After Kei left, later that night in her room she slept off smiling throughout the night like she'd been bitten by a bedbug, she kept thinking of Kei and the dinner they had till she drifted off slowly into the hands of the dream world, water enveloping her, dragging her deeper into its depth, the deep depth that renders one unable to breathe, dragging and cooing onto her like a child, wanting her to be curious and chase after it the more..... The bubbles floating up like little circles going up for air, so enticed by how the water felt around her, it urged her to sleep some more, 'shut down your brain functions, it cooed to her body,' suddenly her lungs started burning again, gasping for air, she held onto the sides of the bath tub, fighting the force trying to pull her, coming up for air, she looked around, she was in a bathroom of sorts with one bulb hanging overhead, the mirror on the wall slightly broken, with some shards of it left on the floor, wondering where she was, she heard sobs coming from the corner of the bathroom, she got out and walked in the direction the sound came from, the walls of the bathroom stretched into a never ending hallway, her wet foot prints disappearing with each step she took, still chasing after the voice...
A door appeared in front of her, wanting to get out of this confusing and warped moment, she opened the door, a bright light flashed before her, music could be heard in the background, the women looked skimpily clad, one of them noticed her and called to her to come forward, as she got closer, they all looked like Kei, smiling and laughing at her, they dragged her hands, her shirt, her legs trying to immerse her into them...
The sound of the alarm clock on the bedside startled her out of her troubled dream. The time said 6 am. She gradually got out of bed, her body feeling battered, like she'd taken a beating. Her dreams always felt real, and this one was a mix of emotions. She could see Kei's face and it was calming but also irritating.....
***
Before 6:30, she had already made breakfast for two, had it and left, leaving a card stating 'made with love.' Lucinda walked a few blocks before joining the next bus. This helped her make it to the train station on time. As she waited for the train, a little girl walked up to her, dragging the hem of her gown. She looked down at her. She had a bandana covering her face, had the same shade of honey brown skin as Lucinda, but her white dress was dotted with bloodstains. Lucinda bent down to eye level with the girl. "Where are your parents?" she asked, holding the girl's shoulder.
"No mama, no papa, catch me if you can," she giggled and ran towards the train tracks. Lucinda's heart skipped a beat. She threw her bag on the floor, not caring if she lost any of the contents inside. She chased after the girl. An incoming train was on its way. Lucinda was about to step on the tracks when the child looked at her and smiled, mouthing words Lucinda didn't understand.... The security officer saw her running towards the tracks. Luckily for Lucinda, he hurried after her and grabbed her right arm before she could jump onto the tracks.
"Ma'am, are you alright?" he called out, shaking Lucinda to get her attention. The train had zipped past them, making her gown flay around her and the security officer.
While trembling from the experience, she huddled tightly at the man's hand and wondered what she could've done. "She jumped in front of the train," she whispered. The security officer was confused about what she was talking about. He quietly took her to his office and sat her down, passing her a cup of water to calm her down.
Finally regaining her composure, she looked into the cup of water she gripped. "Ma'am, do you feel better?" he asked.
"Yes,"
"If I may ask, why did you almost jump in front of the train?" he inquired, curious, because she'd walked in looking normal and still looked normal.
"Didn't you see a child who jumped onto the tracks?" she asked. The security officer didn't have an answer for her because he'd only witnessed her trying to jump onto the tracks. There was no child there. She noticed a slightly accusing look on his face, as if she was going mad.
" Never mind, I left my bag on the floor, I should go get it."
"Your bag is here, and we've called a friend to pick you up, and you dropped your phone, so we can't leave you at the station alone." As soon as he finished his speech, Yuri burst into the office, her eyes filled with worry. Running up to Lucinda, she hugged her tightly and caressed her head.
"Thank you for saving my friend on time," Yuri replied, grateful that someone once again saved her friend without injuries.
Yuri was quiet throughout the ride to her house, angry at what Lucinda had tried to do..... Reflecting back to the phone call she'd received on her way to work, she quickly snapped out of it and called work, taking an absence of leave for Lucinda..... They'd finally gotten to Yuri's house. It was nothing fancy; she lived in a studio apartment with a bathroom and kitchen. Lucinda sat quietly on the bed, not wanting to say anything. Instead, she wanted to get a peaceful sleep and some peace back into her life without the drama, maybe a bit of drama from Yuri.
Taking a deep breath, Yuri looked at her, "I want to ask why, but your face alone says you need space and I need to drown my anger with some rice wine," she muttered, giving Lucinda the space she needed. Yuri walked up to the fridge, bringing out one wine glass from the cupboard. When she heard Lucinda's sobs, they were so light, yet it pulled Yuri's heart strings. Yuri inhaled deeply, bringing out another wine glass and taking out the wine from the fridge that she'd been saving for any occasion.
She walked up to Lucinda, passed on a glass filled with wine to her and filled one up for herself, "drink to better days and drowning of all sorrows," Yuri said, trying to lighten up the gloomy mood, Lucinda wiped her tears and chuckled a bit, drowning all the wine in a go... Later that night Yuri dropped her home, she quietly went to her room to get a bit of shuteye, she was at least happy that she'd gotten home before her mother had. After some time had passed, she walked out of the shower towel drying her hair, that's when it struck her mind that she needed therapy quick and fast, after looking back at her day and worrying about her health since the hallucinations had already kicked in, she threw her towel on the nearest chair, sat in front of her laptop screen, she made an extensive research for the best therapist in town and how much it'll cost her.
The time had finally struck 9pm when she had to shut down her laptop. She was satisfied with the research she'd conducted; she decided to get some shuteye, looking forward to tomorrow.