Ella was returning from her long commute home. She loosely swayed to the rhythm of the desolate train carriage chugging along the road to nowhere. It was tiring to be young and act old. Never was she able to do ‘normal’ teenager activities. Instead, she was stuck with a small family of two: her and little Jules.
There was no doubt of how much she loved Jules. But having to constantly watch the boy, playing roles of both a parent and a sister, it was a tough thing to do. She sighed defeatedly at the thought of him. He was a little whirlwind of a brother, always seeking answers and adventure. Ella herself sought answers to a large question.
What happened to her mother and father?
Not one, but two empty spaces of a perfectly fine family. All the two did was go out to dinner for an evening. If you ask Ella, it’s an awfully long dinner they’ve been having.
Her trail of thought was very subtly interrupted by the slight sounds of snuffling and grunting. They were strange noises, almost animalistic.
Ella looked about at all the ghastly-empty seats arrayed across, puzzled. She whipped around to find quite a sight, she didn’t know whether to be in hysterics or fear.
A round, plump hippopotamus stared kindly into Ella’s bemused eyes. It did not seem at all phased by Ella, who eyes had widened in panic. She gaped at the creature in constant disbelief.
“Wh- Aren’t you supposed to be in the Amazon or something?”
In response, and to Ella’s alarm, the hippopotamus opened its mouth wide, and a laced shoe popped out from deep somewhere inside. She shrieked and paced back a few steps. The foot began to struggle and wiggle outwards. Soon a calf, a knee, a thigh and a second foot entailed behind the first. Ella’s hands flew over and cupped her mouth. This was like experiencing a weird birth, and she had unknowingly become a doula.
Soon, after what seemed like an eternity of pure horror, out came a torso, arms and a head. Before Ella even knew it, an old man extended out and knelt on the floor. He chuckled to himself as straightened his jacket and stood up in front of Ella.
"Wh- What just happened?" Ella stammered.
“It helps when my jaws can extend 150 degrees.” The hippopotamus piped proudly.
This was getting weirder by the second. Ella shook off her state of bewilderment and furrowed her brows at the old man. He shot a broken, yet warm grin in response.
He was surprisingly tall and lanky for a person of significant age. His frail, worn stature and thin face was clearly the product of chain-smoking. His body seemed limp and sad, yet his eyes would twinkle with sweet glee.
Ella tried her best to internalise her urge to physically cringe at the state of his brown and yellow teeth. She softened her glance and returned a thin smile.
"Hi, who are you two?" Ella forced through gritted teeth.
"My name is Unknown. Her name is Pim." The old man pointed a scrawny figure at the overly proud and plump-looking hippo.
"Your name is unknown?" Ella asked, cocking her head a little.
"No, that's my actual name, Unknown."
"So your actual name is Unknown?"
"Yes, my actual name is Unknown."
"So do you know or not?" Ella huffed in annoyance.
"My name is Unknown!" He wheezed back, emphasizing his words.
"What an odd name, Unknown."
"I know."
Ella by this point was not at all fazed or impressed by what she saw in front of her. She concluded that this was just a very weird hallucination she was experiencing.
She snapped out of thought as she felt rough fingers pinch her cheek.
"Not a dream, sweetheart."
Pim chuckled menacingly at his remark.
She visibly shuddered at the pet name. Before Ella could speak-
"Train is approaching Wallace Station."
As quick as the opening train doors, a young boy bruised with blue sprinted into the carriage. As he leaned over, clutching his knees to catch his breath, he looked up. His eyes widened in fear, as his eyes darted over the three of them.
"Seems like I can never escape madness!"
She smiled sympathetically at the poor, confused soul. From inspection, it seemed like this was the last thing he needed.
"Me neither."
Unknown and Pim shared awkward glances among themselves as they watched Ella and the boy interlock doe-eyed gazes. Unknown began to tap his foot impatiently at the sight.
He cleared his throat hoarsely, hacking an unsightly amount of phlegm. Ella whipped around worriedly. Was this old man about to die?
"We have business, Ella."
She tensed at the coughed-up sound of her name. No, Ella had enough. Thank goodness her stop had come right around the corner. She sprinted to the doors, eagerly watching the platform edge forward by every second through the murky glass doors.
"Wait, don't!-"
"I have places to be. Bye."
With a cold glare, she stormed out of the carriage, leaving the three inside.
As soon as Ella's boot touched the concrete edge of the platform, all went dark. She fell forward and collapsed, completely conscious and oblivious.
From inside the carriage, the others followed her lead and also dropped to the floor.
All was silent.
And through the silence, a sinister voice chuckled deeply.
"You should have waited, Ella..."
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