'. Today onwards, I will be taking care of you for the next 6 months."
She greets me and introduces herself by bowing down as if she is greeting a king.
We.. We are all alone.
I am so nervous. I didn't expect to be talking to her like this. This is so sudden. I never rehearsed this type of situation. What should I do now!!
"... "
She looks at me in a hope to get my name.
"My name is Rayan Frost. Thank you for having me."
I, too, bow down and introduce myself, showing that I respect her.
I need to be polite and well-behaved in front of her.
"I don't know how I will repay this favor of yours."
Did I overdo it?!
"Well, why don't you eat first. You have been asleep for 3 days. You must be hungry." Lucille says
"No.. I.. " (Stomach growls)
I am literally starving just serve me anything.
She chuckles a little and says-
"I think I have my answer! I too, can't wait to feed you my homemade dinner."
"Let's go then, I can't wait anymore."
She specially made dinner for me. Hehe!!
Part-3
Apparently, when I woke up it was already night. That explains why the windows were closed and why she was using the term dinner.
We move to the dining table situated in the next room.
"Here it is! Satisfy your appetite and tell me how it tastes."
The food she made is not in the slightest way the same food that I ate every day.
Just incredible..
How long has it been since I smelled something full of nutrients and healthy food. Although the cup noodles are the best.
The cuisine of this land differs from my world. Fruits are of odd shapes too.
I can tell just by looking how much work she put into it.
I have come so far so sudden. From struggling to approach her for months to eating dinner with her.
I am so lucky....
Also, she saved my life. I don't know how would I repay her.
"I never thanked you properly so let me thank you for saving my life."
"Oh! No! I should be the one thanking you."
She is too kind. Exactly opposite of that old geezer. How are they even related?
"Ok then let's drop the formalities and dig in. Thank you for the dinner."
It looks delicious. The happiness on my face is obvious.
Grilled meat, eggs, and varieties of vegetables are waiting to be chunk down by me.
She looks a bit anxious. I think she is nervous about the food she made. She waits for me to take my fiirst bite and see my expression. Isn't it weird that we look like a newlywed couple.
I take my first bite of her dish. Surprisingly, it melts right away in my mouth. Giving my taste buds the taste they longed for.
"Mmhm... Mmhm.. It's so delicious."
Hearing this her anxiousness wears away.
"Really!? "
"Yesh.. Thishh ish tha besth fudd I hev eathen!!" I talk with my mouth full.
"Great!!" she looks relieved and happy and starts eating with me.
"Eat slowly! No one's gonna take your meal away." she chuckles.
There is a purple fruit. It is huge and spherical in shape. Ironically, it's soft and subtle. When I press, it easily succumbs in till it reaches it's core. I am able to feel it's hardness from outside.
(How to eat it?)
I look at it from many angles. Like an animal sniffing upon it's food to check whether it is edible or not.
Lucille sees me and laughs out.
"Hahaha..!"
(Nothing to laugh about.)
"Give it to me! I will cut it for you."
She pokes the outer surface with a sharp toothpick. The outer surface pops because of the toothpick and the core is visible to us.
She cuts it in half. A pink liquid flows out of it.
"Take it!" she says.
Really? It looks suspicious.
"Don't look at it like I am giving you poison."
She says.
But still..
I hesitate to drink it, but unwillingly, I hold my breath and pour it down my throat. It's the sweetest thing I've ever drunk.
"Too sweet!" my face lit up with excitement.
"It's called the Dofi fruit!"
Strange name!
She continues with the explanation -
"See, the color of the outer layer describes the fruit's taste. For example, umm.. This and that fruit over there. This one's red and that one has a teal color. If you eat the red one, it will taste spicy. If you ate the teal one, it would taste sour."
"Ohh! Is that how it works?! Fascinating!"
"Yeah! Give it a try!"
I try both of them and they really do have the taste of their own colour.
"Haaa!! It really is spicy! Too spicy!!"
"Oh no!" she exclaims "Drink water quickly."
I sip down a jug of water. It was really spicy.
She explains a variety of other things of that fruit and others. I liked all of them and she seems to be enjoying it too while telling me. I wish this time never ended.
Part-4
Dinner's over.
She gives me a separate room to sleep. I do wanted to ask many questions to her but she said that we will discuss it later and tells me to rest through the night.
The bed is comfortable and so is the blanket. My bed is bigger than the usual one, that's why I feel spacious and I can turn over and over, again and again.
At first, I thought I was in a hospital, then I thought I was reincarnated in another world. But that isn't the case; I am still myself. There are no changes in my body, I don't feel strange. It means I have been isekai (transferred) to another world. I want to know why she is alive and how I am alive.. but I can't be a burden to her. So I decided to remain ignorant for the time being. I can't just go and ask her nonchalantly after what she did to me.
Lucille is sleeping in the next room. And if you ask how I am feeling now.
I am pretty excited!! Lucille, what a pretty name. We will be together for 6 months! Yess! And this world... I can't wait to immerse myself here.
She told me she will take me outside tomorrow so I need to sit tightly with my legs on the brake of curiosity. I can't wait to see what's outside. After seeing her grandpa disappear in thin air I know there are numerous things in this world which will leave my eyes wide open.
My world, where the life of a person is limited due to the system and bogus management. And here, there are numerous possibilities of being different, even for a fruit.
No one will have a constriction of ideas.
I see here the adventure that's unimaginable by most and desired by few.
Nothing in my world interested me.
From age 5 to 23, all we have to do is sit at a table for 20 hrs and learn the same sentence over and over again. After that, marry someone unknown to you, and raise a child. Make a stable living and put your own child under the same pressure. What's the purpose of life if there is no joy or fun?
Only a few, financially lucky or descendants of a rich family, are allowed to do of their own choice.
My life until now was a rat race to the no. 1 position.
I had to travel in a cramped boogey daily, just to sit in a constantly writing and reading class. I had already lost my will to do anything until I found her. I am glad I met her.
For some reason, I love seeing her. And at the end, that is my everything.
I got this chance because of her.
So I want to know what type of adventure and fun this world has in for me..
---Status---
Name:- Rayan Frost
Alive/Dead :- Alive
Where he is currently:- Alexandria
Current situation :- Have to live in Alexandria for the next 6 months.
How does he feel about it :- Thrilled and electrified.