Eyes passed through the hole in reality and jarringly, found himself surrounded by white. He raised a hand to shield his eyes and blinked once, twice at the harsh white light that seemed to surround him, his eyes still adjusting to the change. He wanted to scream at Sin as his eyes adjusted, pissed that he was just being dragged from one blinding abyss to another.
But then as he blinked at the floor, he noticed the smooth marbled patterns on it. He saw a pair of feet walked past him. Regular feet in regular white shoes.
People!
He lifted his head from the crook of his arm and winced at the light but he slowly made out the white walls, the clean ceilings with white lights. The first real thing he saw was a white semi-circular counter backed against a wall, two women dressed in white uniforms sitting behind it, nursing caps on their heads. Files and boxes were scattered across the counter.
Then the voices — human voices! — hit him from behind. He turned around and was greeted by the sight of a few dozen people sitting down in blue, stiff chairs. The old and the young, the healthy and the sick, all talking amongst themselves.
He almost cried laughing at the sheer pleasure of seeing people again and he took a step forward.
Stop, said a voice from behind him. Save yourself the disappointment, Eyes.
It was Sin.
He turned around and was surprised to see a gaunt and hollow looking young man with pale hair looking at him. Eyes did not need to ask. He knew by the way the young man looked at him that it was Sin in human form.
Eyes did not say a word, his muscles tensing, wanting to run away from the infernal creature, away from the memory of that deep darkness he was stuck in for so long. He won’t go back. Not anymore.
I know what you’re thinking, said Sin, the hollow voice still the same. But you cannot join them. These people are not truly here.
What do you mean? Eyes asked, taking a slow step backwards. Where am I?
Another person walked pass him, a young girl. But she seemed to take no notice of him. He frowned at this, his thoughts racing.
Sin did not give a reply to his question. Instead the next words he heard from Sin were — You do not recognise this place now, Eyes. But trust me, if you had your memories, you would.
Eyes stopped moving. In his excitement to get away, he had forgotten about his memories. Now the fear, the hopelessness, the sense of being so lost and so alone came crashing back into him. Sin still had his memories.
Yes, Sin had never explicitly said that it was Sin that took his memories, but Eyes knew it was the only truth possible.
He had to play Sin’s game until he got his memories back.
He spoke to Sin then — So where am I, then? Why here? And why can I see you now?
Come with me and you shall see, Sin said. The pale young man that was Sin floated — floated! — away down a corridor some distance before saying to Eyes — And as for my appearance, suffice it to say that I have a bit more leeway with how I look in your reality.
Even as Sin moved away, Eyes went up to one of the people in the seats — a young boy who was staring ahead, humming to himself — and waved a hand in front of him.
There was no response. Not a flicker. Nothing in the boy’s eyes that acknowledged Eyes. It was just as he had feared.
No one could see him here.
The Writing Journal 