Red and white strings. In my culture, if you were to receive a red one, it means blessing and protection. As for white, one wishes for health. If the two colors are together, it creates a stronger binding.
Unfortunately, something decided to slither its way between the strings, causing it to break. And with a snap, I woke up.
"Se~re~nity~ Won't you come and follow me?"
A voice--unsure if it was a man or a woman, beckons me. I didn't hesitate to follow it, and I was unfazed by what was around me because what mattered most was following that sweet voice.
"If that's what you want, will you surrender to me?"
As if I had a conscience, I stopped when it asked me those words. Then I felt something--someone embracing me from behind; its touch was cold, yet it had a familiar feeling.
"No need to be shy. Just--"
I couldn't hear what it said to me, but the next thing I knew was waking up with wide eyes, gasping for air.
"Serenity! Oh god, thank goodness you're awake!"
Surprised, I turned to see Serena brimming in tears. I wanted to say something, but I couldn't think of anything.
"No need to push yourself! Let me go get someone to check up on you, okay?" Serena then quickly walked towards the door and closed it.
I scanned my surroundings while rubbing my eyes. A white room with a huge glass window on my right side. An uncomfortable white bed with sheets, a monitor, and a small wooden drawer. Not far from me is a chair that Serena probably sat in not long ago.
A sudden ache thumped in my heart out loud when it clicked me, realizing that I wore an unusual attire and wires on my body.
"Why am I at the hospital?" I asked myself when I heard the door open, seeing Serena entering the room with an older man and a younger woman wearing blue scrubs. The older man told the younger woman to check my vitals as he checked both my eyes with a small flashlight and used a stethoscope to listen to my heart at the same time.
When they finished, the older man murmured something to Serena as she nodded and gave her thanks to him and the younger woman. As the two of them left the room, leaving me alone with her, she held my hand.
"Thank goodness! Thank goodness, you're alright!" she said worriedly. "Are you okay? You're not hurt, are you?"
I looked at her confused, but I shook my head as she placed her other hand on her chest, sighing in relief. "Thank goodness… I know this is sudden, but I think you shouldn't attend classes today."
"Today?"
"Believe it or not, it's already midnight. Tuesday, August 23rd. Look. See?" Serena let go of my hand and took out her phone from her purse, showing me the time and date.
"...What happened?" I asked her, trying to recall what happened, but for some reason, I couldn't think of anything.
"Err… About that," Serena paused, unsure what to say to me. "I...I found you fainting in the living room." She then looked away from me for a moment. "But let's not worry about that now. First, I need you to rest. I'll notify your teachers that you won't be able to attend classes today."
…She's obviously hiding something from me. I thought to myself and spoke, "I'm still going."
Serena sighed, "Serenity, you just woke up."
Thump!
"You can't stop me," I said, determined as I took the wires off my body.
"Serenity, you can't!" Serena said in a panic, stopping me from doing so.
Thump!! Thump!!
I felt like I couldn't breathe. The more I struggled, the louder and faster I could feel the ache throbbing in my heart.
"Please stop! At this rate, you'll hurt yourself!"
Thump!!! Thump!!! Thump!!!
And like a ticking bomb, I snapped.
"I don't like it here!!!" I shouted at her. "I don't want to be here!!! Please!! When can we leave?! I don't want to be here!! I--!" I wanted to scream and cry; however, I held the urge to do so as I covered my eyes, trying to suppress my tears.
It took me a few seconds to regain my composure again when I looked up at Serena, who was startled at my sudden outburst.
"I'm sorry." I quickly averted my gaze away as silence fell between us, not allowing one of us to talk to another. Suddenly, I felt a hand gently stroking my head, catching me off guard.
"Please don't be, and I understand. I'll ask if they can discharge you as soon as possible. It may take a long time, but I'll see what I can do Serenity." Serena said as she let go, and I could hear her walking towards the door.
"...Thank you." I glanced at her when she looked back at me, surprised. She then smiled and left the room, closing the door. A sudden relief washed the ache within my heart away as I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath to calm myself.
Hopefully, I can get out soon
I then looked out the glass window, watching the midnight sky.
A few hours later, and thankfully, I was discharged from the hospital; on our way back to the dorm, I asked Serena what happened yesterday in more detail. She explained, and I quote, after the urgent call she got from the school and fixed the situation, she headed back to my dorm to check up on me. She knocked on the door at least four or five times but didn't hear me respond nor come to the door. That's when she decided to use her spare key for the dorm.
"I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I didn't know what to do…!" she sniffed and stuttered. "S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-So I called the ambulance a-a-a-a-a-and…! I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I panicked, a-a-a-a-a-and…!"
"Calm down, take a deep breath. It's okay. I'm fine, see?"
And that's the story of how she found me fainting on the ground. Although her explanation makes sense, I just couldn't comprehend it.
I don't know why.
"Do you have to go to class today, Serenity?" Serena asked, blowing her nose as her car stopped at my dorm.
In response, I stared at her with a blank expression.
"Okay, okay. You win. I'll wait for you in the car." She then turned off the engine, took off one of her keys to the dorm, and gave it to me.
"I'll be quick."
I got out of the car and walked up the stairs, unlocking the door. When I entered the house, nothing seemed out of place.
All of my stuff is still here. I thought to myself as I walked towards the couch and grabbed my phone, checking any messages that I'd missed.
However, the only message I got was from Uncle Travis, who responded to my text on the 18th when he got to the airport.
I look at the ground across from me.
"I'll... worry about it later," I murmured to myself and quickly grabbed my stuff.
***
As all the students and the instructor left the room, I sat still in my seat, lost in thought. It's not like I doubted Serena, but I already had this feeling that she was hiding something from me.
To think the two of them are alike it's... frustrating.
I stood up and left the room with my belongings, heading outside.
While walking, I tried to recall our conversations yesterday, but to no avail. My memory feels hazy, and something is blocking it, preventing me from remembering.
"Just thinking about it gives me a headache," I said to myself when I accidentally bumped in front of someone and lost my footing.
"Woah! My bad!" the male voice said, holding my shoulders and helping me stand up straight. Just when I was going to apologize, our eyes met. "Faith?"
His eyes widened in shock as I did the same. The person in front of me has bright orange hair, blood orange-colored eyes, and warm peach skin. He wore a red v-shaped t-shirt, green-brown pants with a dark brown belt, and white and orange sneakers. He also carries a red handbag on his left shoulder.
"...N?"
"..."
"Is… Is that really you? Why are you—"
Before I could ask him any further questions, N ran without looking back at me. I wanted to go after him, but I hesitated as I watched him disappear within the crowd of students going in and out of the building.
"N…"
Something within my heart aches as I place my hand over my chest. I took a couple of deep breaths, trying to lessen the pain as I turned around. However, while doing so, I bumped into someone again, causing my binder and notes to fall from my grasp.
"Ow! Hey, watch where you're going?" said the male voice.
I curtsy and gathered my binder and notes. While doing so, I glanced back at the person in front of me. He had brown hair and pale peach skin, and he wore a long-sleeve white collar shirt, blue pants, and below-the-knee dark brown boots. Just about when I finished gathering the last of my things, I noticed that he was still looking down with his hands on the ground.
"Did you drop something?" I asked.
He didn't answer me and continued to use his hands to find whatever he was looking for with his head still looking down.
I'll solemnly take that as a yes.
I did a quick skim to find what he was looking for but noticed a white cane beside me. Without thinking, I grabbed it and held it in front of him.
"Are you looking for this?"
The man froze, and an awkward silence came in between us as he suddenly spoke up with his head still looking down.
"Where are you?"
I looked at him confused and replied, "I'm right in front of you."
The awkward silence fell again for a minute or two as he slowly moved his left hand on the ground while the right was in the air. To make things easier for him, I decided to come closer, following his right hand, and giving him the cane. Our hands suddenly touched without realizing, and with no hesitation, I let go, leaving him holding the cane himself.
"...Thank you."
"…You're welcome."
The man stood up with the help of his cane, and that's when I noticed a burned scar on his left eye.
Is that why he avoided looking at me? I thought to myself.
As if he noticed me seeing his face, he used his hand to cover his eye. "You shouldn't stare at someone's face too long," he said. "It's creepy, you know."
It's not like I did it on purpose.
"My apologies. I didn't mean to be rude," I said, lowering my head as if I were doing a curtsy. When I looked up, he stared blankly at me.
I'm apologizing sincerely, yet why does he look like he's glaring daggers at me?
"Please excuse me." I stood up, holding my binder tightly, and began walking away.
"Are you Serenity?"
I froze, stopping myself.
"By any chance, is your last name Fate?"
"...I am. And you are...?"
"I'm Void… Hanako's brother."
My heart thumped, and my eyes widened when he said those words. I immediately turned around to look at him, but I realized it too late as he walked away into the building with his cane.