Short, Light, Free
chapter-42

I opened my eyes slowly. It was dusky everywhere.

I couldn’t seem to remember my identity.

I felt something moist at the back of my head.

I reached my hand back to touch it. It stung.

Placing my hand under the dim light, I saw what seemed to be blood.

But because it was too dark, I could only hazard a guess from its texture.

It was clammy.

I started thinking about the events that might have led to this. Did someone strike me from the back?

Where was I? I surveyed my surroundings.

Dark, damp.

It seemed to be a sealed room.

I walked to the wall and knocked on it. It was extremely solid.

Who exactly locked me in here, I thought.

I started searching hard for pieces of memory.

Signing of documents… was I an entrepreneur?

I could also visualize a bunch of students and a white chalk.

I saw myself sketching a little horse on the blackboard, clear and distinct.

The kids were cheering happily and I could hear them applauding.

Was I a teacher as well?

I pondered over it over.

So I’m a successful entrepreneur and in my free time, I teach art?

What happened to me, then?

I tried seeing if I had any valuables on me. I didn’t because I was completely naked.

It was hard to determine my appearance based on touch alone, but when I looked down, I saw a beer belly.

Well, it seemed like I’m a fat boss.

It made sense since social drinking was essential for entrepreneurs.

Was the kidnapper after my money?

No.

I had to save myself.

Everything in my head was blurry so even if the kidnapper wanted a contact, I couldn’t give it to him.

I inspected the walls closely with help from the dim light.

I was shocked to discover that this room was completely sealed. There wasn’t any window at all.

In that case, I wasn’t in an isolated house in a desolate area. It was likely that I was trapped in someone’s basement. It certainly explained the moisture and darkness.

I raised my head to find a dim incandescent light hanging off the ceiling.

This place was like a prison, specially constructed.

I sat on the ground and continued searching for clues in my head, and that was when my stomach started to growl.

I was hungry and most probably going to starve to death.

I heard the sounds of water dripping.

Following the source, I found a long water pipe.

A murky liquid was flowing through it at a very slow speed.

Beneath the pipe was a solid metal bowl.

I picked it up and smelled the liquid inside.

Could this be for me?

With the constant growling of my stomach, I grudgingly took a sip and was pleasantly surprised.

It had a rather thick consistency and it was slightly salty.

There was a sweet aftertaste. It really wasn’t bad at all.

I started gulping it down before putting it back under the pipe.

Under the light, I observed each drop of soup landing into the bowl. Let’s call it soup.

I stared at it, considering my next course of action.

The kidnapper hadn’t showed himself and the soup was accumulating very slowly.

This speed was probably just enough to keep me barely alive.

Also, the liquid could fill my tummy and quench my thirst at the same time.

Must have been well thought out by the perpetrator, I thought.

Have I offended somebody when doing business?

The pain was much more bearable by now but my mind was still largely blank.

I continued pondering over my plight.

Right, a teacher…

I dipped my finger into the soup and started drawing the little horse that I pictured in my head on the wall.

In front of the kids, I seemed to have drawn an adorable little horse.

In reality, the horse on the wall looked more like a deformed monster.

It was neither like a horse nor a dog.

I looked up at the ceiling light. It must’ve been affecting my ability, I thought.

Or perhaps my state of mind wasn’t stable at this point so the horse came out differently.

I sat down, intending to rest, but immediately noticed a dark corner before my eyes.

Putting aside all my fears, I crawled over and groped around in the dark.

It felt like a hole.

It was very tiny, only big enough to fit my head.

My shoulders were stuck on both sides.

Was I too fat? I patted my beer belly.

Indeed, it was time to lose some weight.

I was about a shoulder bigger than the hole.

It shouldn’t be a problem if I slimmed down.

I stared at the pitch black hole, not knowing what was within.

It might be an exit since I had no other way out.

I put my head in and started shouting for help. When nothing happened, I started cursing hysterically.

I gave up eventually as I was out of strength and breath. I wasn’t going to get a response.