Day 30
How long had I been here? I had lost count of the days. The same pristine, white walls, a window showing me a beautiful meadow on a sunny day, as always. It had lost its luster.
I tried to move. Like every day. And, as expected, no result. My hands were still bound behind my back, my feet tied to both legs of the chair. I tried to scream for help, the gag making sure that I could produce no audible sound.
What was this awful taste? Sebastian had seemingly replaced the ball in my mouth, during my sleep. The neutrality was gone. Replaced by the taste of cucumber. I wished I didn't hate it so much. It was just impossible to prevent it, from spreading inside my mouth.
But then, had it be another taste that I disliked, the ball would have had it. He knew, how to make me suffer.
Attached to the mask that covered my lower face as the ball was, it was impossible to spit it out. I couldn't even move it around, as every time my tongue would get in contact with it, I wanted to puke.
“Morning, Nicky. I see, you are awake.”
Showers ran down my spine. He was here. Behind me, probably just out of sight.
The voice alone made me try to run, but the rope did a good job of holding me in place. I could move my head, but that was it. Like all the other days. Except that I tried a little bit harder. Without any success. This room, this chair, was my prison.
“Not happy to see me? How disappointing. We should be best friends by now.”
I wasn't even sure, if he was serious. Did he really think I could ever be friends with him, after all that he had done?
“MMMPHH!!”, I screamed, thrashing around. Trying, always trying. Maybe the rope had weakened, maybe I could break away from the chair. There had to be a way to escape this torment.
“Excuse me? I can't understand a single word.”
Bastard! I glared at him, as he finally positioned himself in front of me. If he would at least stop taunting me.
That smile. Calm, collected, self-assured, pleasant. I had fallen for this smile, long ago. And I couldn't even tell, if it was fake. I just didn't understand Sebastian. Did he enjoy tormenting me?
“Well, our game is still going. Maybe it will be your day. The key is hidden in a different spot, of course. But you can reach it, I promise. You just have to try.”
The words felt so hollow. How often had I tried and failed by now. There never was enough time.
With precision, Sebastian undid the ropes, which connected my upper body and my feet to the chair. I begged, hoping he would free me a bit more. As I had done yesterday. And the day before. But he just smiled. The same empty, horrible smile, that he wore for everything.
“Why are you always asking me to break the rules? Your hands and feet have to be tied, to assure a level of challenge.”
I wanted to strangle the smug bastard. But, aside from a furious look, there was nothing I could do.
“Well, if there is nothing else for me to do, I will leave you now to your own devices. The hour starts now.”
Once again, the big, black screen on the wall beeped, and began the countdown. I needed to win this. Finally getting out of this hellhole.
It never got less exhausting, hopping around, trying not to fall with my hands behind my back. I should be getting better at this, doing it every day. But then, I also wasn't exhausted from the other days. It made no sense, but it also didn't matter. However I felt, I had to use my hour as well as possible.
The drawers were simple. Not necessarily easy, but I had developed a certain dexterity, when opening them with my hands behind my back. But I only found cutlery, plates, pots. Empty pots. No key anywhere in sight.
The fridge was more complicated. It was so high, that I could just grab the handle with my hands if I pushed them up a bit. Like the hopping, it didn't get easier. I groaned in discomfort, but kept going, until the door was open. Again, no luck. The fridge was empty, too.
“BEEP!”
Another part of the game, that I just wasn't getting comfortable with. Had it really been 20 minutes already? It couldn't be. I had barely started, and a third of my time was already up. I wondered, if Sebastian was cheating.
But even if he did so, what could I even do about it? There was no way to prove, that it had been less time than promised. And maybe I was just wrong. It was impossible to tell.
Stressed, I made my way over to the closet. Opening it wasn't the problem. But there were so many clothes inside, and I had to look through them all. Or at least feel around, if something was in the pockets. But also, undo all the socks, trying to find out if the key was in there.
Panic set in, as the next beep came, and I was not quite done. My fingers increased their pace, sweat starting to run down my face. Come on! It had to be here, somewhere! It had been two days ago, he had shown me! Why not now?!
But there was just nothing here, which meant I had to keep going.
What next? The vases? The puzzles? The backpack? It all took so long. But I needed to keep going, trying as hard as I could.
Getting up with my feet bound, my hands stuck behind my back, just didn't get easier. Always needing the wall behind me, it felt like it took minutes. That the socks lay at the very bottom of the closet had to be by design.
The vases were closest, so I might as well try them. Carefully, I grabbed one, shaking it. Hoping for a sound. Nothing. I repeated the same thing with the other vases. Once more, no result.
Unfortunately, I lost focus. I didn't even realize, how the vase slipped out of my grip as I shook it, smashing to the ground, and into pieces.
I stared in horror at the shards. I remembered, how Sebastian had made clear that destroying anything would lead to punishment. Whatever that meant.
There was no time to think about this. I had to get the key, I had to win. Five more minutes, right?
BEEP!
I stopped, frozen, as I realized that it was over. I had lost once more. But not just that, I had destroyed something.
Despite trying every day in the morning, I knew that it was impossible to flee. I had tried. Another day, trapped in this horrible game.
I missed my home. Playing video games with my friend. Eating with my parents. It felt like an eternity.
“Failing again, Nicky? I guess the game will have to continue for another day. You are as excited about it as I am, right?”
Sebastian had left the room, while I was looking around. And, without me noticing it, he had stepped back in, immediately after the hour was up. That horrible voice made me freeze once more. I didn't want to hear it anymore. Ever again. And yet, I knew that my wish meant nothing. It would be there. Tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and maybe every day of the rest of my live.
In panic, I tried to get out of my bonds. But the rope felt like it was immovable, keeping my hands stuck. Fighting it showed no result. Just like all the other days.
“So, you are not excited? That can only mean, that I need to add some more spice to the game. I wouldn't want to bore you.”
In terror, I looked at Sebastian. The frozen smile still hadn't changed. If I didn't know better, I would have thought that there was some smugness in there, but that couldn't be more than my imagination.
Right?
“And there needs to be a punishment, for the broken vase, I'm sorry to say. You really need to be more careful.”
I tried to back off, as he came closer. Each step made me struggle harder. But also, I got angry.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go. I wanted out! I wanted to go home! And I certainly didn't want to get punished!
But then, what could he do to me? He already held me trapped inside here, unable to get out, without winning this damn game. Sure, he could make me a bit more uncomfortable, but so what? Sure, he could make me taste more horrible gags. Force me, to endure intense noise. It was all he had ever done. Nothing to be really scared of.
In my anger, not thinking straight, I stopped pushing back against the wall. Preparing myself.
“Did you come to your senses? Are you accepting your punishment?”, Sebastian said, not expecting a fight from me.
I wanted to crush the smug bastard, jumping in his direction. Without missing a beat, he stepped aside, leaving me unable to cushion my crash against the floor.
I could only grunt, lying there, in light pain. Bound and gagged, I could do nothing as he picked me up. Sebastian put me over his shoulder, carrying me like a sack, out of the room. I kept on struggling, but my captor didn't even acknowledge it.
I wasn't sure if I had left the room, since I had come here. But I was certain, that I had never seen the one I was carried into now. It was even more bizarre than the other room. Instead of pristine white, everything was completely dark, except for the part in the center, where a beam of light shined down. Two dangling pieces of rope. Nothing more.
Sebastian didn't lose a word, as he put me back on my feet. He tied one of the pieces of rope to my already bound hands.
I was confused for a few seconds. But when he pulled the other rope down, everything became clear. My hands were pulled up. Further and further.
It didn't take long, for this to become uncomfortable. But Sebastian kept pulling, slowly, but steadily. My hands were forced higher and higher, forcing me to lean forward, and finally even making me stand on my toes.
Only then, when I had started to grown in pain, with most of my soles not touching the ground, did he stop.
Soon, I realized how painful this position would become in just a minute. I tried to shift my weight a bit, but there was no way for me to position myself differently.
“As this is your first punishment, we will keep it short. Ten minutes.”
I only stood there, trying to keep my balance. And soon enough, my feet started to ache. Lightly, at first, but, with no way of moving at all, it didn't take long for the pain to grow.
“HMMMPH!”
At this point, begging had never helped me. Sebastian always did what he promised. But he also had never done something like this to me.
As the pain grew, I kept begging, but without success. The opposite, actually.
For the first time, the serene face changed visibly. Sebastian started to grin. His teeth were visible, his eyes giving of a spark.
It was the most terrifying thing I had ever seen.
“If you don't stop your whining, I can make it even more unpleasant. Please, make me increase the intensity. I would love to do so.”
His voice had never sounded so human. There was a joy in his taunts, that had never been there before.
He wanted more. He enjoyed seeing me like this, only waiting for a reason to make it worse.
I could never get punished again. It was immediately clear, that I needed to avoid this side of him. I didn't want to find out, what else he had in store for me.
When ten minutes had passed, he did keep his word, and released me. From my physical torment, that is. The rope was undone, and I fell to the ground. I didn't care for the hard floor, and the pain, I just wanted to give me feet some rest. Hoping that it was over, at least for today.
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