Short Story: Mystery of the Unknown

By Dhaanvi Gupta

I am Miraya, a 28-year-old software engineer. Today was just like the other days in my life. I woke up in a rush, did my morning routine and went to the office which is just a few kilometres away from my house.

Walking or rather running, I reached there as I did not have the luxury of a car or that of a nice and comfy sleep. There were lots of deadlines to meet. Therefore, I focused on completing my tasks first.

The worst part was a meeting that I had to attend. And I was already 30 minutes late. I somehow managed to sneak in and saw my colleague Reeta looking at me with worried eyes. 

I asked her, “What happened?” And she replied, “Our supervisor was very angry. He was looking for me.”

So, I hurried to the hall and on my way encountered a strange person wearing a purple-coloured hat on which a Hyacinth was drawn. The hat covered his face and he looked very suspicious.

I obviously ignored it as I was in a hurry. I barely managed to get through the rest of the day and had to work overtime in the evening as well. Everyone in the office had left. I felt exhausted and hungry, so I went to the cafeteria to grab some snacks.

In the cafeteria, the same man appeared out of nowhere and ran as soon as our eyes met. I chased him thinking it was my perfect chance to catch him and report about him to the office. I was thinking of earning some brownie points from my boss. So, I ran as hard as I could to catch him.

Suddenly, a book fell on my head. I noticed that we were in an unknown library which was huge and beautiful with tonnes of books stacked till the roof. The man was nowhere to be seen. But, the place was very exciting. This was the first time I was seeing so many books in one space.

As I walked around, enjoying the view of stairs I saw a big book in the middle of the library with vibrant colours. It made me curious! 

I went near it and that man appeared again. But, this time it was as if he was saying some kind of spell while facing that book.

I realised that I was chasing this man from my office and now I am in an unknown library. A thousand thoughts went through my mind and I started to panic. Then, I shouted, “WHERE AM I? WHO ARE YOU? HOW DID THIS LIBRARY COME OUT OF NOWHERE?”

He heard me but there was no reply. It made me angry. And, I shouted again, “DON’T YOU DARE INGNO…”

Before I could finish my sentence, the book started to glow and the pages began to flip.

The surroundings started to change and suddenly we were standing under a roof. It was snowing, then it rained and then the flowers bloomed, leaves started to fall and it all blacked out again.

I found myself alone with no light in deep darkness. I was no longer able to feel my body. It was all cold. I was scared that it might be the end of my life. I closed my eyes and prayed to god to let me live.

When I opened my eyes, I was lying on the ground. I could feel my body but happy tears started flowing from my eyes. After a few minutes, I calmed down and I stood up. I saw a garden of purple Hyacinth surrounding me. It was beautiful and the fragrance of the flower was sweet and calming.

The garden seemed endless but I kept going and found a path leading towards a door. I started walking anxiously, thinking what might be there beyond the door of our office cafeteria? The purple hat man? The library? Or the darkness?