Behind the Close Door

It was oddly strange that Ni-ki’s parents and grandparents always warned him to not open the strange door.

 “Get away from the door! You already know to not go near that door.” His mother would always say. 

His friend Jungwon thought it is kind of dumb that he is not allowed to open the door. “I honestly think they’re just saying that just to scare you.” 

“I don’t think they would scare me.” Ni-ki would counter. 

Would they really say that just to scare me? Ni-ki thought. The boys went back to doing their history homework. They were currently learning about the year 2020. Apparently many horrible events happened that year. Some believed that Covid - 19  happened that year and was the reason why they had to immediately move to another planet that has the same characteristics as Earth, their old home.

While they did their research the boys heard a strange noise. It sounded like it was coming from outside his room. The sound is coming from behind the door. The door they aren’t allowed to go near. Being bold Jungwon decided to get closer by putting his ear to the door. 

“I’ll be right back. I'm gonna get the new gadget that my parents bought me.” Ni-ki was too scared to move. 

He didn’t know what was behind the door at all. There must be a reason why his parents and grandparents told him not to open the door. 

Even though he is scared he was still curious. No matter how many times he is told not to go near the door. He still goes near the door every night trying to see if anything will come out from the door. He thought it could be Bigfoot staying with them since he visits every Christmas. Jungwon finally comes back with the gadget. And the fun starts now.

It just seemed weird that they don’t know what can be in there since they have already seen everything anyone can imagine. They’ve seen the impossible. They’ve met vampires, unicorns, Bigfoot obviously and many more mythical creatures. 

“What do you think can be behind there?” Jungwon asked enthusiastically.

“I’m not sure. We’ve already seen everything that people back in the days thought weren’t real. It’s 3085 remember?” Niki replied dully.

Jungwon paid no attention to what Ni-ki had said and continued to try and listen to what can be inside. It was suddenly silent. That made him more curious. He can hear Ni-ki’s breath quickening and immediately turn his head to Ni-ki. He started to pinch himself to try and calm himself. 

“Ni-ki are you okay? What’s wrong?” Jungwon asked concerned for his friend.

Ni-ki couldn’t respond at all. He looked pale and was profusely sweating. He was having trouble breathing. Jungwon then took his friend into his embrace. He was very concerned about his friend. He doesn’t want his friend to get hurt at all. Ever since he had that nightmare about Ni-ki getting hurt, he’s been pinching himself. It hurts him to see his only friend to get hurt. Especially if he deeply cares for him. 

He proceeds to take Ni-ki back to the room and lay him down on the bed. Making sure that his friend is resting. Leaving the room to get his friend a cup of water hastily. What happened to him while we were there? Once he got back in the room he sees Ni-ki trying to get up.

“No-no-no-no. You need to be resting. Drink this and tell me what happened.” He demands Ni-ki. 

He was attentively staring at his friend. Patiently waiting for him to explain what happened. Pulling out a blanket to cover his friend. Making him feel safe while tucking him in. We should have never got closer to the door. This is probably causing Ni-ki to be like this. 

“I felt a breeze in my face and all of sudden I had trouble breathing,” Niki explained.

Ni-ki didn’t know what Jungwon was thinking and it made him nervous. Way more nervous than he should be. His stare was intimidating him. He wanted to know what he was thinking. He was curious about what his friend would say. Not knowing what to do or say he stayed quiet until Jungwon replies.

“Is that the only thing that happened? Has it happened before?” Jungwon asked.

Niki thought about it. Has this happened before? There was that one time when he first got near the door but that was pretty much it. It hasn’t happened during the times he has gotten near it. Maybe it has nothing to do with the door. He can probably just be scared and start to hyperventilate. He just wants to know what’s behind the door. Worrying his friend wasn’t supposed to happen. He never wants to worry him but it always happens and he is upset with himself because of that. 

“How about we don’t go near it and just continue doing our homework?” Jungwon suggests. 

Niki didn’t want to go back to doing his homework. He was already the top in his class. He wanted to continue to see what was up with the door. His curiosity is getting the best of him. Jungwon noticed that Niki wasn’t doing anything and it worried him. Is he alright? Is he is in pain? Did I say something wrong? All these questions were in his head and he didn’t know what to do at that moment. He decided to go on to another subject since the research was getting boring.

The subject that he loved the most in school was underwater physical education. Since they have evolved from the humans on earth they can breathe underwater on their planet. Jungwon especially loved to do underwater taekwondo. 

“Hey is it alright if I use your water room? I need to practice my underwater taekwondo” he asked his silent friend. Niki nodded and proceeds to not do anything. 

Jungwon steered himself into the room that Niki’s family had. He made sure that he was changed before entering the room. Before he could open the door he heard a thud and ran straight to where it came from. There was Niki laying on the ground looking pale and gasping for air.