The brisk wind whipped against her face as she shifted gears and accelerated away in her uncle's sleek sports car, leaving behind the facade of her once-charred home.
Reflecting on her decision to return, Rose couldn't help but acknowledge the weight of her actions. While she had often felt constrained by the decisions made on her behalf, the irony of being granted autonomy only to face unforeseen consequences was not lost on her.
Little did she anticipate that the one choice she made independently would unravel in such a manner, leaving her grappling with the repercussions of her impulsive departure.
I knew I shouldn't have chosen to come back here. Rose thought to herself. Things have already started to go haywire in my life. The curse if not real than a pain in the ass for the Gabrielles.
Indeed, the resurgence of a long-departed relative like her uncle was undoubtedly a remarkable occurrence, one that defied conventional understanding. Yet, as Rose grappled with the bewildering reality of his return, she couldn't help but question the veracity of her own experiences. Was it truly possible that her uncle had returned to the realm of the living, in flesh and blood?
Furthermore, the miraculous restoration of their family home, once reduced to nothing but smoldering ashes, stood as a testament to the inexplicable turn of events. How could a structure that had been razed to the ground now stand tall and proud, seemingly unscathed and restored to its former glory, down to the minutest detail?
Such inexplicable occurrences left Rose pondering the depths of the unknown, questioning the very fabric of reality itself as she sought to unravel the mysteries that had upended her world.
Huh, maybe uncle found the old blue prints of the house, lying around somewhere and irritatingly decided to rebuild the establishment exactly the same as before! She seethed in her own head.
Rose was happy but at the same time infuriated. While the house being same was good to go down memory lane every corner she looked.
She was also upset because she didn't want to go down that lane, knowing how the end of it was dark, lonely and spiraling into abyss so far, it took her a long time to get out of it as a kid. The incidents Jake talked about was the testament of it.
While Rose wasn't suicidal as a kid, she often was stressed -as per the doctors prognosis- and that led to being lost and found in places she never have been to before.
Sleep walking became such a problem, her doctors had to suggest therapies and prescribe drugs. If it wasn't for her aunt always being there and helping her thru other means, she would have gotten worse and had to take drugs to sleep.
Perhaps, in the light of recalling her struggling childhood, she shouldn't be so mad at her aunt and uncle for not telling the truth about Jake's vitality. They were right, she wasn't in a good place for any more surprises.
Lost in her thoughts, Rose failed to notice the speed at which she was driving, her mind consumed by the whirlwind of emotions and questions swirling within her.
Navigating through the unfamiliar streets of her hometown, Rose couldn't help but feel a sense of disorientation.
Though she had once called this place home, her memories of it were hazy, clouded by the passage of time and the changes that had swept through the town in her absence. It grew in size land wise with the number of places familiar being smaller to the number of places absolutely new.
The populace inhabiting the town has also grown significantly as she had noticed so far.
She glanced to her left to make sense of the area she was in, her eyes fell upon the dense forest that bordered the roadside.
Towering trees blurred past her in a frenzied blur, each one larger and more imposing than the last. The darkness of the night seemed to intensify their ominous presence, with no stars or moon to illuminate her path.
Hmm, must be a moon less night tonight. But shouldn't it be a fullmoon today, last she remembered, it was fortnight.
As if the unsettling atmosphere of the area wasn't enough, Rose found herself surrounded by large, dense trees now looming on both sides of the road.
Her sense of disorientation deepened, realizing that if she wasn't lost before, she most certainly was now.
Frustration gnawed at her as she grappled with the pressing need to determine her location. But how could she possibly discern her whereabouts in this unfamiliar town?
GPS!
Like the beam of hope she thought of the thing called GPS for help.
Rose retrieved her phone from her jeans pocket and navigated to the GPS app in search of answers.
Her brows furrowed in confusion as she observed the map on her screen. How had she ended up on the outskirts of town so swiftly? It seemed she was teetering on the edge of the urban sprawl, with only a few more miles separating her from the wilderness beyond.
A sudden, audacious thought invaded her mind: What if she simply drove away? What if she continued down this road and never looked back, escaping the tumultuous upheaval of her life?
The notion lingered, tempting her with the allure of freedom from her burdens. But could she truly abandon everything she knew in pursuit of an uncertain future?
As the temptation to flee from her problems gnawed at her, Rose found herself torn. Could she truly escape her troubles by driving away? What would her parents think if they were still alive?
In a moment of clarity, she acknowledged that running away was not the answer. Her parents had always looked out for her, even in death, and she couldn't betray their memory by fleeing from her responsibilities.
With renewed determination, Rose made a solemn vow to confront her challenges head-on. She would be strong, she would fight, and she would face whatever obstacles lay ahead with courage and resilience.
But then in the next moment Rose swore she should have chosen a better thought than to overcome obstacles.
Turns out, the one sitting up there decided to test her on her word right this instant.
Just as Rose contemplated her decision to turn the car around, a sudden movement caught her eye. Something darted through the trees on her left and emerged onto the road, standing directly in her path.