Eliena 's breath came in ragged gasps as she fled into the obscure red without knowing where she was heading, only the need to get away from that voice, that place. Her heart drummed limbs ablaze. Stifling scarlet mist began to dissipate a dim light glow ahead. With the last reserve strength, she dashed forward her sights, gradually shifting from a crimson-drenched nightmare to something more familiar, something more safe.
She stumbled into the light, collapsing onto the soft grass. Her gaze flitted around the red; the terrifying voice was gone, supplanted by the comforting gleam of sunlight; the scent of dew-covered grass filled her nose, and rails and breezes caressed her face.
"Come on, Elie," encouraged a familiar man's voice, warm and kind.
Dad? Using her hand, she pushed herself up, turning to look behind her. Her father stood there, just as she remembered him, with a broad, reassuring smile on his clean-shaven face. "Accepting defeat already?" he laughed, eyes sparkling with a playful challenge.
Brushing off the grass from her clothes, her father shifted into a fighting stance, demonstrating a punch. She dodged his feigned attack smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Swiftly she countered with a maneuver executing a fluid motion that unbalanced him.
"Impressive," he said with pride, steading himself while she adopted a defensive posture. Advancing, he threw a series of swift jabs, which she parried with seamless movements blending agility, precision, and grace. He pivoted, aiming for a low kick, but she sidestepped through her reflexes. " Not bad,"
Without warning, she surged forward, feigning a high strike, drawing his guard upward, then delivered a direct, controlled kick to his midsection. He staggered back, momentarily off-balance. Sensing an opening, she spun, delivering a precise elbow strike that sent him sprawling.
As he lay on the ground, he breathed, "Alright, you got me." She extended a hand to help him up, but with a flash move, he switched their positions, causing her to fall with him. " Still you should never trust your opponent."
Eliena groaned, then laughed along. "But you admit I did well."
"You did. Because you got the best teacher." He smirked.
"Really Aaron, again?" Her mother's voice resonated from the porch. " We talked about this. She's going to college, not a battlefield. Stop teaching her those techniques, she might end up using them on everyone."
"Honey, it's just basic self-defense for emergencies, bullies, and creeps," he replied defensively.
Noticing the defensiveness with an eye roll of her brown orbs, her mother said. "It's pointless. Both of you are the same," she sighed. "See, Jasper, this is why I need you to keep an eye on her."
Eliena turned and saw her friend Jasper standing with a grin, and she beamed back. "Jas!" she called, jogging over to greet him.
Her father shook his head with mock injury. "Kids these days don't appreciate my efforts at all."
"Dad, please don't exaggerate." He made a face and huffed; she always found it endearing how a big man like him could be such an adolescent around her. "Even though Jasper is my friend, you're the love of my life."
"Ahmm," her mother interjected, raising an eyebrow. "Am I included?"
"Of course, Mom, all of you are," Eliena replied. A big hand wrapped around her shoulder, she looked back to her father, who guided her inside the house with a soft smile.
Once she crosses the threshold, the wooden floor, much to her surprise, transforms into uneven soil. Her frown deepened as she glanced down at her dirty boots. The boots. She has worn them before. Why does this feel like stepping into the tangled version of the memories she had once lived? But this time, she wasn't alone; someone was with her, seeing her from afar, keeping an eye on her movements.
" Nervous?" Jasper's voice startled her from the right. Had he been walking beside her the entire time?
"It Just…" her voice trailed off, they approached the old tree by the edge of the field where they often sat. The gentle chirping of birds, the soft rustling of leaves, and the distant hum of insects created a serene summer symphony. " What if we don't fit there?" she asked quietly
"You worry too much. Aunty knows the principal. If anything goes wrong, we can turn to them," Jasper said, sitting next to her. He gazed over the rolling fields and continued, "Besides am with you. You're not alone."
She leaned back, her head resting comfortably against his back. "What about the rich students? Will they bother us?"
"Even if they did, we know how to handle them." He laughed, adding, "They'd probably lose a tooth if they tried. But if things ever got bad, I'd protect you."
Eliena had to purse her lips together to hold back a grin. She knew how serious he was. Jasper Flynn could be very protective when it came to her. After all, they are childhood friends. With her eyes closed, the tension in her muscles melted away slowly with each relaxed breath. She dozed off.
The doze didn't last long; it was the same soothing music that roused her slumber. Heavy eyelids fluttered open, she was in the backseat of a car. In front, her parents were chatting; their voices were soft murmurs. The melody on the radio was one she recognized, and along softly, her mother hummed with the lyrics while her father laughed gently, following with the tender tone. She couldn't help but smile.
Until a screeching noise reached her ears, terror spread on her features, and her core trembled with a known fear as she turned to look out the window. Another car was speeding towards them. " Dad stop the car!" she screamed, reaching out in a desperate attempt to grab him. Maybe this time, if she could reach him and grab the wheel, just maybe, she could save them. If she tries harder she can make it on time and prevent the disaster.
But before her hand could grasp, the car lurched, flinging her back against the seat. Pain erupted in her head, scorching through her skull as a nauseating throb pulsed within. Metal screeched, glistening shards raining inside, and the world went dark.
Her eyes flew open as she jolted awake, sitting up with a gasp, lungs burning, starving for air as if she hadn't been breathing for a long time, heart pounding in her throat, head sting with a sharp stabbed agony that made her hiss.
The fabric clenched tightly in her trembling hand offered no comfort tears formed. She could still smell the acrid stench of smoke, the sounds of glass shards piercing through her clothes and her skin, the pain, her parents' laughter, the oncoming car, and then nothing but darkness.
She ran a shaky hand through her hair in an attempt to school her thoughts in the present surroundings and realize the sterile white walls' antiseptic smell. The infirmary. Again!
The clothes that she was wearing clung to her back in sweat as she tried to move. Every muscle of her body ached as if she had been roughly tossed around and then flung in misery. Pulling her knees close to her chest. Curling up. She sought a semblance of protection from the gnawing feeling. Her vision blurred. She felt lost and alone.
Alone?
Someone rose from the corner silently. They saunter timidly; Eliena's eyes narrowed trying not to focus. But suddenly, the door of the room she was in swung open, heels stride forward.
"Eliena!" called out the panicked voice before strong, warm arms involved her. She buried her face against a soft chest, feeling the gentle rise and fall of breaths. A comforting hand stroked her hair with adoration, while another pressed against her back, holding her securely. "You're awake," the voice expressed cordially.
The sweet redolence of familiar perfume filled her senses, calming her frayed nerves. She inhales deeply letting the rich fragrance ground her in the here and now. "What's wrong?" placidly, the soothing girlish tone implores, arms almost tightened, creating a protective barrier cocoon of warmth that allows her to feel a small measure of peace. " Did you have a bad dream?" Eliena burrowed closer, responding with silence.
Bad dream…surely it's the worst bad dream she had to face. The medical reports had informed her the stinging pain in her head would continue more if she kept avoiding counseling with a therapist. However, this time it was different somehow, it was. It felt as though someone had forced her to relive the moment, playing it back and forth, over and over, and…there was something— a vivid, almost tangible face that called out to her, for her.
Just deal with it. She told herself.
"It's alright; it's over now," Moonyoung whispered as she cupped her face, looking deep. She brushed away the tears with her thumbs, and a soft smile stayed.
Eliena closed her eyes, instinctively leaning into the comforting touch. The tenderness of Moonyoung's hands soon gave way with a pair of soft lips against her forehead, trailing gently down to her cheeks where the tears had left a faint, wet trail. Warm breath skimmed across her skin, and then, without warning, she felt the delicate touch of those lips against her own.
Dark eyes widened in surprise; her body stiffened as her breath hitched. The butterfly kiss was tender, grounding her in the present and pulling her away from the gloomy spiral of thoughts. Every drop of blood coursing through her veins seems to be a pulse flourishing in the unexpected kindling.
Tempting mouth innocently moved against her waiting for a response. Something that would provide them to go further but earned none, so Moonyoung slowly drew back, searching for any sign of uncomfortableness of the wide-eyed girl before her.
"There wasn't a single day I didn't wait for communication class to end just so I could check my locker and find your notes," she admitted, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. "When I found out who was behind them, I wanted you to know how much they meant to me—how much 'you' meant to me. So please, don't let these nightmares haunt you."
Eliena's heart contorted with a pang of remorse at those statements. Aware that Moonyoung misunderstood everything. She opened her mouth to explain she wasn't the one who had written those letters, notes, or anything that Shin Moonyoung ever believe, but before any word could be speak, a soft gasp echoed through the room
Both girls turned towards the doorway, where Kim Eunji stood, frozen in place, mouth slightly open, having witnessed the kiss and hearing the confession. Her eyes were glossy drifting between them, the gap between her brows had a frown the same expression — one that Eliena recognised all too well: an expression blend of raw hurt betrayal and sadness an expression teetering on the edge of breaking down
Moonyoung, however, didn't seem to notice it. Instead, an unbothered smile lazes upon the desirable edges. " Eun, you complete the project," she asks sweetly.
The girl who was still abstaining from answering slowly lowered her gaze to the floor in an attempt to hide the welling-up tears in her eyes. Quietly she placed a notebook on the nearest table and skipped the unwanted greeting, turning her heels as she walked out.
Moonyoung watched her go, confusion etching her features. "What was that about?" she mumbled, glancing back at Eliena."She's been acting strange lately." Sighing softly she caresses the latter cheek." I'll check on her."
Before she could leave, Eliena grasped her wrist. " Moonyoung, I need to tell you something," she tried again to clarify, but Moonyoung just smiled.
"Later, okay? rest now,"
Eliena did not say more but rather nodded. As Moonyoung was gone, a twinge of ache was timbered on her birthmark beneath the layer of the clothes. In an instant, a sharp throb assault emits a cry, the painstaking tailing along her spine, flaring the dark wings across her back, throbbing her flesh. Her stomach churned nausea rolled in her throat, forcing her to clamber out of the bed, lumbering toward the small bathroom just in time to gag out every bitter content from her system.
She nearly made it, reaching violently over the toilet, eyes winced shut, her stomach convulsed in painful spasms a sudden pain shot through her sinuses, something warm trickle from her nose through the hazed vision she touched her nostrils with trembling fingers and saw the streak of bright red blood smeared upon the lithe pale skin.
Gasping, she tried to stand up pressing the flush. Her limbs flattered as if they were in a spell of dizziness. Head throbbed with so much weight pressuring against her skull that made her ponder it might explore any moment.
Her abdominal cramping persisted, each wave of nausea blinding her to everything but the urge to escape.
Desperately, she stumbled out of the infirmary, reeling towards her room. Her haven was the only place where she might find some relief.
"Miss Warner! Where do you think you're going? You're not allowed to leave!" a voice called out sharply from behind her in frustration.
To hell with it! Eliena wanted to snap, but her body was too weak. Her mind was spinning too wildly to form a coherent response. She could barely focus on anything other than putting one foot in front of the other, her only thought being to reach the room.
The step was a monumental effort fought against the crushing load bearing down on her as she opened the door to her room and slammed it shut behind her. She ran into the bathroom flipping the light switch, and gripped the edges of the sink as another wave of nausea overtook her. She reaches into the absinthe, the metallic taste of blood filling her mouth. She choked again.
Breathless shaking she lifted her laden head and caught in the sight of her reflection in the mirror her dark eyes red-rimmed and blurred with tears blood smeared from the nose to the mouth a grotesque crimson streak against her pale skin yet that didn't make her skin crawl but the illustrious figure standing behind stared into her blankly amber eyes void lifeless almost two empty suns setting in a face out of this anthropomorphic world.
The relentless itchiness burning on her skin refused to subside. Desperate for relief, she stripped off the sweat-coated clothes and stepped into the shower, turning the tap, the icy water hitting her flesh like a shock against her feverish skin, sending a thousand tiny needles of pain prickling across her body.
Painful sobs drowned upon the shower as she crumpled to the floor, pressing her bare back against the cold tiles to prevent the chilling apparition.
Soundlessly the ethereal sweet talker moved closer. " It won't help, you know," she nonchalantly said. "The burn. The cold. The pain will hurt more," her lips curl upward, eyes glowing in gold with light. " You impure our bond by filthy touches," a low growl vibrates her nose, wrinkled in disgust as Eliena whimpers again, feeling the burn on the birthmark.
"This is your punishment," stated Lilith coldly, leaning down till their eyes met, faces inches away within those unnervingly bright amber orbs, visions playing into their depths. Despite the searing pain rippling through her body, Eliena focused on what she was seeing straining to make sense of the chaotic swirl of images. Tears rolled down her cheeks with cold water, scoring the empathy of words that whispered the spectre whose face held a stoic glower and soreness. " Both of ours,"