"Why are we worried about the woman at the counter when there is something much more important..."
"... behind our backs?"
"Wait, those lily pads suspended over the levitating waterfall have just created a staircase, haven't they? Let's follow the path!"
"That doesn't seem like nothing to write home about at all."
"Why are you wandering around the same place all the time? A challenge in life is always worth trying out the first time."
"You tried to give a piece of helpful advice to someone. And it failed remarkably."
"I am over here. I thought we have a lot of connections and similarities."
"There is something I can do right now. And that is jumping into the water and driving the train without you on the locomotive."
"Do it then. I will be here waiting for you leave."
"That is something I can't do at the moment. All tourists have to leave this place before the motorman can start the engine."
"I atone for being frightful to you. Could you forgive me please?"
"Relax. It is not your fault. I said something unthoughtful that made you offended. And it was my fault for doing that. Now, why don't we follow the path? We're wasting our time on an argument."
We walk up the stairs.
"Be careful. There aren't any risers or non-slipping nosings here."
"Did you see something different from mine?"
"Well, there was an attendant at the entrance of the restaurant. She whispered something into my ears although we were distant. Then the water in the fountain started transforming to this stairway."
"What did she say?"
"Enter the Twilight Zone! At here, you won't be alone anymore." - "Then she ran straight forward to me until you turn around. She was nowhere to be found."
"There was something happened there."
"Don't you dare to say my thoughts two chapters earlier out loud!"
We arrive at a balcony, where butterflies and fireflies are one. Beneath the curtains and blinds are window panes, illuminated.
"Would you mind opening the windows?"
"Look at this. Such a picturesque and pictorial landscape!"
"Is your train running away?"
"Come back!"
"It's hopeless. We have to walk all the way home."
"But we will not get there in time."
"Time is not a problem anymore. Since your best friend left you."
"Don't you know that motormen regularly switch trains to drive? We don't drive the same our entire lives."
"So why do you even bother putting your photos when you were younger in the workplace?"
"Regular doesn't mean every week."
"That is not the main point that I am trying to present to you. The main focus is that our worries are no longer here, we should enjoy every moment of our journey, perhaps our voyage."
I think he isn't listening to me talking anymore. He is sitting next to the weeping willow at the centre of the entrance, looking at a distance away, through the leaves and the branches, towards the train that he had driven (for more than a week).
"Do you want to switch positions with me?"
"Well, that is not something I would ask others but if you want to, go ahead."
"The view is more beautiful here. The creatures are living their lives, as free as they want to. They aren't trapped in an invisible box of responsibility, unlike us."
"Is that really the only thought that is going on in your mind right now? I thought you were thinking of something beyond my expectation."
"Since the train is gone, why would I need to think about it?"
"That's definitely not incorrect. But who could have driven that train?"
"Look up. There's your answer."
"Is this the disappeared attendant?"
"Indeed she is. But she doesn't seem defunct until recently."
"So you're saying she passed away not so long ago and her mind is controlling the train right now."
"I'm afraid so."
"Look, there's a piece of paper in her pocket. Could you carry me for a minute or so?"
"After all the things you've helped me, this isn't a difficult task to do."
"Thanks for your help."
I take out the piece of paper and unfold it, along with the truth and the truth that this place has held for a really long time. Do I feel scared? Unmistakably no. But the same can't be spoken for my grandfather.
To be continued. I know that posting literature on a website based around math and science is not worth it. But it is worth a try.
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Comments
So did you enjoy reading this part? Because I certainly didn't.
Horrors are my least favourite type of stories. They usually have no actual backstory, and if they have one, it is usually vague. Horrors are there because people want to have their lives traumatized, somehow.
But if you are a fan of horrors, then why would you like them? I want an honest answer, but you could say it's for the scares, I wouldn't mind.