The following excerpt is from the diary of Nathan [Redacted], who was found dead in his apartment on 15th May, 2005. His death might have been linked to three other victims namely Vienna [Redacted], who was found dead on 19th April; Matthew [Redacted] on 10th May and Hunter [Redacted] on 13th May, 2005 respectively.
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8th May, 2005
I had a lonely childhood. Something I’m not proud of, but I’m not sad about it either. I had a few friends, mostly people I would meet at school and never talk to them outside of it. but they were good people. I would hang out with them sometimes; often at a pizza place during weekends where we would gossip about the various happenings in the neighbourhood. Sounds silly, and maybe it was silly.
I recently got the news that one of my friends from school had passed away, not that it bothers me. But there is an air of suspicion around it.
I had last talked to them around like four years ago. Just a normal group phone call asking each other how all of us were doing. I noticed she was a bit tense but shrugged it off as adulting taking its toll on all of us. We weren’t teenagers anymore. We were real adults with responsibilities and that stresses out a lot of us. We feel overwhelmed as the weight of taking our own decisions dawns on us. Nevertheless, life goes on.
Vienna, she was a quiet girl. Whenever all of us would meet, she would talk the least; she would just sit there, passing comments very scarcely. She was quite nerdy as well, she would often bring a book along with her and read it while the rest of us were talking about Mr. Hunt. An odd fellow who would do gardening in the neighbourhood. He had a thick moustache, pale skin and was quite tall, very scrawny, in fact we used to laugh at the idea of a gust of wind picking him up and throwing him off somewhere else. But he was very odd, he used to chat with himself and often danced around while gardening. The adults thought he loved his job, and that’s what it would look like to anyone else but the four of us had seen him commit some weird acts here and there. Not that it matters, maybe we were just a bunch of teenagers who thought the jolly old gardener was weird and not what he seemed like; a normal occurrence where teenage brains conjure weird probabilities that don’t exist to fend off boredom, maybe.
I received an e-mail from Matthew yesterday stating that Vienna had committed suicide. Her sister found her in her work desk with her wrists slit, weird part is she gouged out one of her eyes as well. The police investigated it for a week per her sister’s request but it was ruled off as a suicide.
Vienna wasn’t particularly close to me or anything of that sort, but she didn’t strike me as someone who would kill herself. She was happy and content, at least that’s what it looked like. Now that I think of it, she always looked a little uncomfortable whenever we discussed Mr. Hunt. Did she know something we did not?
Maybe I’m thinking too much about this, it feels like I’m disrespecting her. May she rest in peace, you were a good friend Vienna. We miss you.
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9th May, 2005
What a busy morning, the neighbour’s cats are so bothersome. They spilled milk on my doormat, had to clean it up and dry off the doormat so that it wouldn’t smell. I need a cup of coffee now.
Anyway, I got another e-mail from Matthew today, he sounded a bit tense, I think he’s overreacting a little bit. He was never the mature one anyway. Always up to some mischief and the joker of the group. A proper prankster.
Ah, I sound like a dick again. What’s it about bringing up Mr. Hunt now anyway? He’s long dead I suppose. He was already pale and old around nine years ago, what makes him think he’s alive now. I think I need to make a cup of coffee and read the email once more. I’ll write it down for old time’s sake.
‘Hey Nathan,
You didn’t reply to the email I sent you yesterday, are you that busy that one of your childhood friends committing suicide has no effect on you? You were always a jerk, unknowingly or knowingly, that I do not know.
Anyway, I don’t think Vienna killed herself. Remember what she always used to say? That Mr. Hunt used to roam the entire neighbourhood after midnight? I don’t know if that’s true because I was long asleep by then but she told us once that she saw him defecate on Ms. Gianna’s porch once. She always had some weird stuff to say about Mr. Hunt remember? Like the time she once told us that she caught him making weird faces to her while she was coming home from school? That he supposedly danced around in the middle of the street after midnight singing ‘I heard she sang a good song’ or whatever that shit was?
You might think Im stupid right now Nathan, but I swear to god I heard someone singing this last night. I was too scared to even open my blinds and check on whatever the fuck it was Nathan. Vienna always had some stuff to say about Mr. Hunt until one day she stopped saying anything about him at all remember? She always looked visibly uncomfortable whenever we discussed him. I wonder what she saw or heard that it was enough to warrant her silence. Im fucking creeped out Nathan, I swear I heard someone sing this exact song last night. Was I hallucinating Nathan? Tell me I was hallucinating.
Why would Vienna kill herself? She was the one out of all of us who had her life on track. I don’t know who killed her. I fucking don’t know. But I know she didn’t kill herself. Reply to this fucking email Nat, I need to know what you think.’
Gosh, what a piece of work. Ruining a perfect Sunday morning gushing out nonsense over some song. I need to tell Matthew its perfectly fine to be stressed out after one of your friends are no longer with you, but disrespecting her in a way by going as far as to say she was murdered? By whom? Mr. Hunt? He didn’t have the strength in him to even kill a fly if he could. But yeah, I did see Mr. Hunt a few times dancing around the neighbourhood after midnight and now that I think of it, I did hear him sing some song. Not sure if it was the one mentioned by Matt though.
Enough about Matthew’s utter nonsense. I’ll write to him that there’s no need to worry and that he should consider going out for a few drinks to calm his nerves. He sounds very tensed up, it’s very unlike him.
I’ll go and work on my assignment in the meanwhile, the office deadlines are scarier than Mr. Hunt singing a song at twelve in the morning. The coffee needs some sugar as well. I’ll update you guys tomorrow, buh-bye.
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10th May, 2005
Come to really think of it, I heard someone sing something outside last night. Maybe I was dreaming. I must’ve. I can’t update too much today though I have some really important work I should attend to.
Its really weird there’s no email from Matthew today though, I specifically asked him to reply to me so that I could help him since Hunter wasn’t picking up his phone nor replying to any of me or Matt’s mails. I called Matt but he didn’t pick up either. Must’ve been real angry at me for him to ignore me as much as he’s doing after sending such a paranoid and descriptive email.
A funny occurrence, or a memory that was buried deep within came to my mind last night while I was dozing off, me and Vienna used to sometimes grab ice-cream from the stall opposite to her house before heading off to school. One particular day while me and her were crossing the street onto the stall, we noticed Mr. Hunt was there, rummaging through the packets of chips while the cashier gave him a tired and annoyed look. He heard our footsteps and paused, turned around and gave us a wide grin. He chatted with us for a few minutes asking us normal questions such as ‘Are you kids studying properly? Not goofing around right?’ But he said something at the end which, come to think of it, was mildly disturbing.
‘Ive seen you stay up till late reading some book Vienna. You should sleep early, its good for your health’
Was he stalking her? Or was it a mere coincidence? No, he was definitely stalking her. I remember Vienna turning pale and seemingly uncomfortable. I remember her not talking about Mr. Hunt anymore after that interaction. Did he do something to her?
I also think he used to stand facing the walls adjacent to Vienna’s house early morning for no reason. I thought it was normal, or funny during those days. It feels a little creepy now. Staring into a wall for who-knows-how-long isn’t a normal occurrence or a hobby.
Did I really hear someone singing outside my window last night? Or was I actually dreaming. Whats going on. I should call Matthew and check on him once. I should also probably write to Hunter once as well.
I’ll update you guys tomorrow. I have to attend to work now, as much as I hate to. Goodbye.
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11th May, 2005
Fuck fuck fuck fuck FUCK. I ACTUALLY heard someone sing something like ‘I heard she sang a good song’ last night around four in the morning. And the worst part is it sounded EXACTLY like Mr. Hunt. What the actual FUCK?
No reply from Matthew either. What the fuck is he doing? Why is he ignoring me so much. I really need to talk to him. Why would Mr. Hunt start appearing in some random city so far away from where we used to live during our teens? I think Hunter sent me a mail though. I need to write it down so that I can find any detail that could possibly help me know whoever the fuck is stalking me and Matthew. And why now?
Anyway, here’s the mail.
‘I don’t know what to say Nat. Life is downhill. I think Im going crazy. I hear some weirdo sing a stupid fucking song every fucking night outside of my house. I looked out once and there was nobody. I know its a stalker though. I received an envelope in my mail today. There was no sender’s address or receiver’s. Just my name written on it with a ‘:)’ on one side. Inside was a FUCKING yearbook from our graduation year. Our fucking yearbook. With you and me and Matt and Vienna’s names written on the front page. Line by line. I can’t send you the photo because I threw that shit as soon as I opened it. I got too scared. Who the fuck is stalking us? And that too someone that knows us since this long. Let me know ASAP if you find anything Nat. I am too fucking scared to even sleep tonight.
Stay safe, I miss the feeling of comfort. I think we took everything for granted.’
FUCK.
I feel scared. I feel dread. Hunter lives approximately what, twenty minutes from my apartment? Matthew around an hour and Vienna lives in a different state altogether. Is it really Mr. Hunt or someone impersonating him? No. Its him. It has to be him. Who else would have access to our yearbook if not him. That fucking weirdo.
Wait. Did he kill Vienna? What the fuck. Even If he did not I need to report this to the police. I’ll go right now. I’ll update you guys tomorrow. I feel scared. I hope Matt and Hunter are okay. Goodbye, and good night.
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12th May, 2005
I AM FUCKING DONE WITH EVERYTHING. I AM SO DONE. The police can never take anything seriously until someone seriously gets hurt. I even told them that the suicide of Vienna might be related to what’s happening to me, Hunter and Matthew but they weren’t convinced enough to think Vienna might’ve been murdered by a creepy gardener who also happens to be stalking the other three now.
A total failure in the name of justice. I cannot keep up with this anymore. I feel sick. I feel tired. What has been happening?
Matthew hasn’t replied either. I don’t think he’s ignoring me or Hunter anymore, I think something might’ve happened to him. FUCK. Something might’ve happened to Matthew? Does that mean he might be in danger. Should me and Hunter try and drive up to his town and check on him. We should.
What if he’s already dead though? And it might be a trap for me and Hunter to step into. Because Mr. Hunt or whoever-the-fuck would know we would come looking for him. Yeah, probably shouldn’t save him. He’s anyway most probably either ignoring us or he might’ve fled the town. A fucking wuss as always.
Ah, I shouldn’t say this. We’re all in danger. We should probably stick together. We should, yes.
Hunter wrote to me. I must read it and write it down before discussing further events, this is not funny anymore.
‘Nat I can’t take this anymore. I received another mail with the same fucking ‘:)’ on it. Inside was a piece of paper with your name written on it. Nathan [Redacted]. What the fuck? I stayed up all night and there it was, someone singing ‘I heard she sang a good song’ around two in the morning. I wanted to look out but something inside of me wouldn’t let me. I felt dread. I felt scared as shit Nathan. It must be Mr. Hunt, it has to be. Who else if not him? I hear him dancing outside even now. Its just outside my bedroom window. Its five in the morning right now Nat and I don’t know what to do. I called 911 but they won’t take my calls seriously. You know I was caught for possessing drugs a few months back, or you don’t because we haven’t kept touch but yeah, they think Im high or some shit. Fucking useless. I don’t think I can hear his footsteps anymore. I’ll go out and confront him if this shit happens again. This is not funny anymore. I’ll visit you today evening if I can and we’ll discuss this together. Have you tried contacting Matt? He’s not answering my calls or mails. I hope he’s okay or he’s probably ignoring us, that jerk. See you soon and please be safe. Remember, he wrote your name on it. Oh fuck there he is with the song again, I’ll go out and bash his head in, that old fucker.’
I heard she sang a good song
I heard she had a style
So I came to see her
And listen for a while
These same exact lines, the tune. The melody. I heard it this morning again. Something feels off about everything that has been going on. It just doesn’t feel right. I feel so suffocated I don’t know who or why is anyone doing this. I just want whoever it is to just stop.
WHY THE FUCK ISNT MATTHEW REPLYING TO ME. What the fuck is he upto? I think we should go and check on him when Hunter comes up to my apartment. Or we shouldn’t.
And my name on the parcel? A smiley face? Weird as fuck. Our yearbook. From six years ago. Who would be in possession of it? Not Mr. Hunt because he was just a gardener. Even if he’s doing all of this? Just why? What is the point of all this? He always used to be friendly to us, I admit he was a little weird. No, really fucking weird.
But what the fuck is the point of all of this?
I can hear someone banging at the door. Sounds like whoever is on the other side is really impatient. Must be Hunter. I’ll go and talk to him and we even might decide to check up on Matthew’s house on the other town. Ah, not a goodbye yet. I will write again tonight.
Matthew is dead. I cannot believe this, the police again ruled it off as a suicide because of his slit wrists and funny enough, his one eye was gouged out as well. Talk about coincidences; I don’t feel anything. I just want to know who, and what is the motive behind this. Who is next? Fuck it.
Hunter received another mail in the span of the few hours he was inside his home. This time it was the same fucking weird envelope with the ‘:)’ on it but inside was a photo, a polaroid of Matthew’s t-shirt and his track-pants laid out on his bedroom floor.
Hunter is really, really creeped out and wants to spend the night over at my apartment. And as much as I hate to share my private space, I can’t help but go on with it because frankly I am too scared to sleep alone tonight either.
I’ll update you guys tomorrow. I feel a bit okay now that I know I’m not gonna be spending the night alone.
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13th May, 2005
There was no singing last night or maybe I was too sound asleep to notice. I woke up to Hunter not being there but he left a note. I’ll read it now.
‘Nathan, don’t’
Simply that. Don’t what? At least give me a fucking explanation. I’ll call him now, I need to talk to him where the fuck did he vanish off to?
…He’s not picking up. He wore some of my clothes and left the stuff he was wearing on the couch. Where could he have gone? Hunter don’t fucking ditch me at the last minute when two of our friends have been fucking possibly murdered.
I’ll write later tonight. I’ll try asking the neighbours if they’ve seen Hunter leave in the morning.
They didn’t see anyone leaving my apartment early morning or the previous night. Nor did they hear anyone leave or any weird noises that they might have noticed. FUCK.
I need to call him again.
He’s not picking up. I can’t take this anymore. The people I once knew just vanishing one by one without any explanation as to what might’ve happened or what’s going on. I just hope Hunter is alive or that he’s probably in hiding having abandoned me, whatever his choice I hope he’s safe. That’s all.
I’ll sleep now. I am not scared anymore. I am not.
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14th May, 2005
Peace. I think I took it for granted. I didn’t hear any song or see anybody dancing in the middle of the street, or any strange occurrences whatsoever. I am happy. I feel relieved.
Hunter still hasn’t picked up any of my calls nor is he responding to any mails. I don’t care. I am finally relieved to be free of all these. I feel happy.
A letter came through today. That same envelope but with no smileys. Inside was a small wrinkled torn piece of paper with a drawing of a garden. Coloured with green crayons, even the sky is green. A few red roses and the rest are all bushes and trees. And a small ‘:)’ at the bottom right of the poor attempt at illustrating a garden.
It didn’t bring up any feelings in me. I’ll sleep soundly again tonight with no disturbances and no fear. Mr. Hunt, or the gardener or whatever the fuck it is.
It’s a surprisingly cold evening even though the sun is still up. I think its the breeze.
Wherever you guys are; Matthew, Vienna and Hunter. I think we should’ve stuck together after high school. You guys were the only people I could call ‘friends’ or whatever.
Anyway, I’ll go sleep. I have some work to attend to. I’ll update you guys tomorrow. I’ll ring up my mom before I head to bed.
Come to think of it, it isn’t a bad song.
I heard she sang a good song
I heard she had a style
And so I came to see her
And listen for a while
I like it.
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That was the last diary entry from Nathan [Redacted]. He was found dead on 15th May, 2005 in his apartment apparently having committed suicide. His one eye gouged out just like the other three ‘suicides’.