"Aleksandra! Wait for me!"

I froze at the sudden mention of my name. Not because I had the intent to stop but because shouting my name out loud in public is damnly embarassing.

Various gazes immediately assaulted me. I could die from this.

The one who called out my name was my classmate and friend, Maria, who unlike me, has her name match her gender. She's completely oblivious to this awkward feeling. I also told her to not shout my damned full first name more than a hundred times already.

I glared at her coldly which immediately placed an impish smile on her face. She's enjoying this.

Well, she's not really at fault. The main culprit for all my embarassment lies far away from here. All the way to the house I call home: My parents.

I complain from time to time to my parents about why am I named this way. They will just reply 'what's done is done' with a smile on their faces. Yeah. Such great parents they were.

"How's the test in Physics? Hard, right?"

Maria suddenly brought up another greivious thing.

"I would like to forget about that existential horror."

"I know right? Why should we study Physics anyway?"

Then there she goes again, complaining about this and that. I went on autopilot, pretending to listen and nodding when it seems nescessary.

I regret that.

I guess it was because I wasn't paying much attention to the surroundings back then that I am here right now.

I can't see a thing. Everything around me is complete darkness. I am here for a while now.

Where am I?

Honestly, I don't know and I don't know how I got here.

All I could remember was the scream of a vechile's horn, followed by that feeling of being hit by something really big and hard and then I think I died as soon as I was hit. Judging from the volume of the horn, it must be some sort of truck.

Not that it matters now anyway.

I'm pretty sure I'm---

"Alice?"

--dead?

I heard a voice. It was a definitely feminine. I wasn't sure who it was but it was definitely not Maria.

While I was thinking about who it was, I started to feel cold. Then slowly my senses started working again and I was pulled back consciousness.

My eyes fluttered open.

I immediately saw pretty young woman with auburn hair. She's staring at me with a light smile.

"I am sorry for interrupting your sleep Miss Alice but you ordered me to wake you up when we are less than an hour away from our destination."

"Miss Alice?"

I somehow had an urge to rub my eyes which I obliged.

"I see that you are not fully awake yet, please take your time."

I yawned and stretched my arms upwards. As I was stretching my upper limbs, I somehow got an impression that they got shorter but I decided to ignore that feeling for now.

Confusion was about to hit me when I suddenly knew who this Alice was. It was me, or rather, the body I'm currently in belongs to her. Not just that, I also had a vague idea as to our situation. It seems that this Alice just ran away from home with the help of... this young woman and that old man who is driving the carriage. Yes, I'm inside a carriage.

For some unknown reason, I can't remember this young woman and that old man's names. My memory is still a bit hazy.

Oh, this isn't really my memory.

I don't know anymore.

Maybe all those 16 years were nothing but a dream or maybe I am dreaming right now? If I am really dreaming right now, I wish my death would also be a dream. That sounds awfully convenient to wake up again to a normal high school life.

Maybe I should just close my eyes and then wait for morning.

Yes, I'm just deaming.

Nothing makes sense so this must be a dream.

"Miss Alice, Elena, brace yourselves!"