Chapter 17: Reminisce, Clarity

The day passed uneventfully for Liam and it was already evening. He stood up from the sofa and did a stretch, to loosen his stiff body.

He has been seated in front of the TV all day, focused on the new game and trying to complete.

It hasn't been easy though. The game is just as difficult as its name.

The people that makes these soul games are masochistics. No one can tell me otherwise.But I guess I'm a bigger one for not giving up.

"Haaa," Liam let out a lengthy sigh.

He looked at his phone and saw that it was past 6.

I've been playing for more than 9 hours. Wow. I should go get some fresh air.

He walked to the door and picked up his car key, and left the penthouse. He decided to get some fresh air by taking an evening drive around town.

***

Liam drove out of the estate and drove down the road, with no destination in mind. As he drove, he thought of places to go to spend a quiet evening.

He wasn't hungry, neither does he want to talk to anyone or really do anything in particular. What he really need is to enjoy his newfound wealth with peaceful quiet and the beautiful sound of nature.

As he thought of that, he decided to go to the beach. It was the best place he could think of.

A few minutes later, he arrived there. He parked his car appropriately and walked towards the roaring ocean in the distance.

It was already getting late and the sun was about to set, so the beach was mostly free of people.

Liam slowly walked towards the shore and stopped a couple of distance from it. He saw a small rock or boulder a few distance from him and walked towards it, and sat down.

He smiled as he watched the ocean's rhythm—the gentle swash creeping up the sand, carrying bits of the sea with it, before the backwash pulled it away again, dragging coarse grains of shore back into the waves.

A cool breeze moved through the air, tinged with salt and the faint scent of seaweed. The cry of distant seagulls echoed overhead, sharp but not unpleasant, occasionally rising above the soft rustle of the wind.

To his left, the sun hovered low on the horizon, painting streaks of orange, pink, and violet across the water. The sky deepened by the minute, shifting toward a dark blue dome scattered with the first hints of stars.

Nearby, a cluster of rocks jutted from the shoreline, and the water slapped gently against them, creating a rhythmic splash like nature's slow heartbeat. Tiny crabs skittered across the wet sand, vanishing into holes as the tide swept forward again.

He could hear the hushed laughter of a couple walking far down the shore, their voices blurred by distance and the constant whisper of waves. The beach wasn't crowded—just a few scattered souls taking in the quiet beauty of twilight.

It was peaceful. Very peaceful indeed.

Liam thought of something and he took off his footwear, stood up from the boulder, and walked barefooted to the shore.

The moment his soles touched the cool sand, a shiver went up his spine—but it wasn't from the cold. It was something deeper. The grains were soft in some places, compact in others, and scattered with the occasional shell or smooth pebble. Each step grounded him, pulled him further from his thoughts and deeper into the present.

The sand clung to his feet as he walked, and with each step closer to the water, it grew cooler, damper. He could feel it sinking slightly under his weight, hugging his heels. The breeze tousled his hair gently, and he inhaled deeply, filling his lungs with the briny air.

A few paces more and the first wave kissed his toes.

He stilled.

The water was cold but not unpleasant—like the shock of a cold towel on a warm day. It rushed forward gently in a frothy sheet, curling around his ankles, before pulling back with a soft suction that tugged at the sand beneath his feet. He could feel the ground shifting under him, eroding with each retreat, leaving his heels more exposed, more sunken.

The tide came again, a little stronger, splashing against his shins this time. He closed his eyes.

The sensation was oddly purifying and satisfying.

His pulse slowed. His shoulders loosened. And for the first time in what felt like forever, his mind was completely blank, devoid of any thoughts whatsoever, as he just... stood there. In the water. Letting the ocean come and go.

The breeze brushed against his face, and somewhere overhead, a seagull let out a drawn-out cry that quickly faded into the wind. The orange glow on the horizon had dimmed further, and the waves caught that last bit of sunlight, flashing gold before going dark again.

The world was alive. Moving. Breathing. And he was here, barefooted and strangely at peace.

But that strange peace didn't last too long as a strange, stifling feeling filled his heart the following moment.

He had no idea what this feeling is but he had felt it during the first year his mother left him, technically making him an orphan.

He thought he had gotten rid of it but it seems like he was wrong.

Should I go there?

He felt like going back to his old neighbourhood. He wants to see the house he used to live with his parents. The house he grew up in and the house he once called home.

No need going there won't change anything. And it's been many years now, there's a high chance that the property isn't even there anymore. And an even higher chance of it already occupied by someone else.

As for both his parents? It has been years since he last saw them and he doesn't care if they are dead or alive.

Though he was sure that they are alive.

Truth be told, Liam hates his parents. He hates them with every single cell in his body, amd he hates his father even more.

He feels that if his father hadn't left that day, they will still be that happy family he once knew.

Or maybe he's deluding himself. Were they really a happy family? As far as he can remember, his parents never really acted like actual husband and wife. It was more like two strangers living under the same roof and he was just something that popped out of nowhere.

In other words, he was an accident...

Liam smiled ruefully and let out a lengthy sigh. His parents are things of the past. He was already aware of this years ago, there's no need reminiscing on what would had been.

It's time for him to move forward and make the best out of his life. He will live his life to the fullest, enjoying the best and finest things in life because he has the money.

He exhaled sharply and closed his eyes. The breeze, once comforting, now felt colder making his thoughts clearer.

There's a saying that if money isn't solving your problem, then you're not throwing enough at it. And if you say it can't buy you happiness, then you don't have enough of it.

Money rules the world. It makes the world go round. It opens every single door you want open and shuts those you don't want open.

Money isn't power, but it buys power. And with sufficient power, everything's up for grabs.