Call of DOOM!

Today was the biggest day of Justin’s life. Countless nights of exhilaration resulted in the thick eyebags sagged beneath his eyes. It was his wedding day! He knew that this day would decide his fate and it was about to, in the way that he never expected or dreamed of……
All these months of preparations and excitement, the amount of dreary eyelids and tired limbs had all came down to today, his wedding! The whole neighbourhood and relatives were invited. He was looking forward to this day as he knew this would be the best day of his life. He was on his way to pick up his beloved bride-Sharmaine, the woman that he would spend his entire lifetime with. At that time, people still believe in auspicious hours unlike nowadays in an urbanized nation like Singapore. In the car, his heart was racing like a bullet train and cold sweat was starting to damp his tuxedo, the moment of reciting the marriage vow was constantly played in his head. Justin could not help it, he was just too excited. Engrossed in such deep thoughts he did not realize his phone was ringing. His handphone rang loud, as if hollering at him to take the call. Justin answered it, only to hear a voice which he never heard in his life, little did Justin know it was the call of disaster.
“Please, do not hang up the phone. I have been kidnapped and I need help. This is not a hoax. Please help me!!!!” Justin thought he was hearing things. Probably the sleepless nights had caused his ears to malfunction. He did not end the call though, he merely took sips of water, trying to clear and refresh himself. Justin answered again, asking who the speaker was, for a moment it was all silent, he assured himself that he was just hearing things. Justin did not know that he was stepping into a greater trap where there is no turning back.
Just as he was about to end the call, a coarse voice bellowed so loud upon his ear drums, tempting to break it. The scary voice threatened Justin which sent a chill down his spine. The man ordered Justin to go to number ten St.Park villa to retrieve a thumbdrive in order to release the victim and a call to the police would result in the victim’s death. For a moment Justin was totally dumbfounded, he was stunned and did not know what to do. He immediately re-dialed the number but he could not get through.
Justin’s wedding was an hour away, he could pretend nothing had happened and carry on living happily. Should he ignore the call? However, thoughts of someone getting killed because of him not listening to a cry for help, and the guilt haunting him for the rest of his life made him have second thoughts. Justin had reached a crossroad, the left side was the way to his wedding venue and the other side was the way to ST. PARK villa. It was indeed the toughest decision in his entire lifetime as his decision would certainly have drastic effects. Justin’s was in a dilemma. In the end, he turned the to the right, the way to ST PARK villa, all the while questioning his own decision but now there was no turning back.
He reached St.Park villa to find identical houses, he took some time to locate villa number 10. Justin reached the number ten villa and parked his car outside. He opened the gate rushed in to find the door was ajar, hanging by the hinges. All the drawers and were open and the contents were strewn all over the floor. It showed that a thorough search had taken place, indicating him that the thumbdrive could not easily found. Justin searched high and low, spending one full hour finding but was empty handed. Just as he was about to give up, he saw a flower pot high up in a dark corner, odd for a place for a flower to grow in. He had a hunch that the flower pot is grown there for a reason. He approached the flower pot and dug deep in its soil. He’s hunch was right! The thumbdrive was hidden in the soil in the flower pot! He turned a laptop lying on the desk and opened the thumbdrive. It contained pictures and not just ordinary pictures, pictures with shows the kidnapper involved in a bank robbery and his face was not masked, leaving his identity open! Justin soon realize why the thumbdrive was so important to him, because the thumbdrive is evidence to his wrongdoings and he want it back, to get himself clean of all crimes!
In a short while, his phone rang again. The same voice ordered him to meet him in Gooseberry Park 30 minutes. He further emphasized on not notifying the police. Justin was starting to question himself in making decisions, he could not imagine the feeling of his bride now, dejected, sorrow and indeed furious at him for jilting him at the altar. Justin thought to himself, since he agreed to help, there is no turning back. Forsaking lifetime happiness, he vowed to see the matter through the end. He called his best pal, Daniel, telling him his situation and asking him to tip-off the police on his meeting location although he knew he was putting both his and the victim’s life at risk. However, he promised to nab the kidnapper at al cost! He also instructed Daniel to take care of his family and Sharmaine if he doesn’t make it out alive.
He reached Gooseberry Park in 10 minutes, mind in deep thoughts and starting to question his ability to make it out unscathed. Gooseberry Park was the most remote area around the town, no one ever went there and this was indeed his first time. People say, stepping on the ground of Gooseberry Park can cut short your lifespan by ten years! Soon later, a car arrived parked beside the old willow tree. Justin saw two blurred image emerge through a small car, one big and sturdy, the other, a women, gagged and bounded by ropes. The kidnapper demanded Justin to handover the thumbdrive. Justin’s heart was thumping like sledgehammers gone berserk, almost coming out of his mouth. Justin mustered his courage placed the thumbdrive on the ground and backed away, demanding the release of victim. The kidnapper did not reply but brandish out a gun instead. Justin realizes that time was of the essence as the kidnapper had indeed no intentions of freeing him and the victim, instead, had intentions of ending their lives. He closed his eyes and braced himself for his last few moments of his life
A gunshot was fired, just when Justin thought he had been shot, he looked up to see the kidnapper fall to the ground. It was the police! There were reporters and ambulance, amidst the crowd Justin saw Daniel winking at him. He knew he was saved! The woman Justin saved broke in tears and thanked him profusely. She even went down on her knees to prove her sincerity. The woman was a news reporter from channel news five, this was probably the biggest scoop of her life. At that point, seeing how grateful she was, it warmed his heart and felt really proud of his act. Out of the blue, he glanced at his watch, the heroic feeling in his heart died out immediately as he woke up to reality. He had missed his wedding! Reporters crowded around Justin and threw him many questions. Justin didn’t feel like answering so he ignored them and trudged home wearily.
Justin was engulfed with mixed feelings. Happy that he saved a life but the fact that his life’s happiness was compromised made him break down, crying so badly. Justin went home with blood-shot eyes after crying so hard. He threw his home keys on the floor and plunged on the sofa wearily. Unknowingly, a gentle voice spoke to him, “Why do you look so haggard, you better wash up and get ready for our postponed wedding tomorrow!” Justin look up, Sharmaine! “I watched the news five, you did Singapore proud!”
On the bed, Justin was indeed in deep thoughts. Being part of a Singapore, we all take things for granted and helping seems to be unnecessary. We all need to stand united and do what’s right so that we can all live in peace and harmony. Justin thought to himself, if there was a time machine, he wouldn’t have done it any other way……