Heavy.
Her entire body felt heavy.
Sheila opened her eyes with difficulty, blinking against the morning light filtering through the poorly closed curtains.
Her head pounded with a dull, constant ache, a throb in her temples that prevented her from thinking clearly.
Her mouth was dry, as if she had spent hours in a desert, and her stomach churned slightly when she tried to move.
Lifting her head from the pillow, the first thing she noticed was the silence.
The entire room was tidy, but her mind was an absolute chaos.
Fragments of the previous night appeared and disappeared without order or logic: she vaguely recalled dinner, the wine she had drunk to avoid Blortus seeing her, and then...
Nothing.
She couldn't remember anything else.
'What the hell happened last night?' Sheila asked herself as she slowly sat up, fighting against the heaviness of her body and the dizziness that invaded her.
Sheila rubbed her temples, trying to alleviate the pain, but it didn't help much. Loose images of Blortus and his friends appeared in her mind, but...
How did she get to her room?
Scared, Sheila looked around, but found nothing out of the ordinary.
For a moment, she had imagined one of the scenes that often occurred in the soap operas Emily watched when visiting her house.
'God... thank you,' Sheila thought, relieved.
Sheila wobbled as she stood up, leaning on the nightstand to avoid falling.
A bitter taste in her mouth reminded her how much she had drunk.
Every movement seemed to worsen the nausea, and her skin was sticky from the sweat of a restless night.
With trembling hands, Sheila took out the case containing her needles from the small bag on the table and sat on the edge of the bed.
With precise movements, though slow due to the headache, she inserted the needles into specific points on her body: her temples, wrists, and ankles.
She took several deep breaths, letting the energy begin to flow and balance her system.
Gradually, the nausea and headache started to subside.
'Much better...'
Once Sheila felt stable enough, she got up and went to the bathroom, not without first grabbing a small nugget with a handwritten label. It was a medicine she had prepared herself.
Unwrapping the nugget, which was wrapped in paper, she dropped it into a glass of water and drank it in one go, feeling the bitter but comforting taste in her mouth.
Sheila turned on the shower and let the cold water fall over her body, washing away the sweat and heaviness of the previous night.
As the water ran, she felt the medicine starting to take effect, dissipating the discomfort and clearing her mind.
'Emily was right...'
It was a thought that resonated more and more in Sheila's head, yet she decided to ignore it; after all... nothing bad had happened.
Yes, nothing bad had happened, so...
Why worry?
Sheila had a bad feeling, but she decided to carry on with her day.
Today was the day.
Sheila came out of the bathroom wrapped in a fluffy towel, letting the steam dissipate around her.
She walked to her suitcase and opened it, searching through her belongings until she found an outfit she deemed suitable.
Sheila decided on black soft fabric pants and a cream silk blouse that fit her figure perfectly without being uncomfortable.
The blouse had a modest V-neck and slightly flared sleeves that gave it an elegant touch without being too flashy.
She paired the outfit with black low-heeled shoes, practical and comfortable for the day ahead.
Sheila looked at herself in the mirror once more, adjusting the details of her outfit. Her hair, still damp, fell in soft waves over her shoulders.
'Today is the day,' Sheila repeated to herself mentally, trying to instill the confidence she needed as she took her phone from the bag on the table.
But to her surprise, it wouldn't turn on.
'Huh?'
Puzzled, Sheila tried turning it on several times, but indeed, her phone had run out of battery.
Letting out a sigh, Sheila looked for her charger in the bag, but...
Nothing.
Puzzled, Sheila looked for her charger in the suitcase, but... nothing.
Her charger... wasn't there.
She had forgotten her charger!