I was surprised when I heard the greeting. Automatically, my eyes went straight in the direction of the stranger. How surprised I was when I found the figure of a boy looking at me with a strange face! He looked like he was mocking me. I don't know if he was mocking me or not, but I felt like he was doing that to me.
"What are you thinking?" Why do you look so surprised?" he asked in a nosy voice.
I felt a mixture of confusion and shock at the boy's attitude. I tried to answer his question with a little hesitation: "Sorry, I was just surprised that you suddenly greeted me. Nothing special."
However, he continued to stare at me with a small smile on his face, as if enjoying my reaction. It felt like she was deliberately seeking pleasure or satisfaction by seeing my surprise. I felt uncomfortable with this situation.
"What do you want?" I asked with a bit of a snarl.
I smiled wryly, trying to ease the confusion and surprise I was feeling. "Sorry, I just wasn't expecting anyone to suddenly greet me," I replied with a slight stiffness in my voice.
The boy continued to stare at me with an intrigued expression. He seemed to be enjoying the discomfort I was feeling. I tried to ignore the feeling and figure out what he meant by his question.
"I was just surprised that your voice sounded so sudden," I continued. "Maybe I was too focused on what I was doing."
The boy smiled triumphantly as if he'd caught me in a state of disarray. I felt increasingly uncomfortable in his presence.
"Do you know me?" I asked, trying to distract him. "I don't remember meeting you before."
He chuckled and replied, "Of course, you don't know me. I just wanted to see your funny reaction when you were surprised. It worked!"
I felt a mixture of anger and confusion. Why was she doing this? Was this just a harmless prank, or was there some malicious intent behind it? I decided to face him with a calm demeanor.
She was like a little demon trying to sneak into my heart. She was evil just by allowing herself to be near me like this; it was more than enough to torture me mentally.
"What do you want from me? I never called you at all, and I don't know where you're from." I tried not to look scared in front of her. Showing fear in front of this figure was tantamount to embarrassing myself. He's a demon! Never go soft in front of her, even just once.
"You don't need to know where I'm from. But I'm sure that you must be thinking about something that makes your heart feel troubled. Isn't that the truth?" She smiled nosily.
I didn't want to respond. I honestly felt uncomfortable with her presence. "I must be crazy for talking to myself. You're just an illusion created by my subconscious. Please don't talk to me anymore. I don't want to be labeled crazy for talking to myself." I wanted to leave her. But not long after, she said something that made me not move from my place.
"Don't you want to know why you were in the broken laboratory at that time? If you want to know, I can tell you. But if not, it's easy for me to walk out of here, leaving you with a million curiosities," he said in a mocking voice.
I was silent for a moment. I'm trying to find the truth in his words just now. It wasn't easy for me to believe him. But I couldn't lie to myself, deep down inside. I wanted to know the truth about it.
"I know you won't be able to resist the sweet truth in front of your eyes. Isn't everything that's happened lately too strange? Your life has gone too far off course. I am sure that you realize that there have been many strange things that have happened. If you would listen to my ramblings for a while, I can tell you some truths as well as clues to all the strange things that have happened in your life." It sounded like a tantalizing offer that the little boy was trying to seduce me with the things I wanted to know most in my life.
I subconsciously decided to go back and leave myself alone, getting close to this mysterious figure.
"Tell me the truth!" I demanded of her
She grinned widely, and her face took on a ghastly look. "Alright. Let me tell you about the truth that you should know."
***
***
"Now we are in a parallel world. I mean, there's another world that has similar circumstances to the one you're in right now," he said in a sinister voice. "A world where everything is upside down and where no natural laws apply."
I looked at him in disbelief. A parallel world? How was that possible? But at the same time, I was piqued by the curiosity growing inside me.
"In this world, anything is possible. The laws of gravity can be reversed, time can travel backward, and reality can be an illusion," he continued in a serious tone.
"What does this have to do with the time-broken laboratory you mentioned earlier?" I asked, trying to find a connection between his story and the strange events I was experiencing.
"That place is an experimental site that has something to do with you, or perhaps another you? You have too many forms; I'm not sure myself," she replied teasingly. "When you entered that laboratory, you accidentally crossed the boundary between these parallel worlds."
I was stunned to hear that. So, was I living in a parallel world all this time? But why didn't I realize it? How could I have been so stupid?
"You know what? In this world, many people have come here who are from other worlds. The world you live in now will slowly become chaotic. I can tell you about this matter, where you must realize that one of the causes of the chaos comes from you. Don't you feel guilty?" She said it teasingly.
I was still digesting all the information I had just heard. It all felt like a nonsensical fiction story. However, the strange events that had happened in my life could not be ignored. Plus, she said that everything that happened had something to do with me. Hearing his words was more than enough to add to the burden on my mind as well as my heart.
"Then, what should I do now?" I asked, trying to face the situation with a clear head.
I felt more and more squeezed. I didn't know what to do. I felt like I was trapped between two worlds without knowing which one was my real world.
"Do you want to continue all this or go back to your ordinary life?" she said with a sly smile.
I pondered for a moment. Although everything felt strange and scary, there was a part of me that wanted to find out more about this parallel world. Perhaps this was the answer I had been looking for.
"I'll continue," I replied firmly.
The boy smiled with satisfaction. "Well, you've made a wise choice," he said. "I will help you, but remember, this journey will not be easy. Prepare yourself well."
With mixed feelings of nervousness and enthusiasm, I decided to follow this mysterious boy. I had no idea what awaited me in this parallel world, but one thing was for sure: an unexpected adventure had begun.