I waited for Destiny to get distracted and headed for my room. The plan was in motion. I was going to walk to my room, but on the way, I was going to cross the living room with the clock I had seen earlier. As I was on my way, Nanny's voice stopped me.
- Honey, can I talk to you for a second? -
I stopped dead in my tracks. I had hoped to make my way to my room while Destiny was distracted, but now that seemed impossible. I turned around and Nanny was watching me as she cleared some dishes. Her smile was the same as always. You would think that after working all day she would be completely exhausted, but there she was, with the same smile as always, moving as if nothing had happened.
- Yes, of course. -
- If you want, we can do it in the kitchen. - She nodded for me to follow her.
I followed her. The kitchen was spotless inside. The dishes were already in the sink, and everything she had used for cooking was gone. She must have been washing and cleaning while we were eating.
- Tell me how you felt today. I hope it was better than yesterday, - she said as she started washing the dishes.
- Yes, it was fine, the dinner and everything. -
I said it without thinking too much, because the sooner I got this over with, the sooner I could get back to my plan. The last I heard from Destiny was that she was going to the bathroom, so I had to hurry.
- What's wrong? Have you been bored? -
Maybe this was my chance. If I told her I really wanted to use the computer, maybe she would take mercy on me and I wouldn't have to risk doing something against the rules.
- Well, to be honest, I have been a little bored. I tried to use the computer, but I couldn't... - I tried to sound as pitiful as possible.
- What? - It seemed to have worked, until she continued.
- You can't depend on technology for entertainment. You have to make an effort to make friends, talk to people. There are lots of board games and card games, there's the library and the gym, and if you depend so much on technology, there's also television. - Now it had turned into a scolding. It was my fault for expecting something different. My mother would have said the same thing.
- Do you understand? -
- Yes, I'm sorry. -
- There's no reason to apologize. Besides, now that you know more people, you might have more fun. - She paused and then continued, changing the subject. - What did you think of the others? -
- Well, I already knew half of them, but Tiny was very nice to me. In fact, we talked throughout the whole dinner. -
When I said that, she sighed.
- What's wrong? -
- It's nothing. Normally, the new person sits in the middle so they can talk to everyone, but we had to put you in a corner because of your power, and you only talked to Tiny. -
- It's okay. I doubt I would have talked to the rest of them anyway. -
- That's the problem. Tiny is very sociable and loves to monopolize the newcomers, so he indirectly prevented you from talking to the others. -
- It's not a problem, really. -
- Promise me that tomorrow you'll talk to more people at dinner and throughout the day. -
- Okay, I promise. -
- Very well, let's go to the others. - As she said this, she left the last plate to dry. She had washed them at superhuman speed.
When we returned to the dining room, the rest had already gone, only Destiny was left waiting for me. My plan had been ruined without me realizing it. I let out a sigh and followed Destiny to my room. I couldn't try anything. If she saw me, they would undoubtedly punish me, and if I told her why I had done it, Nanny probably wouldn't let me use the computer for a long time.
We walked together to my room, where she stopped before opening the door. She looked both ways and handed me a small plastic ball.
- Don't touch it with your bare hands, okay? -
I looked at the little green ball in my hand and was completely confused.
- What's this for? -
- Shhhh, - she said, looking around again.
She winked at me, and I simply decided to pretend I understood as I nodded my head. I entered the room with the ball in my hand and a feeling of irremediable failure.
I'll have to wait until tomorrow at dinner to put my plan into action, unless Nanny stops me again right after dinner.
I lay down on the bed with my suit on and put the ball aside. The easiest thing to do was just to sleep. Tomorrow would be a new day, and I could try again. I really wanted to sleep tonight.
I turned my head to get more comfortable and found myself looking at the doll. I got up quickly and stared at the doll.
- Why do you always react like this? - That voice should sound innocent, but I find it a little disturbing, and there was a certain tone of sadness in it.
- How did you get in? I thought your power was only to turn yourself into objects? - I may have sounded less calm than I would have liked, but it didn't matter much.
- Destiny politely asked me if I could help you, so here I am. –
Of course, the ball that was given to me should have been Thing in the shape of a ball. She should have told me that before, instead of just keeping quiet. It would have saved me the scare.
It's true that Destiny had said she wanted to help me, but I didn't expect it to be like this.
- So, what's the plan? - I said, looking at the doll lying on the bed.
- As I understand it, your problem is that you don't have a clock and you need someone to watch you in the morning so you can go out, as part of your punishment, so I'm going to help you with both things. - She paused.
She turned into a transparent plastic ball with lights and spun around on the bed, then turned into a remote-controlled car and moved toward the pillow, turned around, reversed into the pillow, moved forward again, and reversed again, but before she touched the pillow again, she turned back into a doll. Now as a doll, she was standing, but falling with some sort of inertia against the pillow. She ended up falling and sitting against it.
- I'm sorry, but could you stop looking at me like that? -
I had been watching her as if hypnotized by the strangeness of her movements, and now that she had stopped, I could realize it. I could feel my face blushing.
- Yes, I'm sorry, it's just that... - I was trying to justify myself, but I didn't know what to say.
- It's okay, I know I'm scary, they've made that clear to me. - Her porcelain eyes were green, but I could feel her looking through them. - But please let me help you. -
- No, it's not that," I sighed. "It's just that, Its embarrassing, but when I was little, I saw a movie about a haunted doll, and since then I've been afraid of antique dolls. -
She didn't answer me; she just sat there.
- Where was I? - she said after a while and an awkward silence.
- Yes, of course, I had asked you how you were going to help me. -
- All right, - she said, now sitting on the pillow. - The plan is very simple. When the bell rings at 10, I'll turn into a wind-up clock. You wind me up 30 times, and I'll sound the alarm when it's six. Then I'll turn back into a doll, and you'll take me with you to the computer. If anyone asks, I'll be watching over you instead of Destiny tomorrow. -
- That sounds good, but if you could wake me up earlier so I'm ready to run at 6... -
It was strange to be talking directly to a doll, and it was even stranger to realize that she was actually a girl, besides the apearence and the voice.
- Yes, I have no problem with that. Just keep in mind that I need you to wind me up at 10 p.m. with the sound of the bells 30 times. -
- Understood. -
The room fell silent. She was still sitting on the bed, so I decided to leave the bed alone and sat down at the desk instead. I was planning to write until 10 p.m. like the night before and then try to get some sleep for a change. I was about to do so when I heard Thing say something, or a sound like she wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words, and then she fell silent.
I turned to look at her at that moment when I was already sitting in the chair and she was on the bed. It was hard to think of her as a real person. I had seen her turn into things, but I had never seen her as a person, which made it strange to imagine that she really was a person. Even though she was there, I felt as if I were truly alone in the room.
Maybe I should talk to her. She's still a human being.
I sat down and turned the chair around, now looking at the doll sitting on the bed. Her green eyes filled me with unease. Empty and disturbing, they continued to convey a feeling of discomfort that made me want to look away. Instead, I forced myself to hold her gaze and began to try to think of something to talk about.
Her doll dress was white and old-fashioned, but it looked clean and surprisingly well cared for considering how old it seemed to be. Her light golden hair was styled with bangs in front and a blue headband as her only adornment.
What are you supposed to talk about with a doll?
- So, how long have you been in this house? –
I looked at her, not knowing what she might be thinking, and I couldn't help feeling silly talking to a doll. I could feel embarrassment wash over me once again.
- I, I arrived at this mansion not long ago, about two months ago I think, but because of my condition, I've never been able to welcome a newcomer. Actually, you're the first newcomer I've been able to interact with properly. -
- Then who was the last newcomer? -
- I'm not supposed to talk to you about that. You know the rules of this place, - She replied, but I could sense something strange in her voice, even though I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
- Can I ask you a question? - She was the one who spoke first this time.
- Sure, go ahead. -
Will she ask me about the computer? I'll just tell her it's for fun and nothing else.
A brief moment passed, perhaps of hesitation about what to ask, before she asked her question.
- Do you read? -
The question took me by surprise because it wasn't what I was expecting, but it didn't take me long to answer.
"Well, yes, although not very often."
- And what do you like to read? -
- Well, I prefer adventure stories, science fiction, mystery, and detective stories. -
- What's that? -
- Detective stories? -
- No, I meant science fiction. -
- You don't know what a science fiction story is? You must be joking, right? -
It was impossible to tell if she was joking; at least her voice didn't sound like she was.
- Yes, yes, haha, silly question, it's just that... - She fell silent and closed her eyes for a moment.
- I'm sorry, I'm not very good at conversation. I haven't talked to anyone in a while, - she said softly after a moment, slowly opening her eyes again.
- It's okay, I'm not exactly the best at small talk either, so you don't have to worry about that, - I said, trying to cheer her up. - We don't have to talk if you prefer. -
- No, - she replied quickly. - I'd like to keep talking longer if you don't mind. -
- Okay, so what do you like to read? -
- Well, I'm just getting back into reading after a while, but what I like to read most are love stories. -
After that, we continued talking for a while longer. The more we talked, the more comfortable I felt talking to her, and the more she seemed like a real person to me. I know she always was, but I had to spend some time talking to her for that uneasiness I felt to somehow leave my thoughts.
We continued talking about many topics, but when I asked her how she got to the mansion, she preferred to talk about something else. She said it was better if we didn't talk about our lives before the mansion. I decided to respect her opinion and leave the subject there, but besides, there was nothing strange about it. Over time, she also relaxed, or so I want to think. She seemed more at ease and less thoughtful about what she was talking about at the end.
We had to stop our conversation when the bells rang, signaling that it was time. She turned into a clock, just as she said she would, a wind-up clock. I took it and wound it 30 times, as she had asked.
- There, that's 30, right? - I said after finishing winding the clock. - So, you were telling me you'd never seen Scooby Doo? -
I remained silent as I waited for an answer that never came. Once again, I felt strange, standing there talking to myself, looking at a blue alarm clock that was now on my bed where just a few moments ago there had been a doll, no, a person I had been talking to for over an hour.
- You can't talk like that, can you? -
Once again, the silence in the room was the only response I got. If it hadn't been for the elevator music, which never stopped playing very softly, the silence would have been deafening.
I took that watch in my hands and placed it on the table, then simply turned off the lights and lay down on the bed, hoping to sleep a little better this time. I closed my eyes tightly and once again found myself listening to the sound of my own heartbeat, unable to fall asleep. At that moment, my skin bothered me because, although it no longer burned, not since I had been taking the pills, the poison still irritated my skin and made me feel uncomfortable, as if my body were at a high temperature and just wanted to cool down a little. I thought for a moment about taking off my suit and letting the wind brush against my skin, but the only time I was allowed to do that was when I was bathing.
My body craved a little freshness, a breath of air. The gel that covered the suit and at first seemed refreshing now just felt like an annoying substance that made me uncomfortable when I was lying down.
The hours passed, and finally, after what seemed like an eternity of not being able to sleep, I got out of bed and set about writing until exhaustion finally put me to sleep.
Occasionally, I glanced at the blue clock on the table to check how much time had passed.
Finally, the time when I could leave the room was approaching, so I stopped writing. I took the clock in my hands and sat down on the stool that I would have to take outside in a few moments.
I waited some more, watching the hands of the clock move, wishing they would go faster, taking the stool and holding it between my chest and my armpit while my left hand held the clock and my right hand took the door handle. I felt a surprising rush of adrenaline coursing through my body. I was more than ready to go, like a runner at the starting line waiting for the whistle to blow.
Finally, the clock rang. I went to turn it off, but it turned into a ball in my hand once again. Without wasting any time, I quickly opened the door and rushed to the computer. The lights in the house were already on. When I got to the computer, as I expected, the seat in front of it was empty. I moved the chair with my stool as fast as I could and sat down on the stool, ignoring the chair with wheels now behind me.
- Someone's in a hurry today, I see, - said the homeless man from the armchair. - But isn't Destiny supposed to be watching you? -
I could feel the ball changing in my hand. I quickly put it on the table, and after moving a little, it turned back into a doll with yellow hair leaning against the computer.
- All right, but before you use my computer, let me do this first. - He got up from the armchair with two clear plastic bags and wrapped them around both the keyboard and the mouse. - See, ever since you told me you wanted to use it, I've been preparing for this moment. Now just let me set up your user account. -
He took the computer and started doing a bunch of things to it. I could only watch the stairs, praying that no one would come down, or rather, praying that Strong wouldn't come down. With the homeless man so close, his scent penetrated my suit, and I could tell he stank of dirt.
- What password do you want? -
- Isn't that personal? - I asked him directly.
He looked at me very seriously.
- It's my computer, just tell me the password, man. -
I whispered the password in his ear, which was difficult because I had to make up a new one so he wouldn't know the passwords to all my accounts.
Finally, he moved away from the computer. He didn't seem to pay any attention to the anything and simply went to the couch, taking his stench with him, leaving only the computer and me.
By the time Strong came downstairs, it wouldn't matter anymore. I had already done what I wanted to do. The email had been sent, and if he wanted to take me off the computer, I didn't care.
I felt him even before he came down the stairs; his presence always impressed me.
When he arrived, I had already quickly opened my account and was watching YouTube videos with the computer speakers (naturally, they wouldn't let me use the headphones that came with the machine).
- You really wanted to use that machine, didn't you? - He looked irritated, his eyes red. - But how did you get here so fast? Destiny hasn't even come down yet. -
I got nervous. Maybe he had noticed that I had cheated. I was sweating, or so I thought, since the drug I was taking was really numbing my sense of touch.
- Leave it, you know the rules, he got here first, - said the homeless man, getting up from his chair.
- Please, it hasn't even been five minutes past the hour, and you want me to believe you've already done the account? -
The tramp shrugged and lay back down. Of course, now it made sense. He was helping me too, which is why he hadn't said anything when I arrived before the time and had helped me with the bill earlier.
- Whatever - He said, snorting at the vagabond.
After saying this, he approached me, stopping at a considerable distance. He stared at me; his eyes fixed directly on me. A chill ran down my spine, and despite the pills, I could feel the heat leaving my body.
I didn't know what he was going to try now, and that terrified me.