As usual, night study ended at 9:30 pm. Julian looked around the hall but did not see Gary anywhere. He wanted to apologize for how he had reacted. After thinking about it, he realised that Gary would never try to sabotage him. Gary had been there for him since he stepped in that school. Gary used not to get bothered by anyone until he started supporting Julian. The bullies usually left Gary alone because he was one of the rich kids. They only attacked him when he tried to defend Julian, but he still continued to do it whenever he could. Gary had been his only friend and he should have listened to him. What if Gary had been actually telling the truth? He needed to find his friend so he could start planning for a way out. Sighing, Julian grabbed his text book and summary sheet. He walked out of the large hall with the other students. Fetterville Private School was fairly large with five buildings and a large compound. The vicinity was well lit. The administration block, main hall and

Tears streamed down Julian’s eyes as he watched his home turn into ashes. Julian watched the flames flickering through the windows and smoke coming from the roof of the house. When he had just arrived, he had tried to go into the building but got held back by the neighbours who had gathered. The smell of everything he owned burning up made his stomach churn. It was something he knew he would never forget.The flames crackled and the fire intensified. At that moment, the firefighting truck came into the street, heading for the burning house. Julian just stood there, feeling numb. His home, the place he had grown up was gone. It was the only thing his parents had left him.A few minutes later, his uncle arrived. Uncle Mason screamed when he saw the house burning. His girlfriend stopped the car and they both got out. Julian ran to his uncle and fell into his arms. He had never seen Uncle Mason crying. Mason was a free spirited guy who lived life to the fullest. When they pulled apart, J

Other than his uncle, Gary was the only person Julian trusted. Although his uncle had told him not tell anyone about the treasure, he did not hesitate to tell Gary about it that evening.“So, are you’re going to look for it,” Gary asked. They were seated in the entertainment room watching a sci-fi movie they’d seen before.Julian laughed. “Are you mad? Of course not. That’s ridiculous. I’m going to find a job and work as hard as possible so I can get my own place. I don’t have time to go digging around the city in the hopes of finding some ancient treasure. Do you know how ridiculous that sounds?”“You admitted that you’ve always found your family mysterious,” Gary said. “Maybe there’s no treasure but there has to be a reason why those spots were marked. What if they mean something to the family? What if this holds some of the answers you have sought your whole life? You said your parents’ bodies were never found. What if this has something to say about that?”Julian sighed. “I think

The sun was shining bright on that day. It’s a good day to die, Julian thought as he entered the forest. The air was thick as he started hiking up the hill. His heart was thumping so hard that he could hear it. The trees towered above him, and he could hear the gentle sway of the leaves, bringing a calming feeling to his heart. His mind was raging with all kinds of thoughts.A few minutes after hurrying up, his breathing had grown laboured and his legs heavy. His legs felt like lead and he was so tired that it was affecting his vision. Because of that, he nearly stumbled over rocks and tree roots on the path. At that point, he felt like he was dragging himself up the trail, his feet barely lifting off the ground. Desire everything, he continued.After what seemed like hours, he reached the top and immediately collapsed on the ground. He lay on his back under a shady tree and stared at the bright blue sky. The world was so beautiful and he found himself wondering if ending his life was

Julian opened more pages of the book but couldn’t see anything. All the pages were blank. He sighed and closed the book.“Useless book,” he said.“Sorry man,” Gary said. “I thought you’d find something useful in there.”Julian wanted to throw the book out of the window but he remembered everything that had happened to him. Maybe the book would come in handy at some point.When they reached Gary’s house, Julian wanted to be alone. He went to his room and threw the book on the table. The book fell open when it landed on the table top. Julian was about to turn away when he saw words on the open page. He did another take to make sure he was seeing right. He could swear that the page had been blank before but he chose not to dwell on that.He picked up the book and saw an address written on it. He opened other pages to see if there was something on them but found nothing. Julian grabbed a piece of paper and copied the address hoping it wouldn’t disappear. He opened the drawer and saw a few