The year 1022
She opened her eyes, everything was dark and wet, she could sense the smell of the soil and blood but she still didn't have any idea where she was. She knew that she was a human being, but she didn't remember anything about her. It was all empty and naked just like her body...
She got up, the hole where she was buried was as tall as her height. It might be her grave, but why did she still alive? Shouldn't she be dead by now? She tried to climb up but she failed. Upset, she stomped her feet but suddenly she flew high to the sky. She screamed in disbelief, her eyes widened, scared to fall.
She dared herself to look down, the view from the sky was amazing and made her cry. She cried because she didn't have any idea about herself. Why she could fly this high? Her head was busy thinking about how she's going to land herself back on the earth. So she closed her eyes and thought, suddenly she felt something happened. She flew down, fast, but this time she was in control. When her mind told herself to fly above, her body followed her and vice versa.
She felt strange walking naked and alone in the dark of the night. Her sense could smell the appearance of someone who was hiding somewhere, she took a wide leaf and covered her body with it, suddenly the leaf changed into clothes made from silk as she imagined. Was she in heaven? How could she do that? How could she make her thoughts into something real? Was she dreaming?
She walked closer, following her sense, trying to find the presence of the person who watched her. But she failed. That person, gone together with his smell. But from behind the huge tree, she found something that looked like a book, she opened it, brought it closer under the moonlight and tried to read the words that she has never seen before but strangely she could understand those words very well. Mary Jane. Well written on the cover of the book.
She smiled, Mary Jane, that's how people going to call her. Mary Jane...
*****
The year 2021
"Mary Jane, you should be prepared! We have an appointment in ten minutes!" someone knocked on her door. She opened her eyes in surprise then jumped out of the bed. "What did you say? Ten minutes?! Are you kidding me! Why didn't you wake me up earlier!" yelled Mary Jane to her assistant, Danny. He rolled his eyes, "Oh talk to my hand!" he replied, he has tried to wake her up several times but no answer.
She closed her bedroom door, thinking. She is a perfectionist. There's no way she could look perfect only in ten minutes. She sat in front of the dressing table, it has been hundreds of years since the last time she utilized her power. But that day, was a very important day for her, so she broke her promise to not use her power and decided to use it again only for once.
Outside the door, Danny kept yelling at her, telling her to be faster. Mary Jane closed her eyes, thinking about Audrey Hepburn from the movie called Breakfast at the Tiffany's that she used to watch several years ago. Then suddenly her outfit changed and also her make-up. She looked perfectly beautiful and classy, as amazing as Audrey Hepburn herself.
She breathed out, felt guilty by doing something abnormal or they might call it magical?
Hurriedly, she stepped out of the room and smiled at Danny who watched at her in disbelief. "No way! There's no way you could do perfect makeup within ten minutes, no no it's even less than ten minutes? What are you? A wizard or something?" hissed Danny, joking of course. But his words made Mary Jane gulp nervously.
"How many people would be there?" asked Mary Jane, blowing off her flawless nail polish. Danny walked fast beside her, "Ten thousand people," he answered while his hand was busy typing on his cellphone. Mary Jane stopped her step, "No way! Really? That's amazing!" she muttered, surprised by her popularity. Danny smiled, "I know, it's just a small amount, as soon as you release the second book, you'll be surprised at how popular you are!" he said, sounding like a proud dad.
Mary Jane sighed, she has lived for 999 years, moved from one country to another, avoided people so no one would find out that she was immortal. She didn't age, she looked as young as 30 years old lady. She couldn't define herself, was she a human being or a wizard but obviously she was not a vampire because she never craved blood. Her life was empty, with no love, no family, no direction. She used to be alone until finally for the first time in her 999 years of living, she found out what she likes the most. She loved writing!
She wrote a fictional book, about a love story in the year 1000, and because she experienced everything by herself, her story became so real that people loved it. She became famous only within one year since she launched her first book. And to her surprise, she liked it! She enjoyed being famous!
The elevator clinking opened, Mary Jane stepped out in a hurry because she has been late. But someone bumped into her and spilled all the coffee liquid all over her body. Her Audrey Hepburn dress was getting wet and dirty which made Mary Jane frown in anger. She screamed to the man who stood with a guilty face in front of her.
As their eyes meet, she couldn't hide her fascination with the handsome and dashing man who kept saying sorry with his angelic face that slowly her anger faded...
"I'm sorry, is there anything I can do to make up for my mistake?" asked the man standing in front of her with a guilty face.
She looked at the man from head to toe, "You should treat me to dinner! Give me your business card!" she extended her hand, not accepting rejection. Although confused, the man took out a business card from his jacket pocket and gave it to her.
"I'll call you later, when I ask you to come you can not reject me, you got it?" she threatened, her beautiful eyes staring intently at that man. Suddenly a strange memory appeared in her head, the flash of strange images that made her head hurt excruciatingly.
"MJ! Everyone is waiting for you! Come on!" luckily Danny woke her up right away. She turned to the man once more and curiosity began to fill her head. As she walked she glanced at the business card in her hand, Cedric Anthony...
She never thought she could stand there, in front of thousands of fans reading her work from all over the world. That was like a dream for her, all she did was pour her own story into a piece of writing. The hundreds of years of life that she lived before, her experience of fleeing from one country to another just to hide the fact that she never aged. And to her surprise people innocently accept that story as a fantasy...
"Smile! Just because you're a paranormal novelist doesn't mean you have to put on a face like that!" Danny whispered gently elbowing Mary Jane right on her arm. At that time she was serving an autograph and photo session with about five hundred selected people.
Mary Jane snorted, but she immediately changed her facial expression to a smile as soon as the camera shot her face.
"You're so beautiful! Can I hug you?" a female fan begged her.
Mary Jane glared, she knew next to her Danny was signaling her to grant the fan's wish but she ignored Danny and firmly shook her head.
"Sorry I have Haphephobia, I can't accept touch..." she heard herself telling the lie and she knew her fans would swallow that easily. Beside her, Danny rolled his eyes.
"You have to be nice to your fans! They flew all the way from their respective countries! You know the girl you turned down earlier? She came from Japan!" raved Danny after the show ended.
Mary Jane stayed busy on her cell phone, unbothered.
"I need a cigarette!" she yelled as she walked ahead of Danny to the balcony of the hotel room. She knew behind her Danny was clenching his fists in exasperation. He had worked for her long enough that they understood each other very well.
She looked up at the New York sky, which was a bit overcast because it was almost raining, then her gaze shifted to the bustling street below her. As she was smoking her cigarette she almost choked on her own smoke, because right there, in front of an Italian restaurant stood a man she recognized. He was the man she collided with within the elevator this morning.
Her eyes narrowed so that she could see everything so clearly as if the man was right before her eyes. She remembered the man's name, the name that kept running in her head, Cedric Anthony...
Just as she called the name in her head, she could see Cedric Anthony looking up at her. But she was sure he couldn't see her face clearly because she was on the fifth floor of a hotel and was covered by a balcony railing.
From a distance, she played with her hands as if she were playing with Cedric's body as a puppet. At that time Cedric was talking to a well-dressed woman who seemed to be his co-worker.
Mary Jane couldn't keep the smile off her face because she was so mesmerized by Cedric's good looks.
In the middle of that, suddenly the woman who was standing in front of Cedric put her hand on his shoulder warmly and that made Mary Jane totally upset. In annoyance, she moved her imaginary puppet down and suddenly Cedric Anthony fell to the ground for no reason, surprising those around him.
From her seat Mary Jane covered her mouth, startled. It had been a long time since she had last used mind power like that. She immediately shook her head, dispelling Cedric Anthony's face from her mind, before it was too late for her...
*****