The Moonlight

The stars shone in the clear sky because of the moonlight. His mind drifted to those times, where he and Ruby saw the Milky Way together on the hill.

"Aren't you tired of looking at the stars? Nothing has changed, they always look the same."

"I will never get bored if I see him with you."

"You want to marry me?"

"Is that a proposal?"

"Yes, but if you don't think so. I'll do it again!"

"Then repeat it again, I want to hear it one more time!"

"I love you Ruby. Marry me I will make you the happiest woman in the world."

Those fond memories sank into his soul. He had a strange hallucination and when he woke up, he immediately raised his head.

"Haaah? W-where am I?" he said.

Her body shivered, she felt cold. He looked at his surroundings, a place surrounded by tall trees and damp ground. Nearby, he saw bits of clothing that had been torn and looked shabby as if it had been in this place for months.

He realized that he was half naked. This cold air was so stabbing that it penetrated to the bone. Lucien tried to stand up, but he felt a strange sensation in his legs as if they were numb.

"What happened to me? I'm alive? I-I'm alive again?" she thought. He looked at his hands, he could feel what he felt when he was alive.

Dream, he saw a dream that felt strange. An angel who picked him up and escorted him to heaven and also the devil Lucifer who raised him from the dead.

"There's no way it's real. It must be just a dream, I can't be eyes, I-I-"

He tried to remember what really happened to him. Some men chased him and killed him in this forest, they buried his body in the forest. He was very sure that he had felt the pain when his life was pulled from his body. If it was a dream, why was he here?

Lucien stepped slowly with trembling legs, he felt cold on the soles of his feet, but the cold slowly subsided and became warm as if there was an invisible shield protecting his feet.

He walked through the forest, looking for a way out. He didn't know these forest roads before, but somehow there was a strange instinct inside him that made him know what to do.

"To the left, the road to town is on the left." he muttered. Strange, he felt that there was a power within him that allowed him to easily find his way through the forest.

Lucien arrived at a paved road that looked deserted, no one seemed to pass this way until a caravan of cars passed and stopped in front of him.

"Hey, guys! Do you need a ride into town? Looks like you're in trouble huh?" Said a middle aged man. Beside him a woman waved and smiled.

"What a very handsome young man. Come on, we'll take you!" said the woman.

"Have you been mugged recently, young man?"

"Y-yes, some people followed me and took my motorbike."

"Where are you going?"

"Anthems,"

"Oh we just happened to be passing there. Come on up!"

Lucien seemed to have no choice, he couldn't possibly walk towards Anthem on foot. He was forced to accept this middle-aged couple's offer to ride in their caravan.

"You're going on vacation?"

"We're going to Paradise. Have you eaten? We just happen to have some leftover breakfast sandwiches. Take some if you want!"

The woman offered a bacon sandwich, Lucien took a slice of it and devoured it. He didn't expect that he was so hungry as if he hadn't eaten in days.

"You are very hungry, how long have you been stuck in that forest?"

"I do not remember!"

"I'm going to turn on the radio, is it okay if there's a little music?" The woman said while turning on the car radio.

"It doesn't matter!"

Music sounds, a song from Ruby's favorite singer. It made him think of Ruby again.

"It doesn't feel like it's been a year since this song was released, I think I've heard it 1000 times." The woman said while singing the song on the radio.

"Hahaha...because you play this song every day, I have memorized the lyrics!"

Lucien was surprised, they said that this song has been released for a year already? But Lucien felt that this song was only released about a month ago.

"Isn't this song just released last month?" Ask Lucien.

"It feels like it's only been a month, time flies so fast, doesn't it, honey?"

"May I know what date is it?"

"I think August 19th,"

"August nineteenth? That's the same date I was chased by assassins. But shouldn't it be the 20th or 21st?" she thought.

Lucien started to get restless, when the caravan started to pass through Anthem, he noticed that the billboards on the roadside had changed. He really didn't understand what was happening, but he still felt that all the terrible things he had experienced were just a dream.

"I'm getting off here!" He said when the caravan passed a crossroads not far from his house.

"Okay!" Said the middle-aged man as he pulled over his car on the side of the road.

"Thanks so much for the ride. I'm really saved!"

"No problem! Alright, we'll be going now. Bye?"

Lucien waved his hand until the caravan was out of sight. He had to walk to his house. He hoped Ruby was not surprised to see this situation. But when he arrived in front of his house, he saw something strange. A sign reading "For Sale" was displayed on the porch of his house.

"For sale?"

He quickly entered the house, but the house was locked. He saw no signs of Ruby's presence in this house and that made him even more worried.

"Ruby...! I'm home! Ruby...!" He tried knocking on the door. But no answer. He decided to force open one of the windows to check the situation inside his house.

"Oh my God!"

Her eyes widened in shock when she saw that all of her household appliances were empty and only one old table was left in the corner of the room with piles of newspapers on it. There was a lot of dust and cobwebs as if this house had been lived in for a long time.

"Ruby...? Ruby...!"

Lucien kept calling his wife, but there was no answer he needed. He walked over to the table where piles of newspapers were scattered. One of the newspapers carried a story with the date January 10, 2023.

"What the hell? 2023? Isn't it still 2022? How long have I been gone?"

He really couldn't believe what he saw. But the worst thing is that a news story covering the case of his disappearance appeared on the main page of a newspaper clip that was published on June 19, 2023.

"Missing for 10 months, Lucien Sanders has not been found. The police have decided to stop their search for the time being."

His hands were shaking, he couldn't believe that he had disappeared for a year. He is sure that what happened to him just happened yesterday, but why did he come back one year later?

"Ruby? I have to find her!"

Lucien thought that he had to find Ruby soon. If his guess is correct that he has been missing for a year, that means something bad might have happened to Ruby and he is sure Victor won't let Ruby just like that.

He found a box under the stairs leading to the second floor, a city containing his clothes and shoes. He didn't know why only his belongings were left here? But when he wanted to take one of the clothes in the box, he found a photo of him and Ruby celebrating his 26th birthday in 2021.

He still remembers when Ruby made a cake for him, even though it was too sweet, he really liked it. His heart ached, without feeling his tears dripping wet the photo in his hand. He loves Ruby very much and the only reason why he wants to come back is to protect Ruby.

"Ruby, where are you now? Where should I look for you? I miss you so much."

***