As the dark curtain of the night lifted, and the first rays of the sun peered over the horizon, a single room was bathed in a celestial glow that transcended the mundane. The light that flowed into the room was neither arrogant nor boastful, and yet could not be ignored. For it carried a profound depth that spoke of the miracle of the universe.

The light blended seamlessly with the tranquil atmosphere of the room, and with it, came a gentle warmth that caressed every object within. The once dull corners were now exquisitely highlighted, and every shadow became a masterpiece of light that seemed to come alive.

As the first rays of the sun lit up the room, a musical symphony began to flow through the air. The soft melodies of the dawn chorus of birds mingled with the light, creating a spellbinding harmony that burrowed its way into the soul.

The birds' song was like a hymn of gratitude for the beauty that was unfolding before them. Each of their notes was a celebration of the creation of light and the magic that lay within.

The light continued to dance through the room, bringing with it a sense of wonder and purpose. It seemed to whisper an invitation to the single inhabitant of the room, calling on him to embrace the moment and bathe in the glory of life.

Doctor Zackary began to stir from his dreams. A glimmer of consciousness sparked within, like a flicker of flame amidst the darkness. Slowly, ever so slowly, he emerged from the cocoon of sleep.

With a yawn that seemed to stretch from his toes to the crown of his head, Zackary reached out and touched the lamp beside his bed. And, like an obedient genie summoned from its bottle, the soft glow of the light added illumination to the room, casting a warm and gentle radiance upon its contents.

But it was not enough. There was something - some force, some energy, some invisible pull - that beckoned the doctor towards the window. And so, with a sense of purpose, he rose from his bed and padded softly across the room.

Reaching the window, Zackary hesitated for just a moment, as if gathering strength for what was to come. And then, with a smooth and graceful motion, he drew open the curtain, revealing the world beyond.

And what a world it was. The sky was blazed with hues of pink and blue and gold, as though the heavens themselves had erupted with joy.

     
Zackary smiled. Another day had dawned, bringing with it new hopes and aspirations. His wasn't easy. He struggled, crawled, and dueled with fate just to get by. He managed to finish his studies without the aid of his parents, parents who were never there, to begin with.
     
But on that day, he'd undertake a new life as Dr. Zackary Salvador, a psychiatrist, hired by a world-renowned Doctor.

Smiling to himself, he took another glance at the sight before him and thought about how majestic the forest appeared in the morning sun. The trees that cast large faint shadows on the lawn, leaves that swayed by the breeze which freely lingered, haphazardly with its whooshing sound felt surreal. He smiled, opened the window, and took a deep breath, "How fresh," he purred as he released the air from his lungs.

For a long moment, Zackary stood there, gazing out at the world with a look of wonder and awe.

But his musing was interrupted when a buzz from somewhere inside his room erupted. Zackary craned his neck throughout his quarters in an attempt to locate the source of the sound. The culprit was soon found when his eyes rested on something on the wall in front of him. It was a small black speaker wedged beside his bedroom door, just below the light switch. He walked towards it, pressed the button, and said, “Hello?”
     
"Hello? Oh, Doctor? Doctor?" 
     
Zackary rubbed his temple because he knew all too well who was on the other line. Damien, the giant who, in some weird desire to meet his relative made him walk miles of dirt.
     
“Yes Damien, what do you want,” he asked, trying to hide the annoyance in his voice.
     
"I...I... I was just checking...checking up on you," he answered back.
     
"Thank you, Damien, but I would prefer a bit of privacy at this early hour," the doctor answered, but the irate tone in his voice could not be missed. He waited patiently for the man to answer back, but as the seconds ticked, not a single word came. "Hello? Hello?" Zackary questioned, coaxing the other to answer.
      
"I... I’m sor...sorry sir...I...sssss...saw a person standing near the wi...window and thought it was a ghost,” Damien finally replied.
     
Eyes wide and lips curving into a smirk, Zackary almost failed to have the self-control not to laugh at the ridiculousness. “A ghost,” he questioned, with an undertone that bordered on mockery.
     
"Ahhhh...Hehe...Sor...sorry to disturb you Doctor sir, it's...it's nothing. Would you like to come down for breakfast?" Damien suggested, clearly sidestepping the topic.
     
 Zackary, with an exasperated sigh, said "yes," and asked for a guide. He did walk to reach his room the previous night, but with half-lidded eyes and a sore foot, he failed to catch a glimpse of the way clearly.
     
"Be...be there soon," Damien replied.
     
After ending the conversation with Damien, Zackary pulled out a white collared shirt and black office pants from his suitcase. He went to the bathroom, washed his face, brushed his teeth and hair, put on a pair of black leather shoes, and sat at the edge of his bed. A few minutes later, there was a soft tapping on his door. Zackary stood up and was once more met by the giant from the day before. Zackary was uncertain, but his room was perhaps located a few floors up because he did — though vaguely — remembered walking up a staircase the night before.
     
When he stepped out of his room, he noticed that the corridor in front of him was narrow. Three other doors lined the hallway, which must be rooms like his own. One was beside his, and two more were on the other side. After he took in his surroundings, the giant beside him smiled, turned to their left, and walked forward. Zackary followed and kept his gaze on the man before him. He was huge, must be the biggest man he had ever laid eyes on. Yesterday, he was bewildered and a bit scared of him, but those emotions were subdued by the relentless rain and unimaginable stretch of land that he miraculously managed to overcome.
     
As they continued to tackle the full stretch of the hallway Zackary's mind screened into territories that he once thought were impossible to achieve, namely, having to work with the famed Augustus Mori. Soon they arrived at a circular staircase that only led below. A telltale sign that Zackary's room was located at the top of the building they were in. They descended silently, and upon reaching the landing they were met with metal bars identical to those found in a prison cell. Zackary watched silently as Damien took out a bunch of old-looking keys from his pocket and slid one inside the keyhole.

The young doctor's gaze held a curiosity too obvious to dismiss, and Damien must have noticed, because he turned to him and said, "For protection, you...you know, from the crazies," to answer Zackary’s muted curiosity.
     
"Well, do I get one for myself?" Zackary asked because he knew he'd be needing one. The thought of being accompanied by someone from the hospital at all times did not sound amusing to him.
     
"Ye...ye...yes," came the stuttering reply of Damien as he opened the gate.
     
Zackary nodded but a frown suddenly marred his forehead when he noticed something unusual about the giant. The man who walked with him the previous day never stuttered, or had he failed to notice? Was he too absorbed by the man's appearance and the tiny tone of his voice that he failed to note his speech? The thought made him frown deeper. How had he not noticed something so obvious?

Lost in thoughts, the Doctor barely had the mind to observe his surroundings until Damien whom he thought was still walking in front of him patted his shoulder. Zackary turned around and noticed that the man was standing behind him, he had walked past him without noticing. He mentally slapped himself for being out of it.
     
"Ahh. Mr. Doctor sir, I... I’m sorry about yes...yesterday," the man said, his tone apologetic.  Zachary saw the regret and sincerity in the man's eye. He was about to say its ok, but that's when he noticed the wounds on the big man's arm.

Curiously, he gazed at them. Some were minor abrasions, but there were two visibly deep cuts. A black and blue discoloration that ran from his middle finger to his wrist which was absent the day before, furthered his curiosity.

Dr. Mori informed him the day before that Damien would be punished for what he had done. But weren’t the wounds too much? It was a miracle the big man even managed to move with the state of his hands. Zachary thought to himself. He wanted to pry but decided otherwise, surmising that if his punishment was meant to teach him a lesson then so be it. One could never be too lenient, especially at a place like a mental institution, or life itself for that matter. Zackary knew all too well the consequences that could occur by letting things slip.
     
"Uhmm... Doctor?" The big man asked. Zackary smiled at him, nodded, and replied, "It's ok." His retort made the big man smile widely, brightly, like what he said was the most precious thing.
     
They continued, feet dragging across polished tiles and when they reached a graveled pathway, Zackary's eyes turned wide as saucers as he finally managed to take in the entirety of Hospisyo Estrella.

Two Victorian-style buildings stood side by side. Connecting them on the ground level was a tunnel-like passage which must have been what he and his guide the previous night had walked through.

In front of the buildings was a square-shaped garden surrounded by white picket fences. Cobbled stones were laid on the hard ground inside it and stretched toward the front of the buildings. Patches of grass covered the ground where the cobblestones lacked. And on the right farthest from the building was a small cream-colored edifice with a red roof which Zackary assumed to be a tool shed.
     
Too absorbed with the magnificence of his surroundings, Zackary couldn't help but smile to himself. The place before him was where he would build his name, it would pave way for his bright future and a chance to be recognized in society, just like the man who had run the psychiatric hospital for the past fifteen years.

His daydream was soon cut short by a tiny voice. "Uhmm, Mr. Doc... Doctor sir, the cafeteria is right over there,” Damien said as he pointed a finger towards a small structure that stood inside the garden. "You go ahead doc... Doctor sir,” the giant added before he left.

Zachary wanted to protest at how unprofessional the giant was when he just turned and left him without bothering to accompany him in the cafeteria, but then fought against it. He didn't want to have a problem on his first day of work and he didn't want to be seen as some floozy who couldn't function without a guide. But in his defense, he was new to the place. He could get lost.

Shaking his head, the young doctor proceeded inside the garden and as he approached the cafeteria, the flowery scent that welcomed him turned into burnt coffee, sweet pastries, bacon, egg, and other foods which he could not name. A rumble in his stomach propelled his legs to move a bit faster. And soon, he reached the gap between the flower beds and the small edifice.

Doctor Zackary stood tall and contemplative in front of the small structure that served as the hospital's cafeteria. It was a modest building, unassuming and easy to overlook, nestled amid the lush and verdant garden that surrounded the hospital complex.

As he approached the entrance, he couldn't help but glance at the windows, noticing the absence of curtains that would have obscured his view of the interior. Curiosity piqued, he stepped inside.

Immediately, he saw the entirety of the space before him, from the long wooden tables and benches that filled the room to the counter at the far end where the hospital staff served up hot meals and cups of coffee.

Doctor Zackary's sharp gaze swept across the cafeteria, taking in the various nurses, doctors, and cleaners who were scattered about the place. He noted the expressions on their faces, from those who were chatting and laughing to those who were hunched over their trays, lost in thought.

Despite the bustling activity around him, Doctor Zackary remained still, an observer amid the scene. His mind whirled with thoughts and calculations, attempting to understand the dynamics of the individuals before him, and how their interactions might shape his position in the hospital.

He was too lost in thoughts, he failed to notice the approach of Delfin, the man who accompanied him to his room the night before.

It was only when the young man cleared his throat and murmured, "Hi, Doc" that Zackary found his thoughts in the present once more.

The young doctor acknowledged Delfin's greeting with a simple nod and a smile. The young man then proceeded to guide him toward a long table covered with white linen that had a tempting spread of food.

"How was your first night Doctor, I hope everything went well?" the man asked. Zackary who was busy munching on a doughnut while stacking bacon's and egg on his plate nodded his head in a mute response.
     
"Doctor Mori left last night, but he wanted me to give you a tour of the place, he will be back by noon,” Delfin added. Zackary, still absorbed from slacking his hunger answered the man with another nod.

He was too absorbed in the food that he failed to notice the curious gazes that locked in on him.