Episode 46 — Watched Freedom
Episode 46 — Watched Freedom
“Why is it like this now, Rae? I should’ve run earlier,”
Rae whispered to herself, barely audible, as she stood still at the end of the downstairs hallway.
The wooden stairs Kenny had just walked down now looked empty. The sound of his footsteps had faded, but his presence still lingered in the air like thin smoke that refused to disappear.
Rae lowered her gaze to her feet. Her hands clenched without her realizing. The cold crept up from the marble floor.
‘The keys are gone. But why does it feel like I’m not the one who’s been set free... but him who stepped back?’
She took a deep breath, then turned around. She returned to her room without turning on the lights.
That night, Rae just sat on her bed. Her eyes stared into the dark. Her eyelids were heavy, but her mind was too loud for sleep.
Freedom...
What does it mean, if every step still feels like a turn in a maze?
Morning came without sound....
Sunlight slipped through the curtains, casting a golden line across the floor. Rae still hadn’t slept. Her head felt heavy, but her body was lighter than last night...... or maybe just numb.
She got up and walked slowly to the door. She grabbed the doorknob... and the door opened easily.
It wasn’t locked.
She looked around. The hallway that morning felt... strange. Too quiet, but not in a threatening way.
She went downstairs.
Every door she passed, the reading room, the guest room, the kitchen door, none of them made the usual automatic click. No alarms. No cameras turning to follow her. No shadows of guards standing in the corners.
Everything was open.
Everything was quiet....
Rae walked into the kitchen. On the large, cold dining table was one thing that stood out: a white envelope, with her name handwritten on it. Just “Rae.” No stamp. No logo. Plain. Like a message written in a hurry.
She opened it carefully....
Inside was only a small piece of paper.
“Today you can go out. Sometimes city air is needed to clear the mind.”
— Kenny
Rae tilted her head. Her brows furrowed. She wasn’t sure if this was a punishment... or a trap... or something weird...... such permission.
She hadn’t decided where she’d go. But she knew she couldn’t keep sitting in that house like a ghost.
Maybe... she needed to breathe outside.
In front of the house, a black luxury car was already waiting.
The driver wore a neat light gray shirt and a dark jacket. He didn’t say much, just nodded as Rae stepped in, then started the engine.
The car moved smoothly. No GPS on. No explanation of where they were headed. Just the city outside the window, glass buildings, small trees planted along the median, and people walking fast with coffee cups in their hands.
Rae stared out. Her heartbeat was steady. But something inside her felt... off. A feeling she couldn’t name.
The car stopped in front of a small café, tucked into the corner of an upscale area.
The place looked warm and sweet, with big windows and copper hanging lights. The smell of coffee and toast filled the air as soon as she opened the door. She stepped inside.
The barista smiled. “Welcome, Lady. Please sit wherever you like.”
Rae picked a table near the window. She sat down, ordered a cappuccino, then looked around.
Everything looked... normal.
Too normal....
Once her drink was ready, she picked it up from the counter and returned to her table. She took a sip.
“Ahh... finally, I can feel it again. The peace and freedom of being alone like this.”
She looked around again.
There was a man in a hoodie sitting in the corner, stirring his coffee for five minutes without drinking it. A woman in a blazer sat on a sofa reading a book, but the page never turned.
‘Are they really just customers...?’
Her mind was spinning....
“This isn’t freedom. It feels like… walking on a stage, where every audience member is wearing a mask.”
She took another sip of coffee. It tasted too bitter.
Then her phone vibrated.
Unknown number....
With hesitation, she answered.
“If you feel watched…” Kenny’s voice was flat, calm, “that means you’re still sane.”
Rae held the phone tighter.
“Why did you let me go outside if in the end you put eyes everywhere?” Her voice was sharp. Not loud, but firm.
There was a pause. Then Kenny replied,
“So you’ll understand that walls aren’t always made of bricks. Sometimes, they come from our own fear.”
“You’re wrong,” Rae whispered, more to herself. “This isn’t fear. This is… a game.”
Kenny was silent. Then he said one word,
“Maybe....”
And the call ended.
“Ugh, he hung up. So annoying!”
Rae spent the rest of the afternoon just sitting in the café.
She didn’t talk to anyone. Didn’t order anything else. She just sat there, watching people come and go. The black luxury car was still waiting outside. The driver stood near the door, pretending to check his phone.
When the sun began to set, Rae stood up. She walked outside and opened the car door herself.
The ride home felt faster. Or maybe her mind was too full to notice the time.
At home, she took off her jacket and placed it on the living room sofa. The air inside felt warmer, but her heart was still cold.
She walked to the kitchen, opened the fridge, then closed it again without taking anything.
She returned to the sofa.
Sat. Still. For a long time.
Suddenly...
She felt something inside her jacket pocket.
She reached in and pulled out a small piece of paper. A memo. The writing was rough, like it had been scribbled in a hurry with a marker.
“Don’t get too comfortable. This house has more than one door.”
Rae stared at the message.
Her eyes narrowed.
‘Who put this here…?’
She stood up. Looked toward the stairs.
No one around....
Her steps moved slowly to the window. She pulled the curtain just enough to see the front yard. The black car was gone.
But the memo… was still in her hand.
And the message wasn’t a joke.
“More than one door…”
Rae thought about it again...
‘Does that mean an exit? Or... an entrance? But I’ve already been let out…’
Her head filled with possibilities. Someone besides Kenny. Someone who knew the house even better than she did.
Not a threat. But not an invitation either.
Just one thing:
A warning.
In her room, Rae sat in front of the mirror again.
She didn’t know what to feel.
The mirror showed her reflection. Hair a bit messy. Black hoodie. No makeup on her face. But her eyes… weren’t the same.
She no longer saw someone who was only confused.
Now, she saw someone who had to choose her own path....
She touched the mirror.
“Free… but watched. What does that even mean?”
There was no answer.
Only her reflection looking slightly stronger… but also a bit more alone.
She clenched the memo in her hand.
‘Freedom isn’t always about being able to leave… sometimes, it’s about knowing who really holds the door.’
And that night, Rae finally fell asleep.
Not deeply. Not peacefully.
But just enough to keep going.
For one more day.
To be continued...