Inside the Shadow

Chapter Three: Unknown Fear -POV: Zachariah

I sat there feeling pathetic and hopeless. Now that I am finally stepping up to stop being an arrogant imbecile, Mairi was put in danger. I glanced over at Mairis' parents, who were holding each other, Mrs. Noble still sobbing. I wondered how long we were all expected to wait till we could see her. I pulled out my phone and began scrolling through pictures of Mairi. She always seemed to radiate sunshine, but now, with the little information that she even knew, it's as if the light was replaced with darkness. My darkness. Since that regretful night, I really have been attempting to make it up to her. But how certain could I really be that she hasn't cheated? Honestly, I couldn't blame her for how many times I've pushed her away and made her feel useless.

That Erin kid has been a worry of mine lately. It appears that he's always liked Mairi, and I don't want to lose her to some punk kid. She deserves more, and from now on, if she makes it, I will do everything in my power to be that for her. The man who wouldn't make her feel worthless or start unnecessary fights. The one to drop everything just to be near her and to tell her that I love her.

Honestly, I don't know how I've been able to keep my composure this whole time trying to avoid appearing weak. That's how I was raised though. My father used to tell me, "Zakirya, tashadudu. Kuna rajula." Which meant, "Zachariah, toughen up. Be a man." If I even got hurt like skinned a knee, he would say that. Many times, I forced myself to not cry around Mairi, and she had started to make me feel less cold. Sometimes I felt heartless when I showed little emotion. My father taught me many ideals that I should have listened to and followed by, but I chose this one to stick to. If my father knew about my behavior, he would look away and tell me, "Ya likhaybat al'amli." "How disappointing." In our Arab culture, honor and loyalty are taught from a young age. At least they are by my father. to be strong, honorable, and loyal, all I have failed at.

Before my mind kept repeating all my failures, I stood up and made my way over to the bathroom. I walked in and passed all the stalls until I reached the last one. Noticing no one was in the bathroom with me, I finally started to cry. Being weak alone was far more bearable than with others knowing, I sort of have a reputation to uphold an away. With the sound of the bathroom door opening, I froze. I blew my nose, flushed to simulate I had actually gone in the toilet, and proceeded towards the sinks. As I gazed into my own reflection, I noticed how disheveled this ordeal had made me look. My hair was all out of sorts when I normally have it blow-dried and gelled. My face was now even more red, and slightly puffy from me crying. I wet my hands and began to situate my hair just enough to look somewhat presentable.

As I began to grab a paper towel, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. As I turned to my left, I caught a glimpse of what I would describe as a shadow person dashing out of sight. I rubbed my eyes, assuming they were getting groggy from the tears. "Death and fear." Came a deep, yet coarse voice, piercing my ears. I covered them and spun around attempting to see who was really in the bathroom with me. The second stall being occupied, I shouted, "You freak!" I made a run out of there as soon as I saw the stall door begin to rattle, as if someone, or something, was seeking to excessively open it, with the door still being latched.

"What is going on?" I half yelled, startling everyone in hearing distance, them all stopping and staring. "Sorry, sorry." I said, waving everyone back on their way. 'What was that though?' I thought to myself. Trying to shake it off, I proceeded back to my seat. As I sat, I noticed Mrs. Noble had fallen asleep, still clearly grief-stricken in her facial expression. Mr. Noble was still holding her close to himself, kissing her forehead. His actions only made me want to see Mairi even more; To hold her like that and give her the love I should have done a long time ago. As I sat there, I just kept thinking about Mairi. How lovely she truly was, inside and out. Her smile, her smell, her touch. I felt the time slowly passing by as my body finally began to relax. Only having been here waiting for at least an hour now, I felt as if I was wasting time as if I should be with her now, even if she was still unconscious. I felt that being around her would be helpful, but in all reality, I know I would just be in the way over all else.

Suddenly, the thought of what had happened in the bathroom washed over my mind. The presumably demonic voice shaking the walls right before, whatever it was, wanted to get to me or just strived to scare me. This whole hospital has always felt off, and in the past few weeks, the whole town. Some sort of darkness, shadows, as if they were slowly taking over, and causing chaos. Not wanting to think about the negativity unexpectedly surrounding us all, I tried to clear my mind.

Not wanting to miss anything, I fought the urge to sleep. Mr. Noble now passed out as well. W e'd been waiting for a few hours now and I was beginning to grow weary. As I tried to keep my eyes pried open, my mind began to show me glimpses of Mairi. Her deep brown eyes, her sweet kisses. Oh, how I needed her here with me now. Before I could realize it, I had drifted off to sleep, not knowing how much time had truly passed.

"Zach, honey." I heard a voice faintly as I was gently shaken awake. I sat up with a jolt, my eyes still struggling to adjust. As I was finally able to see what was going on, I saw Doctor Kruger waiting patiently for me to awaken. "Sorry, I'm up. Please, what is the news?" I asked her, hoping to get to see Mairi. "Yes, well, she has awoken now. However, she is probably distraught. There's also something I should explain to you all before you can see her." She said in a quiet tone, as if what she knew was groundbreaking. Before another word could be spoken, I began to hear a shrill screaming coming from one of the rooms behind the locked employee doors. I immediately knew that the scream was coming from Mairi. "What have you done?" I hollered as I tried to push my way past Doctor Kruger.

"Get back!" Came a similar demonic voice as before in the bathroom. At the same moment, I felt a great force that sent me flying back toward the seats we were all in just a little bit ago. I shook my head, dumbfounded. As I looked up towards the rest of the group, I realized that the scene had drastically changed. Instead of Mr. and Mrs. Noble, and Doctor Krueger standing in front of me, it was just the doctor. Instead of the stern-looking brunette I had seen only a second ago, she showed to be far more demonic. Her eyes were now a bright red and her skin was extremely veiny. "Sit down Runt." She screeched, sending me into my seat. Suddenly, as if hell were opening itself up, the floor beneath me gave way, and I started falling to what might have been my doom, as Doctor Krueger stared down maniacally.

"Wake up, Zach!" I was suddenly shaken awake to see Mr. and Mrs. Noble standing over me, us all still in the waiting area. I jumped to my feet and realized everything was back to normal. Had I really dreamt that or was it something in this building warning me to stay in line? "You alright Hun?" Asked Doctor Kruger, her hiding a smirk as if she knew what I had just supposedly dreamt up. "Yeah, I guess." I said, rubbing the back of my head, feeling a bump. 'If that dream was not real, then how could the bump be explained?' I thought.

"If you all would like to come see her, there is something I must explain first." Doctor Krueger stated. Mr. and Missus Noble both nodded, holding each other tighter than before. "Of course." I said impatiently. "Mairi has woken up. However, her condition is not ideal." Mrs. Noble let out a small sound, as if not trying to cry once again. "Mairis' sciatic nerve was damaged. This means there is a possibility that it could cause her to have difficulties with simply standing on her own, let alone walking." With that, Mrs. Noble buried her face in her husband's chest as she let out a wail.

Then Doctor Kruger nodded to us to have us follow her to Mairis' room. As we all approached the door, we could hear chaos ensuing on the other side. "Are we all ready now?" Asked Doctor Kruger, holding the knob to the door. "Now, please." I stated before they could speak. And with that, she turned the knob.