As if unamused by the expression on my face, he shrugged and continued, “Anyway, thanks. It’s been quite some time since we have been this lively. Usually, dad always stays all gloomy and in his room as I mentioned before. Even though he tries to hide it, his fake smile makes it painfully obvious that he is sad. That old man probably has gone senile as he doesn’t understand how he looks to us. And that also makes everyone sad as well.”

Sympathy arose in my heart as I patted his shoulder to console him. “It’s fine. He will get better. Don’t worry.”

“Nah, it’s fine, I’m used to it.” His expression looked a bit melancholic, as he seemed to remember something. After shaking his head, he turned to me as he said, “That aside, time for exercise. But how do we do it now? Stretches? Push-ups? Or a run?”

W-what?! A-are you planning to break me more than I already am broken? My eye clouded for a moment before I regained my composure. While Stuttering a little, I spoke, “I-I don’t think that’s how it’s supposed to go.”

He cocked his head to the side as he spoke, “What do you mean? I am pretty sure stretches and stuff are exercises, right?”

“I-I didn’t meant that they aren’t.” I panicked and flailed about trying to explain myself. “But, it doesn’t make any sense how I would do that.”

“Don’t worry, I was just pulling your leg a little,” he said, smiling. “Mom already told me how it goes. Now, lie down for a bit.”

Sighing in relief, I nodded before being helped into a lying position. He pulled my arm gently before moving it around back and forth, allowing all the muscles to stretch and contract, before following the same procedure on my other limbs. Afterwards, my joints felt a bit loose, allowing for easier movement.

After thanking him for the help, while pointing at the bookshelf in the corner, I asked, “Would you mind if I ask you to give me a book from in there?”

“Sure, no problem.” He replied while walking to the bookshelf.

He picked up the book before confirming, “This one?”

Fundamentals of magic? This will be interesting… I thought as I looked at the cover of the book he held. Without further delay, I nodded and he passed the book to me.

Immediately after, I began flipping the pages of the book. Before long, I was engrossed in the contents as one scene after another regarding the words within the book formed one image after another in my head.

“Though you don’t really remember,” I heard Samuel speaking and my brows sprung up. I shifted my head towards where he was sitting, “You sure don’t differ much from your old self. I guess you’ll remember everything soon.”

“Is that so?” I spoke, amused and hopeful at the same time. “I hope for the same.”

He beamed happily at me while I returned the gesture before returning back to being engrossed in the book.

A bit later, Aunt came over with a bowl of porridge. While eating, I asked her about the parts I didn’t understand, mostly regarding the words I didn’t know the meaning of or sentences I understood incorrectly.

How interesting would it be if I can make bubbles out of my palm or use ice during summers to keep the room cool. Alright! I will become a good magician! It would even help me when I become a traveller as well! I wouldn’t have to carry a stove or a bunch of water on me. And I can even protect myself like that!

I mulled over the contents I read while eating. The porridge was made well and the flavour of vegetables made it even more delicious. However, after finishing the porridge, I was given a bitter pill – a bitter medicine to be exact. According to Aunt, I was supposed to be given a dose of this medicine both morning and evening after eating.

After finishing eating, I had a sudden urge to express my dissatisfaction towards the taste of that dreadful liquid. However, I didn’t want to scream or complain endlessly. Instead, my hand felt itchy, as if it was missing something.

And to my delight, there already was a pen and a book – a diary, to be particular – resting on the bedside table, although buried under some rags and bottles of medicine. I tried to reach out towards the bedside table but my body didn’t allow me to. I tried to wiggle around and grab a hold of those items, ultimately to give up after a while and having to call for Samuel to help me out.

However, the one who came to the call was Aunt, as she mentioned that Samuel was not at home, having gone out to purchase ingredients for dinner.

She sat at the bedside, observing me trying to write. After being unable to hold the pen correctly due to my feeble fingers and when I did, being unable to produce even a correct stroke, I chuckled wryly to myself before sighing and putting it away.

Seeing my state, Aunt then offered her help, which I gladly took. I would recite my thoughts and we would have an occasional back and forth regarding the said thought. To my surprise, when I mentioned my vigilance towards the family when I first opened my eye, instead of being upset over it, she nodded her head and said, “Well done!”

I was taken aback for a while, to which she explained, “You did well, Zack. You should be cautious around strangers. Especially because you… you don’t remember anything. There are a lot more bad people in this world than they look to be. You should be cautious.”

And as such, night came by as quickly as the day passed. After eating and ingesting the drug of my nightmares, although a bit reluctantly, I put down the book and went to sleep.

A few hours later, I woke up. Cautiously, my eye snapped open. I noticed that my heart was beating like a drum and my body was covered in cold sweat. I took in a few calming breaths before using my hand to wipe the sweat off my face. While wiping my right temple, I noticed something pouring down my right eye, a clear drop of water to be particular.

What the heck was that? Such a horrible dream… I covered my mouth with my palm while thinking about it. I shuddered occasionally remembering the contents, while simultaneously stopping myself from emptying the contents of my stomach.

Cold sweat popped out even after a few hours when I thought about it. Even after having calmed down, I could barely manage to not throw up. The dream — no, the nightmare I saw felt all too real. It was a pitch black night without a moon in sight. And, there was fire everywhere, along with blood and people burning alive while others were being cut down. And then, there was me, being held up high as I saw a woman struggle to escape in front of me. A few moments later, I was falling down from somewhere. She stretched her hand to me but… but… Argh, I can’t remember!

I grabbed my head, unable to remember the dream clearly, yet feeling the bone chilling sensations even now. Pain coursed through my head, while my breath came in irregularly. Not daring to go to sleep again, I lay down while staring up at the ceiling, trying my best to not think about that dream. Soon enough, the sun rising was visible from the window, and another day started, following a similar schedule and the same nightmare.

In similar fashion to this day, I would have food thrice a day, exercise in both mornings and before sleep and have that bitter medicine for dessert. As for the rest of the time, I would either be reading or sleeping. And in the evening would be helped by either Aunt or Samuel to write my views for the day in the diary. And thus, my unassuming days at Uncle’s house began and a moontide passed even before I even realized it.