The Sun I Followed Into the Abyss

After what felt like an eternity, I began to develop a fever. My throat grew parched and burning.

I croaked weakly, "Water… Need water…"

However, nobody responded at all.

This time, I heard a conversation from upstairs coming through the vent.

"I'm sorry for dragging you into this, Mike."

It was Victoria's voice. "I only just realized how stupid I'd been in the past, giving up my future and happiness for a half-witted idiot."

"It's not too late yet, Vicky. You still have a whole life ahead of you," Mike replied gently.

After a short pause, Victoria spoke again. "I've already thought things through. I promise that I'll marry you. Let's do it next month. It's… It's about time that I lived for myself now."

A while later, the sounds of crying and embraces drifted out from inside.

I lay on the ground, tears flowing silently down my face. So, Victoria would only be happy once I disappeared from her life.

It was a sad and horrible truth, but I felt comfort in it. The pain in my body didn't feel that terrible anymore, either.

Eventually, I lost consciousness and passed out.

…

A few days later, Mike sent someone to take me to a pig farm in the suburbs far away. He chained my ankles with an iron chain that was just long enough for me to move between the sty, the feeding trough, and the haystacks.

The air was thick with the stench of pig feed and shit.

"This place is perfect for you. You're nothing more than just an animal, after all."

Victoria watched everything without saying a single word. I guessed that she'd already given him permission to do this to me with her silence.

I began living with the pigs from then onward. Victoria never came back to see me after leaving that day.

One morning, I woke from a deep sleep to the sound of footsteps approaching from afar. When I looked up, I saw Victoria—the person I had been thinking about day and night.

She was wearing a beautiful wedding gown, slowly stepping toward me in her high heels. Then, she crouched over and peered at me through the fence.

"I'm getting married to Mike today, Jo."

I looked at her blankly.

She really was a very beautiful woman, even more than I remembered.

"I'm sorry to have let you suffer for so long. I'll come back right after the wedding to pick you up," she said in a very light voice.

I nodded as if I understood what she meant, reaching out through the fence to try to touch her dress. However, I quickly noticed how dirty my hands were and withdrew them right away.

She got back to her feet and gave me one last look.

"Wait for me."

Then, she turned around and left in a car.

I watched as the car drove farther and farther away. I didn't beg her to stay. Instead, I just repeated under my breath, "I'll wait, Vicky…"

Sometime later in the evening, the fence leading into the pig sty was suddenly opened. I thought that Victoria had come for me, but I soon realized that it was a man I'd never seen before.

"Howdy, dumbass. Mr. Tate specifically instructed me to send you on your way," he said coldly, before beginning to douse the sty with a horrible-smelling liquid. It was so pungent that the smell made me cough and choke uncontrollably.

It then dawned on me that he was pouring gasoline all over the sty.

"You've got nobody to blame but yourself for being such a burden and getting in the way of everything. Mr. Tate can't ever get a day off as long as you're still alive.

"So, it's better for you to just die and get out of his way. People like you deserve to die anyway."

Moments later, flames began licking every corner of the sty. The pigs were startled and began squealing and trampling over one another in panic, trying to escape.

The fire spread quickly, and I felt the painful burns on my skin. The heavy smoke was also stinging my eyes and making me choke. I wanted to run, but I was still chained up, and there was nowhere I could go.

Was I finally going to die this time?

But maybe it was for the best.

The pig sty began to collapse, its support beams falling, and I looked at the blue sky outside the tiny window.

I remembered how Victoria looked in her wedding dress.

"I hope you'll always be happy, Vicky…"

I wasn't going to continue dragging her down with me anymore.

While on the verge of passing out, I suddenly heard the sound of car brakes screeching, followed by Victoria's heart-wrenching scream.

"Jordan!"

Right before losing consciousness, I heard someone else say in a deep, regretful voice, "His heart stopped beating, Ms. Chandler."