Emma was jogging in a white tank top and white leggings. Her perfect shape was well exposed; her phone strapped around her arm in such a way she could get access to it. The perfect harmony with nature and music had been one of her favourite moments since her transfer. She lost touch with Alex after hearing what transpired in TownPort High concerning Jake's death. She heard of Ivvy's death too, but she was not ready to hear what was coming next. When she approached the main road, her phone rang, she picked up and heard a voice, it was Adam.
"I've been trying to get hold of you since the incident," she said heartily. "How is Alex?"
Adam told her over the phone that he had been heading to see her for a few days. Emma confirmed he had not contacted her or seen her. Adam said he would call back then disconnect the call. Emma wondered why Alex was at TownPort and did not come to see her. Her phone vibrated; it was a message alert. She opened the message and read the content.
Her eyes shone in shock; she knew why Alex was in town. Revenge.
She called Adam and told the exact news he would not want to hear. "He is gone; he played finally." She said sadly. Adam was angry at the same pissed at himself. He should have paid attention to Alex when he had the, Alex talked about taking revenge several times when he stared at the static television back at home smiling at nothing. Emma promised to get him back, to calm him down but in the actual sense she knew that there was no going back. He was possessed with the entity and the only way to stop it was by reminding Alex about who he was.
She was a survival of the previous attack, after her narrow escape through the help of Margaret, the same person who watched them play in the playground all those years. Margaret calmed it somehow; she remembered being pulled into the darkness while Margaret held her hand. She was screaming but Margaret wasn't. She fought back for her. Alex is no different.
The news about the school was that it was shut and trapped inside. It was devouring them from inside. So, getting through the school would be impossible.
Another thought came to her; the portal was open so it could creep into any place without light. She needs a place without light. The sun was high, making it almost impossible. The craziest thought came to her, and she almost did not imagine herself seeing it as an option.
St. Brigid's Home for Children, she had to go back to where it all started as she assumed. It was closed and nobody would be dumb to go there because it might be haunted too. She jogged back home.
Having cleaned up, she got into her car and drove off. She just hoped she would have enough time to save as much as possible. She stepped on the gas to get there faster, almost hitting a pedestrian on the way. She stepped on the break and had enough to prevent the accident, apologised, then drove onto the road again.
The car came to a halt after fifteen minutes of driving. She was looking at her childhood home now covered in moss and weeds. The playground was visible through the wired fence, and it was nothing but an amusement park for a rusty ride.
She stepped out of the car then slammed the door a bit. She forced her way through the yellow to not enter dusty tape heading to the door. The door was unlocked but old and heavy. She pushed the door open as it creaked loudly; she was covered in her childhood memories, both the pleasure and the pains.
She could hear the laughter of children echoing up the stairs. She thought she was imagining it till she heard sounds coming from upstairs. Someone was running and opened the door then closed it.
Her heart skipped a bit; she needed to find the portal that was last open. In Margaret's book, 'if it ever comes back, all portals would be open'. The last thing in her mind is to be haunted by her childhood memories.
She was yet to recover from the first when a wooden box fell from the roof and crashed in front of her in pieces. She knew they, whatever it needed, to go up.
She took the hint, dodging the scattered contents from the box. Basically dust, she made her way up the stairs. The building might be dead, but the light was still working. She turned on the switch close to her. Immediately, the passage to the nursery brightened up. She could hear laughter coming from every corner of the room; they were still in the nurseries. Not angry or friendly.
She could feel the pain in their endless laughter. Emma had one duty, find the portal, she just didn't remember which nursery it was. In her confused state, a child stood in front of her a few steps away. Then ran into a room. There it was.
She walked faster with her gotten clue pushing the door open. It was alive, the portal she feared going inside. She took a deep breath and disappeared into the darkness.