I don’t know how long it’s been.

Or how long it’s been since I’ve been rotting on this bed.

All I do is stare out of the window and sometimes eat. And when I say sometimes, I mean it more like when I know that if I don’t eat or drink, I will die. Then I eat—only that much that can make me last a few more days.

All this rotting in bed because of a bloody girl.

Yup. Just because of a girl.

How can I forget that night? I was supposed to pick up my girlfriend at 8, but I got free from my daily study around 6, so I thought, let’s surprise her.

When I drove into her driveway, I saw a familiar car standing there. I parked and decided to let myself in. And as I opened the gate, I saw my so-called girlfriend and my so-called best friend making out on the sofa, and—I went in and saw them.

As they noticed me—before I could say anything or even process what was happening—she saw me and smirked.

Then she said,

“You’re boring.

I was only around you because you could complete my assignments.

and one more thing you’re a bloody loser with no money and no future. So yeah fuck off ”.

I just blinked, took a turn, and walked out. I sat in my car and came back to my room. I just sat on the bed, and before I could process anything or even breathe, a ding sound came that took my attention.

I saw it was an email. An email from the organisation, with a big title: “Results Out.”

Without giving it a second thought, I opened it and checked my result.

And the cherry on top: I didn’t qualify for that exam.

After reading that, all I could do was take a deep breath and throw my phone at the front wall. The next thing I saw was flying glass, shattered everywhere. I let myself fall on the bed, took a deep breath, and stared at my ceiling.

I didn’t know when I fell asleep.

I came out of my deep, long sleep when a knock came on my door. An outside voice said, “Sir, dinner’s ready.”

I ignored that voice, curled up again, and slept.

The next morning, a familiar voice echoed inside the room, removing the curtain from my dark room where I had been sleeping for how long, I don’t know myself.

“Care to explain why this room is a mess and what happened to your phone?”

Before the sunlight could hit my face, I managed to cover it, and from under my breath, all I could manage to say was,

“I didn’t get in mom.”

Before I could say anything else, she said, “Take your time,” and left the room. With a click, the door closed again.

While I was thinking—something, I’m not sure what—I dozed off again.

And this cycle continued for many nights and days.

It’s been days. I’ve been rotting in bed.

A knock on the door broke the silence and dragged me back to the present.

All I could manage was to say, “Yes.”

Despite not feeling anything, I could sense an aura from the other side of the door, and I knew who that person was. With a soft click, the door opened. A cold gust of air came in, and the scent of a very familiar smell hit my nose.

Now I knew who it was without even turning toward the door to make sure. All I could do was make myself smaller and curl in even more.

“I heard you didn’t get in. If you want, I can get you in.”

And just like that—like always—he let his sentence hang in the air, waiting for my answer.

I wanted to say something, but all I could manage was, “No.”

“Okay. Then go and do it yourself.”

I knew from the way he said that he had a smirk on his face. He turned and was about to leave. I don’t know what happened, but I said something I shouldn’t have.

“Father… so, is this the time?”

He stopped at the door.

“No.”

Then he walked out.

It’s been almost ten years since I’ve been asking this question. I know something is going on. He said he would tell me everything when the time comes, but until then, I’m not allowed to say anything about my father and mother.

I know we are rich, but I don’t know how we are so rich, or how my father is so powerful. And before I could spiral down these thoughts, I snapped out of it when the door made a clicking sound.

And with that, something else also clicked in my mind.

A soft whisper came: “Wake up. It’s time.”

I was sure it sounded like that person was next to me, but I wasn’t sure if it was just my regular inner voice. Still, the voice was right. It was time.

I woke up and cleaned my room. Apart from my mother and father, no one is allowed inside, so I was the only person who would clean the glass mess I created that day.

With a foggy mind and tangled thoughts, I cleaned the room, then went to take a bath. I don’t know how many days it had been, but when I saw myself in the mirror, I didn’t recognize myself.

My eyes were blood-red. They felt hollow—and hungry for something I wasn’t sure of. Maybe not maybe. No. For revenge.

And I will have my revenge on those people.

I bathed, came back, followed my routine, and then slept—only to wake up again at 5 a.m. sharp in the morning.

...****************...

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Sharp at five, my alarm went off.

I opened my eyes with a cracked mood, turned to the side, and tried to fall asleep again.

The moment my eyes closed, a voice—no, a whisper—slid into my ear.

“You forgot about your revenge… uh?”

My eyes snapped open.

This was the same voice I had heard last night.

I was alone in the room. At least, I was supposed to be.

Still, I jumped up and scanned the space. Pale moonlight spilled through the window, mixing with the faint glow of the street lamps outside. Nothing moved. No one was there.

Before I could think any further, my alarm rang again—5:05 a.m.

With a dead mood, I muttered, *screw those sounds*, went to shower, and forced myself back to studying.

After studying for a bit, around eight, my alarm went off again.

Time to hit the pool.

I’d been swimming since the age of five. It was one of the few things that gave me peace—one of the few sports I genuinely enjoyed. But with exam prep, and after *that incident*, I’d been skipping it.

Not anymore.

I got ready and stepped out, only to be greeted by my mother.

“Now I can say this is a good morning for sure.”

Instead of giving a proper answer, I rolled my eyes.

She continued, “So you finally decided to crawl out of your rot, huh?”

“Mother, for the love of God,” I said, rubbing my face, “please don’t start this first thing in the morning.”

She just smiled and said, “Have fun.”

Years of habit told her exactly where I was heading.

I got into my car.

That’s when I noticed a small piece of paper on the dashboard.

*Time is coming soon.*

I froze.

I knew that handwriting. There was no doubt about it—it was my father’s. I was dead sure. Even the ink was familiar, the same special kind he used for his official work.

But this is the first time he said something like this, and what this is about—what this means I am not sure of.

Come to think of it, if I say my father is a rich and powerful person, I won’t be wrong. But at the same time, I can’t tell you exactly how rich or powerful, because I don’t know that myself. I have seen quite a bit of luxury all my life—nothing loud, just quiet, subtle things—and I have seen this for as long as I can remember.

But once I grew old enough to understand things, restrictions followed. No bad habits. No unnecessary trouble. And one rule that could never be compromised—I could never tell anyone who my parents really were. I couldn’t let people know anything about my personal life.

This is one of the reasons all my friends and my girlfriend used to think I was broke, because I never talked about money, parents, and etc. Oh—sorry. Ex-girlfriend.

All my life I have been wearing quite normal clothes, nothing fancy. I drive a second-hand, clean Ford F-150. It’s clean, gets my job done, and I like that raw look. Bonus points for being matte black with red underglow lights. It’s nothing fancy. It’s very clean in my eyes.

You know, my so-called friends always used to make fun of my car. Even my ex-girlfriend used to say that if I wasn’t cheap, I should at least drive a BMW M5 Competition or something.

I just used to smile, ignore it, and say, “No, I love my F-150.” And that’s true. I do like it.

If I ask my dad for a BMW, I know I’ll get it. But I don’t want it, to be honest. I don’t care about those things. But those people used to care only about that.

Screw them. Why am I even talking about those people anyway?

She used to say she loved me.

“What an actual f***ing joke.”

I’ll show them what I can do.

With all these thoughts, I reached my swimming club. I have a bad habit of letting my body handle everything while my mind gets lost in words and spirals down into chaos. That’s why people call me weird and crazy—because I am present and doing everything, but actually not listening at all, just lost in my thoughts. That’s it.

The same thing happened right now. I jumped into the pool, and the sudden change in temperature hit my face. I snapped back into reality and started swimming.

After one hour of jumping and practice, I came out with one crystal-clear thought:

“F*** them. I will take my revenge and destroy them.”

With this thought, I changed back into normal clothes and came back home. Before the gate shut, my mother came back inside, letting herself in with a tray of fruits and some juice. She kept it on my study table, then turned to me with a face that said she knew I knew something and wanted to share it with her.

“Spit it out!!”

Without giving it any other thought, I said, “I want to move out and live on my own and prepare for my exam.”

As I said this, I could see her face change—from knowing, to a bit scared. Then she thought about something; I’m not sure what. Then another thought, maybe, that made her relax. With a knowing, relaxed smile, she said, “I will talk with your father.”

Without saying anything else, she left my room. I know I made her sad, but this is really important for me. I need to get out and grow on my own. I can’t stay here forever.

With her leaving my room, I went back to my studies. Soon, night rolled in, and I came out of my zone when a knock came.

“Sir, dinner’s ready!!”

I packed my stuff and went downstairs to see my father and mother sitting at the dining table, talking about something almost in a whisper. When my mother saw me coming down, she smiled and switched back to a more normal tone.

“Come, sit here.”

I silently followed and sat just in front of my father. I turned my plate, and the server came and started to put dinner on my plate.

“So you want to move out?”

My father has always been very straightforward while talking, and he doesn’t talk much. I never understood why. I assumed it was his nature, but somehow that doesn’t fit completely, because I have seen glimpses of him talking—and even chuckling—on rare occasions in front of my mother. But with me, he is mostly neutral, with a very calm and steady nature. I never understood him quite well, but for my mother, he is totally different.

I was spiraling down into my thoughts again when I felt a cold touch on my hand. I snapped back and saw him staring right at me, waiting for my answer.

“Yes.”

“And why?”

“So I can prepare for my entrance exams.”

“Okay. But the rule still remains.”

With a slight nod, I accepted. After that, we mostly ate in silence.

After dinner, I came back to my room. When I lay on the bed, I was thinking about something—but when I dozed off, I’m not sure.

Again, sharp at five, my alarm went off.

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Sharp at five, my alarm went off.

Compared to yesterday, today I was ready. As the alarm went off, I opened my eyes, and the first thing that came into my mind was shifting to a new room. For better or worse, I have to do it, no matter what.

Without giving it any thought, I got out of bed, freshened up, and started studying.

You must be thinking what I am studying and about what. Actually, I just completed high school, and around this same time last year, I came home from school and my mother was waiting at the front door. As soon as I saw her, I knew something was going on.

“Hi, Mother.”

Her smile usually reaches her eyes, but that day it didn’t.

“Your father is waiting for you in the study.”

Without giving it a second thought, I went inside, put my bag in my room, and without changing, headed to the study. I didn’t think much back then. Maybe I should have. But I was dumb — you could say blinded by some people. Maybe. I’m not sure.

I went and stood in front of the black door with a golden handle. A light fragrance of fresh pages, leather, and a hint of vanilla coffee was coming from the other side. I knocked and waited for an answer.

“Come inside.”

With a firm grip, I opened the door. The room was dimly lit. The light was coming from the fireplace, along with some standing and overhead warm lights, which were enough for you to see everything — even read and write — but not flashy.

I think this was the second time I had come into this room.

The first time was when I was a kid. After that, I was strictly prohibited from entering it. And today was the second time.

My attention shifted to my father, who was sitting in front of a massive wall of books. With an authoritative voice, he said,

“Come. Sit.”

All I could do was nod and follow his instructions.

As I sat, he continued,

“Soon you will complete high school, so I think it’s time you start preparing for ‘LVE.’”

With a swift motion, he slid a paper and pen across the table.

With a nod, I picked up the pen and saw the title:

“LVE — LUMEN Veritas Examination”

Where truth meets brilliance.

At the marked spot, I signed and slid the paper back.

He continued, “I expect results.”

The way he said it, I knew we were done talking. I nodded and started to leave. Before I was about to step out, he said,

“Study materials are on your table.”

I simply nodded again and came back.

I got back to the present when my alarm went off. See, this is one of the reasons I want to get out, because I know if I don’t, I will keep thinking about something. I really need a fresh start.

It’s somewhat like a robot — I got ready, came out of my room for swimming, and then headed to the gym. After swim training, I came back around 11, I think.

As I entered my room, all my stuff was gone. I almost panicked and turned to leave when my mother stepped in front of me.

“You wanted to move out, right?” she said with a smirk.

“Yes, Mother… but not like this,” I said in a normal voice I tried to keep steady, but it came out more annoyed.

“Relax. Your father got an apartment for you, so he moved your stuff there and is waiting for you there.”

I simply nodded.

Before I could say anything, she said, “Here, take this.”

“What is this?” It came out before I could think it through.

Without much thought, I unwrapped it. It was a new phone.

“I have saved my number and your father’s as well, and added the new location for your apartment.”

“Thank you, Mother.”

I turned to leave. She said something under her breath, more like a whisper.

“Take care of yourself. And you can come back anytime you want. You know that, right?”

From all the recent events, I was mostly numb, and I didn’t know how to process this. So I just nodded and left before I lost control over myself.

I simply followed the map. My new apartment was almost four hours away from my house. My house is in the outer city area, but this was almost in the middle of the city — not entirely, but somewhat. It’s not quite like my house, but good enough.

While coming here, I saw a few gyms and swimming places near my apartment. It’s almost perfect because I can even walk to those places.

I say almost because I haven’t seen my room yet, and until I do, I won’t say anything.

Soon I reached in front of a middle-sized building with five floors and a decent-sized parking spot. I checked the address to make sure I was at the right location. Then I checked the floor — mine was the 5th floor.

I parked my F-150, went inside, and clicked the up button. Soon, the lift opened with a ding sound. I went inside, pressed the 5th floor, and with that smooth motion, the door closed again.

Soon, the door opened again just as smoothly. In front of me was a hallway, and at the end of it, a simple door. I walked over and knocked.

On the first knock itself, the door opened smoothly, and my father’s cologne smell hit my face.

Before I could lay my eyes on him,

he said in a controlled voice,

“Hope this is good. And don’t forget why you came here.”

I didn’t say much. As I entered my apartment, he left, as if he was just waiting for me. Before I could say anything, he was already standing near the lift. Before I could even think of what to say, the lift door opened again and then closed smoothly.

All I could do was stand there and watch him leave.

After staring at the closed lift door for a few moments, I went inside and closed my apartment door. Then I turned toward my new place.

Before I could see anything—

Notification sound.

Message from Mother: Hope you reached and you like your apartment.

Reply: Yes.

I kept my phone down and looked around.

As you enter, you see a medium-sized hall with a sofa in the center and a TV console on the front wall, with a few plants here and there. Next to that is the kitchen, fully furnished with everything I might need for cooking.

Next to that is my bedroom, which has all my stuff neatly in its place.

After all this, I was kind of tired, so I thought I’d take a bath. While heading to the bathroom, my attention went to my study table, which held the latest prep materials for LVE.

And again, a note:

“All the best.”

I know it’s him again.

I took a bath, then checked everything, cooked something, and then studied.

From that point on, for almost a year, all I did was swim and study — and occasionally hit the gym to keep myself fit and my mind steady.

But two things never changed.

The voice. And the promise of revenge.

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Hey, Icrus here. If you liked this chapter, leave a like or comment. Sharing it would mean a lot. Thanks for reading—next chapter soon