Post #9 - The Inevitability of Death

The day started with loud chatter outside Yorick’s apartment, enough to wake him up. He looked out his window and noticed a large crowd forming around the entrance of the Maitland. Intrigued, he got out of bed, changed into pants, slid on his slippers, and headed downstairs.

Upon walking outside, he noticed a troubled energy amongst the townspeople. He slowly shoved his way to the front of the crowd and saw Edgar Maitland’s dead body, next to it lay a photo of him and his brother, Ether. The photo was illuminated by the morning sun.

Suddenly, everything made sense. The mystery man had indeed been Ether, just as he had suspected. The sun’s illumination onto the photo shed light onto the true reason behind Ether’s visit to the town. He’d come to get revenge on his brother.

Realizing that death seemed to follow him wherever he went, whether it was his wife or a fellow resident, all of the joy and hope Yorick had been building up seemed to diminish within seconds of seeing that photo.

He decided he needed to move again, make one last attempt at a fresh start.

He headed back up to his apartment to pack his things. With Misty in his right hand and a small suitcase in his left, he rode the elevator down to the ground floor of the Maitland one final time.

As he drove away, a dark cloud formed overhead. He concluded once and for all that his sorrows were inevitable, as was the imminent hand of death.

Blog #7 - A Light Shines on... Who?!

Opening his eyes to a fiery bright orange and pink sky, Yorick sprung out of bed. Spring had finally sprung! With the giddiness of a small child, Yorick prepared himself for the day ahead. He was working a double at Joe’s grocery, and for some reason, could not be more excited to go to work.

He left his apartment and took the elevator down to the street level. On his way to work, he turned to smile and wave at Ester Backhaus like he did most mornings, but was surprised to find she wasn’t sitting on her porch. Odd, he thought to himself, perhaps she’s slept in?

As Yorick arrived at work, he stood for a minute and admired the sun rays shining through the pink rosebush outside Joe’s grocery. The beautiful, sunny morning had brought him an enormous amount of joy.

Throughout the day, Yorick served many customers, some acting odd, but others joyful. On his way home, he was surprised once again at Ester’s absence from her porch. Worrying a bit, Yorick decided to pause for a moment and look up at her house. Suddenly, a light turned on in an upstairs window, and Yorick saw the shadowy figure of a man. Yorick stood confused and focused. This must have been the mystery man who’d been floating around town.

Focusing his eyes more closely, he made out the man’s face.

“This couldn’t be. There’s no way” Yorick mumbled to himself. “Ether Maitland?”

Blog #8 - A Snow Covered Clue

Waking up from perhaps the most restful and deep sleep of his life, Yorick opened his eyes to the bright white reflection of a sunny morning snow shining through his window pane.

Renewed.

He'd been feeling this lately, on his journey out of the dark. Emerging from the dark parts of his mind, his past, his ignorance. The light just kept coming, and here it was, in its purest form, a fresh white snow.

Outside, Yorick heard children shrieking with laughter, and he knew this was just what the town needed. Surely he couldn't be the only one feeling this way, he thought, especially not after that mysterious fog that seemed to suffocate the happiness out of everyone in town, and the old newspaper that, for most, had only brought back bad memories.

But then again, who knows?

Yorick began his morning routine, performing it with an extra spring in his step, even a slight smile. Although he'd never been one for a snowy day, this felt like something. As if it meant something. His journey is still progressing, and he can feel it. This rut he's been stuck in was about to be broken.

Smiling, he grabbed the last of his things; his keys, wallet, and phone, and walked down to the elevator.

Once outside, he passed Linh Luong, looking rather shaken up. He opened his mouth, as if about to speak to her, but her face seemed to freeze in a shocked expression and she turned her head from his and walked straight past him.

Something had happened, something related to the mystery man he kept seeing. He just knew it. Continuing on his way to work, Yorick darted his eyes back and forth looking for clues. He saw many people he knew in town, but never laid eyes on Mr. Maitland, who he often saw on his morning walk.

"Hmmm," he mumbled to himself, then walked inside Joe's Grocery and clocked in for the day.

Blog #6 - Finding Light Within the Fog

Waking with a grunt, Yorick pulled himself up and out of bed. He rubbed his eyes and reached his arms above his head in a stretch. After opening his eyes and gaining his focus, he became very confused. Everything was covered in a heavy fog, and he was unable to see clearly. He looked around for Misty, tripping over his dusty furniture.

"Damn it." he mumbled under his breath, regaining his balance.

In hopes that the hallway would be clearer, Yorick made his departure from his apartment, but was frustrated to find that the thickness of the fog in the hallway was congruent with that of the fog in his room. He walked down the stairs to check the mail, and upon walking into the mail room, found many of his neighbors standing around, muttering in confusion. 

"Yorick, have you seen this?" prompted Halle, handing Yorick a newspaper.

Still groggy and a bit annoyed by the morning, Yorick uninterestedly glanced at the paper. Then, recognizing the headline he'd just been shown, re-focused his attention on the newspaper again, jaw dropping open.

His mind took him back to that day. The day Mr. Evans' murder had been discovered. The day he'd taken his attention off of mourning Mr. Evans and started mourning his wife again. The day he felt sad and hopeless, and the town changed forever. The number of good days Yorick had had since the death of Mr. Evans were few and far between, as it was not only him who was affected by this death, but everyone he interacted with since then seemed to have a bit less sparkle to them.

Yorick walked slowly back to his apartment, breathing in the thick, suffocating air. Upon returning to his apartment, Yorick sat in his chair, opening the window just as he had on the clear night not too long ago. Somehow, although this fog was restricting his vision, something about the return of the newspaper felt like a sign to him. Like a continuation of his moment of insight, and his coming out of the dark. Perhaps this newspaper would give him some insight into the identity of the mystery man and his connection to Mr. Evans.

Feeling confident in his ability to bring light to this situation, Yorick sat back and reflected on his life. Instead of feeling the same sadness he had felt years ago on the day this newspaper was released and darkness had swept over the town, Yorick felt his purpose was finally coming together. He reminisced on his relationship with his wife, and how lost he had felt on this day 6 years ago. Now it was all looking up for him. He held Misty in his arms, leaned back in his chair, and dozed off as a small smile crept across his face. 

Blog #5 - Breaking Away from the Darkness

Feeling down and desperate for answers, Yorick gazed out his window. The night was surprisingly clear, especially after the abundance of clouds and precipitation the town had recently seen. He felt a sudden urge to feel the fresh air, perhaps it would lighten his mood.

Yorick struggled to open the dusty, broken window, becoming increasingly frustrated. Living in this broken apartment was taking its toll on him.

After finally managing to pry open the window, Yorick let out a sigh of relief and looked up to the sky. The copious number of stars reminded him of being a young boy, going to the beach with his family on vacation, and looking up to see the night sky fully lit by the little yellow lights. Back then, he felt so hopeful, about himself, his family, the future. Everything was perfect in those moments.

Now, Yorick felt quite the opposite. While he'd had some positive and captivating interactions recently, he still wasn't feeling his best/ Yorick felt rather in the dark about the identity of the mystery man as well as his own fate and purpose. He began to think about this.

What is his purpose?

Why is he here?

Surely not to stock grocery store aisles the rest of his life.

That's when he saw it. A bright flash dashed across the sky.

Could it really be? A shooting star? In awe, Yorick closed his eyes and made a wish. Feeling so in the dark about everything, Yorick wished for some light to be shed on his situation, just as the shooting star had shed some light on the night sky. Yorick sat, smiling to himself. He knew a shooting star was a sign of self-fulfillment and advancement. And what better way to achieve self fulfillment but to have insight into your own purpose?

The night sky had started out as a sign of sorrow, emphasizing the darkness that surrounded him. Now, it was a sign of hope. Yorick sat in his chair closest to the window and left it open all night, letting the cold, fresh air wash over him and revive his spirit.

Blog #4 - Chicken Noodle Soup and Who?!

Stories of the mystery man Yorick had encountered were swarming around town. He hadn't been the only one the man paid a visit to. In the wake of Mr. Evan's funeral, however, Yorick had replaced thoughts of the mystery man with new ones, and hadn't thought much of it since.

Three days after his strange encounter, Yorick ran into Vanyan Gason while restocking soups at Joe's grocery. There had been a slight snow storm in the town and people were buying warm soups and beverages at a faster rate than usual. While standing in the aisle, shelving chicken noodles, Yorick was approached by a flustered Vanyan.

"Hey man, the most unnerving thing happened to me the other night. I got a text. A text about Mr. Evans. I'm freaked out man, and I don't know who to tell... well, I mean, I guess I just told you." Vanyan uttered, speaking rapidly.

"Wait, a text about Mr. Evans? What do you mean?" replied Yorick, rather baffled at this bizarre interaction.

"The text, it said they know who murdered Mr. Evans."

"Who's they?" Yorick asked, his interest suddenly peaked.

"I don't know! That's why I'm so freaked out man! I have nearly everyone in this town's cell phone number on file. I couldn't match it to anyone. I mean, who could it be??!"

"Well now that I come to think of it, I had a rather strange encounter the other night as well, and I suppose there's a possibility the two could be related..." began Yorick, perhaps catching onto something. "There was a man, and he was tweaking about Mr. Evans, worrying about what Herman and them were talking about at Alice's the other night. The dude was weird, and I'd never seen him before. He was new to town as far as I could tell. Anyways, he was freaking out about Mr. Evans and kept everything real quiet. He rushed away real quick though, so I didn't get much out of him."

"Do you think it could've been the same guy? I mean I know we have no real basis for that, but I mean a mystery man bumps into you, freaks out that people know something about Mr. Evans.... then I get that alarming text?" Vanyan said suggestively.

"It's possible. He gave me an uneasy feeling. Maybe we'll run into him again. I sure would recognize him this time." Yorick assured him.

"Maybe" Vanyan replied, "if we're just lucky enough..."

Blog #3 - A Mysterious Man

Yorick headed out for a walk around 8:00 pm. He needed to clear his head, he'd had a long day at Joe's Grocery with many difficult customers and just wanted some fresh air. His happy disposition had worn off since Conrad's visit to town.

Walking down Magnolia Drive, Yorick rounded the corner by Learning Worm Bookstore. Suddenly, he bumped into something, and stumbled backwards. He regained his balance and refocused his vision, realizing that it wasn't something he had bumped into, it was someone. He tried to make out the man's face in the evening darkness, but had no recognition.

Odd, he thought. Almost everyone in this town is recognizable.

The man scurried off quickly, then tripped. Yorick called after him.

"Hey, are you ok?" Yorick asked, walking over to help the man up.

"Shhh. Don't be so loud," answered the man in a quiet, bitter voice. Yorick had a better view of the man's face now, about 55 years old, scruffy.

"Sorry sir, I was just checking to see if you were hurt." Replied Yorick apologetically. Why was everyone being so damn unpleasant to him today?

"No, it's not you. I saw them. I saw them at that Diner," whispered the mysterious man. 

"Saw who? What are you talking about?" Asked Yorick, growing skeptical of this man and the situation. 

"Them. That old policeman and those other people. You know, the ones who know," whispered the man.

"Know what?" asked Yorick.

"Know what happened. Do you think that's what they were talking about? How do they know?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, sir," replied Yorick, trying to be polite. Yorick was growing increasingly worried about this mysterious man's mental health.

"Mr. Evans. Isn't that who they're talking about? I know that's what they were talking about." Said the man in a paranoid, rushed manner.

"It's possible, sir," replied Yorick, "A lot of people talk about Mr. Evans. It's big news here in this town. 

The man hurried away. 

Yorick stood still for a minute. Confused. Then he returned to his walk, trying not to think much of it. But he couldn't help but wonder... what was this man so flustered about? And who was he? Did he know something about Mr. Evans? Was he just crazy? Yorick pondered on it as he turned around and walked back home to the Maitland. 

He rode the elevator up to his floor, entered his apartment, and climbed into bed. As he was falling asleep, something told him he was going to see this man again, that this man would be important. But then again maybe that was just the excitement talking. After all, the man had made quite a scene. Showing up out of nowhere in the dark, saying mysterious things, then running off into the night. Yorick pushed the thought out of his mind, rolled over, and went to sleep.