Chapter 30 - A Duck's Night

Shac took another bite as he tried to understand his current situation. It was nothing like he expected this trip to be, with his only plan being to save Evie from dying this time. But, he didn’t expect to learn that he had another friend or that both of his parents were there.

“It’s been three days right?” he asked his father.

His father nodded. “I still can’t find her. For some reason, people also forgot about her, and most of them are. But, there’s one other person who remembered her.” he revealed.

Shac raised an eyebrow, dropping the utensils. “Who’s it?”

“I think her name was… Zoyi? I think it was Zoyi.”

“ZOYI!?” Shac exclaimed, immediately standing up. “Are you sure about that?”

“Wait… why are you so pressed about it?” his father asked, surprised.

“You’re not lying right?” he asked, still couldn’t believe. “Her name is Zoyi?”

“I’m sure of it, it was the daughter of one of the teachers in high school if I’m not wrong. You know that one large house beside the road.” he explained.

Wait… Is it the same girl as Ivan talked about? The one who became a duckling and died? He thought, remembering the time when Ivan talked about this girl who told him about the curse.

The fact that she knew about my mom’s identity tells that she has been cursed also.

“Do I know this person before?” Shac asked.

“Zoyi? I think so, you were playing with her in the past. Together with the twins.” he revealed. “That was a long time ago since you were kids.”

“The twins, you mean Ivan and Evie?” he asked.

“Of course, there’s no other twins in here other than them.” he replied.

“I guess so…” he muttered before going back to his thoughts.

Zoyi… I don’t remember anything about her. Based on the way Ivan told me about this person, he also doesn’t know about her. All I know is that Zoyi helped him with the curse, telling him about the two eggs, and the fact that she was able to kill the ducklings without any problem.

I think I will be able to learn things from her.

“Where can I find her?” he asked, looking at his father.

“In the large house, if I’m not mistaken she’s living alone.”

Shac’s eyes widened. “Alone? You mean she has no parents?” he asked.

“From what I knew, yeah.” his father nodded. “I think she will be able to recognize you. But why are you asking me about it?”

“Didn’t you find it odd that only Zoyi knew about Mom? When no one knew about her existence three days ago when she was missing?” he explained.

“Now that you pointed it out… It is odd.” he said, turning to me. “It’s the same as you, but this time you remembered your Mom. Is there any reason for that?” he asked.

Shac nodded once. “Normally when people get cursed, as you might already guess, they are going to be forgotten. That’s the reason why most people if not, all, forget about them. But then, there’s an exception.”

“An exception?”

“When a person gets cursed, they will be forgotten right? But it doesn’t work when a person is also cursed.” he explained. “What do you think that means?”

“That cursed people don’t forget about them?” he said.

Shac nodded in response. “And since both I and Zoyi didn’t forget about Mom, simply means that we are cursed already.” he revealed.

“You’re cursed… When did it—”

“As I said earlier, I came from the future. I wouldn’t be able to explain everything, but I need to meet this Zoyi.” he said, cutting off his father.

“When are you going to meet her?” he asked.

“I think I’m going to meet her now. If we’re lucky enough, Mom might still be alive.” Shac said, turning around. “Thanks for the food, Dad. I’m going out for a second.”

“Is it necessary to go this late at night?” he asked, trying to stop Shac. “We still don’t know what happened to your Mom.”

“Don’t worry Dad, I’m not that weak.” he reassured as he walked towards the door. “It’s still early in the night, and I hope she’s still awake.” he continued, opening the door.

“You’ve got your phone?” his father asked.

Shac reached for his pocket. “It’s not here.”

“Go get it first.”

Shac nodded once before going to his room.

Where did I put it? He has no idea where this past version of himself placed the phone. He tried looking for the table, inside the cabinet, and even on his backpack, but he couldn’t find it.

“Where is it…” he whispered, looking at the bed. “Maybe in the pillow…”

He reached for the pillow, lifting it. And there, his phone was hiding beneath the pillow. “So, did I just forget about it and leave it there?” he muttered, thinking that he must’ve forgotten to bring it earlier.

As he grabbed the phone, he immediately ran towards the exit to get back to his father. “I got it.” he said.

“Don’t forget to call me if something happens.” his father instructed. “We still don’t know what happened to your Mom.”

Shac nodded before heading out. “I’m leaving.”

“See you later.” his father replied.

× × × × × × × × × ×

Shac continued walking through the night, it’s not that usual for him to roam this late in the night. As expected, it was too cold at night for him, getting goosebumps uncontrollably multiple times.

The large house, he’s talking about the white large house that’s close to the Mango Tree, I think? He thought, since he’s not much of a person who walked around the town, the place itself is unknown to him.

“Hm?” he stopped walking, as he came across a large white house in the road. “Is this the house?” he muttered, examining the house.

The house is large, larger than most of the houses in the town since most of them don’t have a second floor, unlike this one.

He approached the front of the house, standing at the gate. “Now what…” he muttered, unsure of how to call Zoyi.

Should I call her? But, wouldn’t that be too disrespectful? If I can’t call her, then how will I be able to meet her?

Should I push the g—

Suddenly he felt something sharp on his neck. “W-what?” he stammered, he wanted to move his head but he couldn’t.

“What are you doing here?” a girl asked, her voice serious.

“I’m Shac!!!” he shouted.

“I’m asking what are you doing here.” she repeated, burying the sharp object a bit deeper. “You need to answer, or I’ll push this further in.”

“I’m here to ask you about my Mother.” he revealed.

“That’s it?” she asked.

“Y-yeah…” he replied.

The girl dropped her sharp object. “So that was it.” she said, walking back to put distance between her and Shac.

“Finally…” he sighed in relief. He turned to his left, trying to see who it was. As he turned, he immediately saw the figure of a girl.

I don’t recognize this person… Is she Zoyi? He thought as he stared at the black long-haired girl in front of him. The girl was holding a scissor in her right hand, and it was the sharp thing that was pointed at his neck.

“I thought I was gonna die…” he chuckled softly, looking at her. “Are you Zoyi by any chance?” he asked.

“Yes. Don’t tell me you’re an enemy?” she asked.

“An enemy?” he asked, confused. “What are you talking about?”

Zoyi blinked and shook her head. “No, it’s nothing.” she said, as she pushed the gate open. “Come inside.”

“O-okay…” Shac nodded in response and followed her inside, not questioning her any further.