I stumbled through the dense forest, my legs heavy, my breath coming in ragged gasps. Every step felt like a battle, and the world around me blurred as if it were slipping in and out of focus. The trees, the rocks, the sky—they all twisted and warped, like a dream I couldn't wake from. I don't know how long I had been walking, or even where I was going, but my feet kept moving, driven by some unseen force. The sound of the ocean roared in the distance, but it felt as though it were miles away, calling me from another world.
My head was pounding, the rhythm of my heartbeat like a hammer against my skull. I tried to piece together how I had ended up here, but my memories felt jumbled, slipping through my fingers like sand. The last thing I remembered clearly was the aching silence that had settled over me after Seraphina left—how each day felt like an eternity without her, like I was drifting in a fog I couldn't shake. I missed her more than I could say, but I also hated the emptiness she left behind.
Somehow, that loneliness had driven me to the edge of this cliff, but I didn't know why. The rocky path had twisted and turned, leading me here as if it had a mind of its own. My chest tightened as I tried to remember what had happened before this—how I had gotten here, what had brought me to this place.
The weight of the world felt suffocating, like I was drowning in my own thoughts, unable to breathe. Every tree branch I passed seemed to stretch toward me, and the ground beneath my feet felt as though it would give way at any moment. I wanted to stop, to catch my breath, but my legs refused to listen. My body was on autopilot, leading me closer to the cliffs, and I was too tired to fight it.
It wasn't until I reached the edge of the cliff that the haze started to clear. The wind howled, whipping my hair around my face, and the salty scent of the sea filled my lungs. I looked down at the crashing waves far below, their white caps illuminated by the pale light of the moon. The drop was steep, and the rocks jutted out like jagged teeth, waiting to swallow me whole. The sight of it should have scared me, but instead, I felt numb.
The emptiness in my chest grew heavier, pressing against my ribs, and I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold it all in. A part of me wanted to jump, to let the ocean consume me, but another part of me—the part that still clung to the hope that Seraphina might come back—held me back. I stood there, frozen at the edge, staring out at the endless expanse of water, feeling like I was standing at the edge of the world.
How did I get here? I asked myself again, my mind swirling with confusion. It was as if I had been pulled here by something beyond my control. I could barely remember leaving my house that morning. The last clear memory I had was sitting alone in my room, staring at the blank walls, waiting for something—anything—to happen. Then, everything was a blur. I had wandered aimlessly through the town, through the woods, until somehow, I had found myself at this cliff.
I shook my head, trying to make sense of it all, but it only made the throbbing in my skull worse. My heart ached with the weight of Seraphina's absence, and I couldn't help but wonder if I'd ever see her again. She had left so abruptly, her transformation into a siren pulling her away from the life we'd known. I hadn't seen her since, and it felt like a piece of me had been ripped away with her.
The thought of her—of her voice, her laughter, her presence—made my chest tighten painfully. I missed her so much, and the hurt ran deeper than anything I had ever felt before. But more than that, I was scared. Scared that she was gone for good, that I was truly alone.
I took a step closer to the edge, the soles of my shoes brushing against the loose gravel. The wind whipped harder now, almost pushing me forward, as if it were daring me to take another step. My stomach churned, and I felt a cold sweat break out on the back of my neck. I didn't know what I was doing, why I had come here. I didn't even remember deciding to walk to the cliffs. But here I was, teetering on the brink of something I couldn't explain.
A sudden wave of dizziness washed over me, and I stumbled back, my hands reaching out instinctively to steady myself. My heart pounded in my chest, and for a moment, I thought I was going to collapse. The ground felt unstable beneath me, like it was shifting, and my vision blurred once again. I fell to my knees, gasping for breath, as the world around me spun.
It was then, in the midst of my confusion, that I felt something—something strange and unfamiliar stirring inside me. It was faint at first, like a whisper in the back of my mind, but it grew stronger with each passing second. A shadowy presence, lurking just beneath the surface of my thoughts, waiting for me to acknowledge it.
I didn't know what it was, but it felt dark, and it scared me.
As I knelt there, trembling at the edge of the cliff, the presence grew more insistent. I could feel it tugging at the corners of my consciousness, urging me to give in, to let it take over. But I resisted, clenching my fists against the cold stone, trying to push it away. I didn't want to lose control—not again.
The shadows inside me were dangerous. I didn't know how, but I could feel it. And yet, despite the fear gnawing at me, there was a part of me that was drawn to it.