𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙣𝙚 :
disappeared
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PEOPLE WATCHING WAS SOMETHING Riko tended to do often, generally to pass the time. Something about observing how people acted so differently when they thought people weren't looking was so amusing to her.
On the days she was free from her work as a psychology intern she would stay inside with her dog Mylo and watch the citizens from her apartment's window. The small white dog would bark occasionally but was generally quiet alongside her.
Currently, the girl was napping, Riko had just gotten back from a walk after having a long day at work, there were some fireworks that she saw on it, but she was so tired that she just kept walking and ignored how it got quieter the closer she got to her house. Needless to say, she was tired due to the draining activities that took place during the day.
The nap didn't last long, only an hour. When she woke up it was late in the afternoon, so she decided to make herself a sandwich and partake in her favorite hobby: watching the citizens that walked the streets finish their errands along with their screeching kids.
The brunette left her kitchen and walked to her biggest window in the living room, she lived on the second floor so it wasn't too obvious that she was looking at everyone. Riko did it almost every day, finding it far more entertaining to watch strangers than the television that her parents bought for her. A petty gift she despised, they hadn't even dropped it off themselves.
The brunette raised her head and faced the window, lifting her sandwich to be comfortable eating when she began watching only to pause.
There was no one in sight.
Riko furrowed her eyebrows and put her food down to try and get a better look. It's only 5 pm where are all the people?The streets weren't usually empty — ever. Not even at the darkest times of the nights.
Letting out a sigh of confusion she huffed and finished her sandwich without her favorite way to pass time.Was there an evacuation that I somehow missed? A parade somewhere?
Next for entertainment, she moved on to her dog, "Mylo! Mylo?" No feet pattering around the solid floor of the apartment, "Uh...dog?"
Quickly standing up she began to search for her dogs for the next 25 minutes. But nothing came, even when she shook treats, toys, anything.
What if she got out?
The brunette groaned and grabbed her sweater, quickly shoving it over her head she grabbed her pocket knife on the way out. Though it probably would be unnecessary(seeing as she didn't live in a particularly dangerous area) she couldn't help but feel anxious as she peered at the empty streets.
Noticing that the sky was getting darker outside she pulled out her phone to check the time. However, it wouldn't turn on. Furrowing her eyebrows she decided to smack it, somehow believing that if she hit it hard enough the electronic would start functioning.
Why won't it turn on? I just took it off the charger...
There were too many strange coincidences for her to not have a strange feeling in her gut as she pushed on. Now not just looking for her dog, but any form of life.
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The streets only seemed more deserted once on the same level. Riko had searched until it was dark — way past her preferred curfew seeing as she had work tomorrow, but not one citizen had been found.
Screw it I'm going to get food, then I'll go home and sleep. Maybe I'm asleep right now. She shrugged and continued the short walk to her local grocery store, finding that it too was empty. It wasn't much of a surprise to the girl seeing as everywhere was, but it was eery.
Is it stealing even if no one is here? Probably, but who am I supposed to pay, the air?
Riko looked around quickly before moving to the water, grabbing one of the bottles before moving to the granola bar area. The brunette grabbed a few of the small bars and put them in her pocket before exiting the store.
A few minutes after the girl was aimlessly rolling the streets she heard a ding and was suddenly covered in light. Turning to the tight quickly she saw a bright building illuminating the area she was in, on it read: "Welcome players. The game will commence in a moment'
"What?" Riko froze as she gazed at the screen, furrowing her eyebrows, "Game?"
The same ding was heard and the screen changed, this time it read 'This way to the game arena' with an arrow pointing to the left.
When she turned in the direction of the arrow she saw a pink hue over buildings on the horizon. What the? It flickered every so often so she assumed it was the lighting of a building.
What's going on?
The brunette tapped her fingers on her thigh a few times before deciding to go to them. If there was any life here it would be there, right?
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Once she spotted the area where the lights were above she was confused, why is this the only place with power?
Beneath the lights was a three-story building, it was a rectangular shape with grey walls and a flat roof. After letting out a quick sigh Riko began to travel up to the front door, deciding against any sneaky approach. The bright lights would have exposed her anyways.
Stopping suddenly when blue lines were seen in front of her she became even more bewildered as she tried not to show it, grabbing her knife in her pocket for comfort she shrugged and walked past them; glad to not be separated into different pieces as she did. A small tune played as she entered, then the lasers turned red.
Twiddling the thin knife in her pocket Riko continued to travel into the room, only squinting her eyes more once she realized the large contrast of how bright it was compared to the night. Observing the room she spotted five different people.
An elderly lady that was standing by the elevator at the end of the room, seemed quite frail and dirty.
I wonder what that leads to. Riko thought as she gazed at the elevator before moving on.
On the opposite side, there were two younger girls, probably around Riko's age. One was a taller brunette, leaning on the wall as she also looked around the room. Her body was hunching to the right, allowing the shorter blonde girl next to her to huddle close to her side, seemingly talking into her ear.
They seem to know each other well.
The next person was a basic businessman, wearing a tuxedo and glasses; even adorning the dark hair that was graying along with the wrinkly face. His clean shoes would tap against the floor every so often, obviously showcasing that he was nervous to be here.
The last man in the room seemed to also be Riko's age. He had long blonde hair that would move along with the white hood that was sitting on top of it every so often when he stopped his head to the music playing out of his earbud. Some of it sat behind his ears while other strands fell loose. His face was the most confusing, his eyes were closed and he looked relaxed; a giant difference from the rest of the people in the room.
Why is he so calm while the others are so nervous?
Ignoring the others for now she continued to the table in the middle of the room, there was a sign on the white table that readout,
ONE PER PERSON
Her hand slowly left her pocket as she reached forward and grabbed one of the phones on the table. Once she lifted it off the table it lit up a bar was filling up, 'Facial recognition in progress, please wait a moment'
Slowly looking around she moved to one of the corners of the room as she waited for the screen to change.
Once it did it showcased a blue and black home screen that looked eerily like the back of a card. There was a white app that had the four famous card labels: heart, club, spades, clover. Next to the app, there was another, a V was on it in fancy calligraphy that read Visa underneath. In the middle of the screen there was what seemed to be an identification code, 'ID4956294'
Huh, She looked to the top right, no signal? The screen changed again, this time with a white background again. A female spoke from the phone.
"There are currently 6 participants. Please wait until the game commences. One minute and twenty seconds until registration closes."
What the hell is this?
A new addition to the room caught Riko's attention as she finally turned away from the phone.
It was a teenage girl, still dressed in her school outfit. Her pigtails bounced as she walked fast into the middle of the room like Riko had done seconds ago, "What is this?" Her small voice came out as she looked around for someone to answer her.
The brunette wouldn't answer her even if she could.
A jingle danced through the room, "Registration has closed. There are seven participants. The game will now commence."
Game?
"Difficulty, four of clubs."
Four of clubs as a difficulty rating?
"What does that mean?" The innocent school girl's voice filled the quiet room. Riko was happy the girl spoke up because she knew that she wasn't going to even though she had no idea what was going on.
"It's how difficult the game is." The dark-haired girl that was conversing with the blonde answered, "It's a team game, that's what club means."
Noticing the younger girl's confused face she continued, "I'm Midari, and this is Yumi—" she motioned towards the blonde woman next to her, "We've been doing this for a while. Diamond means you have to rely on wits, hearts are trust and betrayal and spades are physical."
Riko looked down at the floor and made sure to remember the words and meanings Midari said.
"Game, Escape. Rule, you must find your way out.
Clear condition, solve all the puzzles, and find the exit. You clear the game when you have exited the building. Failure to do so will set off a bomb. Time limit, 45 minutes.
Two minutes before the game begins."
A...bomb?
The elevator opened on its own, scaring the old lady into the corner. It seemed like everyone hesitated for a moment before the blonde man pushed himself off the wall to enter first. The others looked at each other before piling in after.
Riko was the last to get in and was pushed in front of the blonde man, accidentally bumping into the man behind her. Even though he probably couldn't hear it due to the music and quiet volume of her voice, she let out an apology as an instinct, "Sorry."
The same jingle as downstairs filled the room and the elevator closed once more, leaving everyone in the cramped room.
When the elevator dinged once more showing that they reached the third floor everyone flooded out like the elevator from The Shining. The brunette almost couldn't believe her eyes as she looked around, the room was completely different than the one downstairs.
The businessman ran towards the closed elevator door and began to bang on it, yelling about how he wanted to be let out and not stuck in this game.
Looking closer it was evident he was extremely nervous seeing as he was sweating bullets, same with the elderly woman who had huddled into a corner muttering words to herself every so often.
The poor lady looks like she would have a heart attack before the bomb even goes off.
Riko then decided to stop watching the participants and start observing the room.
A completely different aesthetic was in front of her, filled to the brim with wooden items/furniture. A bear pelt rug, bookcases, a round table, a clock that would tick obnoxiously. It seemed to be a very complex room full of different older fashioned items and furniture.
The dark walls next to a fireplace weren't lit with real fire, only fake. There were random, unknown paintings adorning the walls, leaving nice accents to the dark, bland wood.
It looked like an escape room. With the theme being a cabin.
Riko wasn't sure if the bear rug on the floor was real or not but she didn't wish to learn. Directing her attention to the roof she spotted basic light panels and let out a short snort.
So they can only pay for all this furniture and a bomb...just not lights to match the aesthetic?
All of the participants flocked around the room trying to find any clues. All except for the man in the hoodie. He was still as serene as before, resuming his position of leaning on the wall and listening to music.
Why am I here again?
Riko groaned and moved further into the decent—sized room, taking notice of the other participants conversing with each other but not joining in.
Everything was moving along fine until the brunette felt a tap on her shoulder. Riko turned around quickly and spotted Midari, the tall brunette, standing there with a smile on her face, "Hey! What's your name?"
Riko blinked at her awkwardly before taking a step back and answering, "Busy."
Midari let out a small laugh as she spoke, "Well hello there Busy! It's nice to meet you!"
Dad jokes. Riko turned around, making a face as she shook her head subtly, knowing it was was not nice to meet her.
Riko sighed as she tried to divert her attention anywhere else, obviously trying to get the girl to go away. She noticed the blonde trying to approach her so she walked away, ignoring them both.
Don't talk to me.
"Game start."
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It only took five minutes for someone to find the first clue.
The elderly woman Kiyumi(she had overheard the old lady and businessman introducing themselves, his name was Takeru) had found a space between the books on one of the bookcases. While the other two contestants minded their own business, Riko and Yumi(one more subtle than the other) watched Midari approach the old lady.
"What's in there?" Midari prodded as she got into the woman's private space, leaning on the book next to her.
"Nothing..." Riko observed the woman's body language, spotting her shifting her weight and avoiding eye contact. Common signs of a liar.
Midari let out a dramatic sigh as she opened the space to find a small chest in there. Attention fully captured Riko watched the tall girl bring out a key from the space.
"Oh yeah, this is nothing." Midari continued to pester the woman as she flung the key around.
"Hey! You should be respecting your elders!" Kiyumi stormed over to Midari and tried to grab the key until Yumi intervened by grabbing the older woman's arm only making the situation more complicated.
Midari used her height to tease the older woman as she reached her arm above her head. "How am I disrespecting you? I am simply collecting things that are of use."
"You little brat!"
Be quiet. She tried to take her attention off the rowdy group but their volume wouldn't decrease. They're too loud.
"Why are you being so rude?!" Riko's irritation only grew as the women showed no sign of stopping, "Give me the key!" Kiyumi's breathing became very rigid and her old age began to take effect as she tried to grab the key forcefully.
Riko smacked her head lightly on the wall before walking over to the trio, jumping up and grabbing the key from Midari's hand.
"Hey!"
"It's just a key...it could be a fake or distraction. Stop making such a big fuss." The brunette mumbled to herself as she inspected the key closer, trying to find writing or symbols on it to find where it goes.
"You ungrateful little shit!" Miyuki spat, her voice aggressive as she tried to move towards Riko but was held back still by Yumi.
"I'm sorry I have bad hearing, would you like to repeat yourself?" Riko glared at the old woman. I'm rethinking my choice of trying to give it back now.
The woman growled at her and the brunette rolled her eyes before dropping the key into her wrinkly hand, whispering, "Keep your rabies to yourself." Riko backed away from Kiyumi and tried to walk away but was interrupted.
"Why would you do that?!" Yumi rushed forward and grabbed Riko's hoodie aggressively. Her face neared hers as the brunette's eyes widened.
Riko reeled back and quickly forced out, "Don't touch me—" She ripped herself out of the grip and pointed at the woman who had begun to search near the fireplace for an area to put the key, "At least she's doing something with it now. What have you found that could help us?"
Yumi's glare became even more intense as she glared at the girl in front of her.
"And besides your wasting too much time." Riko pointed out, looking at the clock on the wall that only continued to tick obnoxiously.
Seven minutes had gone by.
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AUTHORS NOTE !
New faceclaim.
Posted: September 17, 2021
Words: 2893
Edited: ✘︎