“The One He Buried”
Cold fog. Silent harbor.
Five dangerous bikers sit around a fire.
Everyone fears them.
But tonight…
someone walks straight toward them.
A little girl.
Alone.
Dirty clothes.
No fear.
One biker whispers:
“Marcus… something’s wrong.”
She steps closer.
Closer…
Stops right in front of Marcus.
Her hand slowly rises…
Points at his tattoo.
Silence.
GIRL (quiet, steady):
“My father had this.”
The laughter dies instantly.
Marcus leans forward:
“Yeah? And?”
Her eyes fill with tears…
But her voice turns sharp:
“He told me what you did to him.”
The bikers shift nervously.
Marcus freezes… then whispers:
“That’s impossible…”
He leans closer, eyes dark:
“I buried him.”
The girl doesn’t move.
Doesn’t blink.
A tear rolls down her cheek.
Then—
She reaches into her pocket…
Pulls out an old, muddy photo.
Holds it up.
Marcus takes it.
His hand trembles.
It’s him…
Standing next to a man.
Same tattoo.
Same night.
Same place.
The fire crackles louder.
Marcus’s voice breaks:
“…No.”
The girl steps closer.
Whispers:
“He’s been looking for you.”
Wind howls.
The fire suddenly goes out.
TOTAL DARKNESS.
Darkness swallowed everything.
No fire.
No faces.
Just breath.
Heavy.
Uneven.
Marcus didn’t move.
Didn’t blink.
Because in the dark—
he could hear it.
Not the wind.
Not the waves.
Footsteps.
Slow.
Dragging.
Coming from behind him.
One of the bikers whispered:
“Marcus… who’s out there?”
No answer.
The girl was still standing in front of him.
Exactly where she was.
Unmoving.
But now—
she wasn’t the one they were afraid of.
A faint glow flickered back to life.
The fire.
Weak.
Dying.
But enough.
Enough to see—
someone else standing there.
Behind Marcus.
A man.
Wet.
Covered in dirt.
Clothes torn.
Face… broken.
But his eyes—
locked on Marcus.
Recognition hit like a punch.
Marcus staggered back.
“No…” he whispered.
The man took one step forward.
Slow.
Unnatural.
Like something that didn’t belong in the world anymore.
“You remember now,” the girl said quietly.
Marcus shook his head violently.
“I buried you,” he said. “I watched you die.”
The man didn’t speak.
Didn’t need to.
He just kept walking.
Each step—
closer.
The other bikers backed away.
Instinct.
Fear.
Real fear.
One of them reached for his gun.
His hands shaking.
“Stay back!” he shouted.
The shot cracked through the harbor.
Loud.
Violent.
Echoing.
The bullet hit—
but the man didn’t fall.
Didn’t even slow down.
That’s when it broke.
Completely.
The bikers turned.
Ran.
Not together.
Not organized.
Just gone.
Leaving Marcus alone.
Exactly like he left him.
The girl stepped aside now.
Clearing the path.
Letting it happen.
Marcus fell to his knees.
“I didn’t mean to kill you,” he said.
The words felt weak.
Useless.
Too late.
The man stopped in front of him.
Close enough to touch.
Close enough to see—
the same tattoo.
The same mark.
The same night.
The same truth.
“You took everything,” the girl said.
A pause.
Then—
“He just wants it back.”
Marcus looked up.
Tears mixing with sweat.
“What… what do you want?” he begged.
The man finally moved.
His hand lifted slowly.
Shaking.
Broken.
And placed it—
on Marcus’s shoulder.
Cold.
Impossible cold.
Marcus screamed.
Not from pain.
From memory.
Because suddenly—
he wasn’t in the harbor anymore.
He was back there.
That night.
The fire.
The fight.
The moment he chose—
to leave him.
To bury him alive.
The truth hit all at once.
“You didn’t kill me,” the man said.
His voice—
low.
Cracked.
Wrong.
“You left me.”
Silence shattered everything.
Marcus collapsed.
Breathing hard.
Breaking.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered.
But it wasn’t enough.
It was never enough.
The man leaned closer.
And said the final words:
“So was I.”
Then—
darkness again.
Total.
Morning.
Cold light over the harbor.
Police tape.
Flashing lights.
Officers moving carefully.
A body on the ground.
Marcus.
Alive.
Barely.
Eyes open.
But empty.
Like something inside him was gone.
“Sir, can you hear me?” an officer asked.
Marcus didn’t answer.
He just kept whispering one thing:
“He’s still here…”
Across the harbor—
a small figure stood.
The girl.
Watching.
Not smiling.
Not sad.
Just… waiting.
Then she turned.
May you like
And walked away.
Into the fog.
