Rhys stared at the book in his hand, then turned to the man. He wondered what the book contained. Secrets? Tales of a life once lived? He wiped off the blanket of dust that had settled on the book during the years it lay hidden in the darkness. Underneath the dusty layer, there was a name scrawled in long, fine lines. To his adult eyes, it was obvious that the writing was that of a child, but he could tell from the neatness of the strokes that the child possessed an inert ability. Perhaps ‘Alice'—the name on the book—had been a girl with quite the talent for drawing. He glanced up at the man. “This belonged to Alice?” he asked. Adrian shook his head in reply. He looked weaker. Rhys noticed that perhaps the struggle with death to remain in the world of the living—even as a shadow—was becoming too exhausting. His hair seemed to have become thinner and whiter, and Rhys could see some strands that had fallen off. He stepped closer to the bed. “Would you like me to read these out to y
Yet she knew he was with her sister and that he loved her. She had caught him several times stealing glances at Veronica when she looked somewhere else, and from the look in his eyes and the way he licked his lips, she could tell what was on his mind. He wanted her sister even when it was obvious that Veronica did not want him. Veronica wanted no one, yet all the men clamoured for her attention. She contented herself with playing them and moving on. The same way she played with Adrian now. Eliana saw this, knew it, and warned him, but he was already in too deep. She had seen the obsession but thought she could remedy it, and when he said, “Let us take a photo together,” she ran to fetch the camera, hoping that he would notice her at least. He never did. At least, not in the way she wanted. Deep down, he had always wanted her sister, and in some way, he did have her. Knocked up with his child, which she had to bear the pains of taking care of. She smiled sadly and returned the p
Eliana gazed at the boy and smiled softly. In some way, she envied him for the youthful exuberance that came with that age. The gracefulness of his speech and the lust and love that she found in his eyes. She saw innocence there too, if she looked too closely. She had not found innocence in Adrian the first time she met him. Adrian had been too assimilated into the world when she met him. He had gone in too deep, been scarred too deep with wounds he refused to heal from, and when she began to try to love him, nurture him, and help him heal, he bluntly refused her help. Eliana saw nine of those in Rhys. Maybe he was too good to even allow the world to affect him like that. To gentlemanly. She smiled; she liked how she could dream of being young again when she looked into his eyes. Pretend she was running through the halls of this very mansion when she was still a child, carefree, and not bothered about the world. Rhys was the best man for Sophie. Although the two like to deny tha
Eliana’s eyes turned dark, and he immediately saw that he had made a mistake. She shook her head as though to dispel the thoughts that had begun to rise within her and faced him again. “Veronica, as I said, is like the rest of us. I have done many bad things myself, things I am not proud of. There are worse things than abandoning a child, and I’m sure that if I were in her shoes, I would have done far worse than that.” Eliana continued. “Veronica did not care about pleasing people, but she did care about pleasing me. After all, I was her little sister, and I may have given her no choice. I may have pushed her away.” He has read it now. Perhaps he heard it. The things she would not say. Things she could not bring herself to talk about. Not with him. Not yet. But he did not fully grasp it. It was hard washing a stain off a once white cloth; it never came off completely. “When she got pregnant with Sophie, I...” Her voice cracked, and her face slipped. This was the first time she
All the things we did not think of My feet were dry against the smooth sand, and it stuck between my toes. I wiggled them out and returned to the forest road. Aunt was sleeping inside, and darkness had fully enveloped the forest. It has been four hours since I saw Uncle in the forest, and since then, nothing has happened. I had sneaked out again—past my aunt’s ‘nit-tight’ security—and now I was at the mouth of the forest, staring at the blackness that covered it. Bypassing my aunt’s security had been quite easy. I knew my aunt well and thought she was sad now; she still followed the routine she had created and slept before the clock ticked eleven. I had waited patiently, and once I saw that sleep had finally succeeded in drawing her into its embrace and her head had stopped its occasional nodding, I stood up and ran into her room. I collected blankets and pillows and made her as comfortable as possible. If she was comfortable, she would not wake up, and if she did not wake up,
After crying for what seemed like hours, I sat upright and looked around. Whoever dragged me through the tunnel was gone or well hidden in the darkness. I could not see past where I sat. I stood to my feet then and cast a glance around the room or wherever it was I was. I saw nothing but pitch black. My head throbbed, and my stomach tumbled. I was going to throw up. I was scared, and I was going to throw up. There was nothing I could lay my eyes on, which gave me any idea of where I was. The floor was mere dust and stones, and the walls were too smooth and too hard. Unlike anything I had touched before. I traced the wall around, but I had not found anything that felt like a door. What was this place? Was this how I died? I sank to the floor, put my head between my legs, and began to cry. Auntie had tried to warn me, but I had not listened. What would she do if she woke up to find that I was missing? She would know that I had defiled her, and she would be very upset. I looked u
Sophie just spoke. It was one word, but it was everything to him and to her. Her voice had been low, tired, patchy, and the last thing he expected. It was one word more than what he expected—more than what anyone expected. Eliana looked at Sophie as she slept soundly on the bed, and then up at Rhys. Her forehead creased. “Did you say she woke up just now?” she asked again, just to be sure. Youths these days liked to play ‘pranks’ although Rhys did not appear to her to be someone who liked to have a good laugh at the detriment of others. Still, what he said was just ridiculous. “And she spoke?” As she said it out loud now, it sounded even more ridiculous. Sophie could not speak. She has not said anything for the past twelve years. “Yes.” Rhys answered. “But...“ he trailed off. He looked unsure as his eyes strayed back to her face. Eliana was sure he was mistaken. “But what? Rhys?” She pressed. He shook his head. “She is asleep now. She said ‘help’ and her head just rolled ba
Rhys gazed at her, and in his head he saw her mouth move and that one word filter out. “Did you see any dreams while you slept? Sophie shook her head. “I don’t really remember.” She wrote. “It is quite foggy, but I think I was in a forest and I saw a woman. I can’t really remember. Why do you ask?” Rhys stood on the bed and faced her so she could see him fully. He had returned the notebook back into his pockets, but he left his hand buried there. “Because you spoke, Sophie.” He enunciated. “Although it was just one word, you woke up screaming and struggling with nothing, and when I rush to you, you just say, ‘Help’.” He ran his fingers through his uncombed hair and turned around. “I swear . I am not making this up. Your aunt thinks I’m nuts, probably, and you. He turned around to face her again as her soft hand grabbed him. She stood on the bed and planted a small kiss on his lips. “I believe you.” She wrote. “But unfortunately, I don’t remember. I do remember waking up the fi
Sophie sat in the bridal suite. The full-length mirror reflected an image she barely recognised—an elegant, poised woman clad in a stunning lace wedding gown that hugged her curves and flared out into a beautiful train. The dress, meticulously crafted, seemed to shimmer with each breath she took, and the delicate veil added an ethereal quality to her appearance. Her hands trembled slightly as she adjusted her veil, but a reassuring smile from Vivienne steadied her nerves.Vivienne placed a comforting hand on Sophie’s shoulder, her eyes brimming with pride. “You look absolutely radiant. Today is your day, and you deserve every moment of happiness.”Sophie turned to face her, tears threatening to spill. “I can’t believe this is actually happening. Sometimes, it feels like a dream.”Eliana could not hide the pride she felt or the joy; her eyes were misty with emotion. “You’ve come such a long way, sweetheart. Your strength and resilience have brought you here, and we couldn’t be prouder
Rhys and Sophie stepped out of the building, a sense of accomplishment in the air. Sophie had faced her past head-on, and Rhys couldn’t help but feel proud of her. “You see, it wasn’t that hard, and you handled it quite well,” he said, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze.Sophie glanced back at the building, her heart still racing. “Hey Rhys, would you mind waiting a minute? I need to see my mom before she leaves.”Rhys nodded, his eyes softening. “Of course. Take your time.”Sophie spotted Veronica walking out and hurried towards her, with Rhys following at a slower pace. The sight of her mother, the woman she had yearned to meet since she was a little girl, brought a flood of emotions. Veronica turned at the sound of Sophie’s voice, surprise and hope mingling in her eyes. “Sophie...” she exclaimed softly. For years, it had always been “Mrs. Veronica.” The simple word “mom” now seemed to hold a world of promise.Sophie took a deep breath. “I just wanted to say that I don’t hate you.
Five years later “Come on, Sophie, we’re going to be late.” Rhys called.“Be out there in a minute.” Sophie answered from inside.“Yeah, that’s what you always say." Rhys muttered under his breath; a light shuffle behind him caught his attention.“Sophie,” but he couldn’t get himself to finish the sentence; he wasn’t sure what he wanted to say or what the right words to use should be. You look beautiful, or you look stunning. No, those were not the right words to use.“Rhys, are you alright?” Sophie asked with concern written all over her face.“Yeah, sure, I’m fine,” Rhys stammered. “I just got something in my eyes.”“Let’s get going already; we are going to be late.” Sophie said that and moved away.Rhys sighed and followed her. Adrian died five years ago, and they had moved on. She moved on so smoothly that he wondered if maybe it wasn’t too fast. Still, he did not want to talk to her about it for fear that he was going to upset the balance that she had already found inside her.
“Adrian is dead.” Those three words sent a chill down Sophie’s spine, but they were not what made her pause or caused foreign emotions to creep up her chest, clawing at her heart. It was the look of freedom in her aunt’s eyes. The music in her voice as she announced the death of her husband. The bounce in her step as she approached them, arms wide, and a smile on her teary face. It was the fact that Eliana was happy about this and did not hide it that surprised Sophie. Her aunt’s body collided with hers, and Sophie sank into her embrace. The tears fell from her eyes, but just like her aunt, they were not tears of sorrow or mourning but tears of joy and celebration. For the first time in years, they both felt free, and they wanted the whole world to know. “I am sorry.” Eliana said it over and over again, pulling Sophie deeper into herself. If she could jump and touch the sky, she would. She felt as though she was on top of the world, as though a weight had been lifted off her sh
The meadow was still there when they arrived. Eerily quiet—the only thing that could be heard was the chirping of crickets and the lullabies of the birds. Every other thing stayed still; even the leaves seemed to join in the gloominess that had fallen over Sophie and Rhys. Gently, he set her on the stone beside the water and lowered himself beside her, his hand clasping her small ones. She was far away from here; he could see that. Her mind was elsewhere, perhaps relieving the traumas of the past. She bit her lips every now and then, and a throaty gasp emerged from her pursed mouth. Although her eyes were misty, she did not shed a single tear. He could not tell how long they sat there in the forest, him watching the water while she tried to make sense of her life. But after some time, he began to hear the song again. It was the same bird song that he had heard that night. It filled the night, enveloping all of his senses and shrouding him in a world where only he and her existed.
They had reached a point of no return. The truth had been bared for all to see, and the worst had been found out. Sophie thought of the photo of her mother, which she had always carried around, and the part that was torn off. The father, whom she had always wanted to meet, turned out to be the same man who molested her. She was ashamed, embarrassed, and repulsed by everything. There were no words to describe the things she felt—the thoughts that clouded her head, numbing her entire body and rooting her to the spot. Veronica herself could not believe what she heard. The fact that the first words she heard her daughter speak had to be something so atrocious, so vile. Words like that had no place in the world; they were to be sent to the deepest parts of hell, where every other bad thing was sent. Her eyes turned to her sister, Eliana. Judging her, questioning her—she would face Adrian later, maybe kill him—for now, she needed to understand if her sister did not see the monster they
“I struggled under his grip, all to no avail. When I realised he had already overpowered me, I pleaded with him with all the remaining strength in me, but he was far too consumed. All my pleas fell on deaf ears, and he defiled me brutally, traumatising me ever since.” There was a moment of unsure emotions in that instant. The wall clock chimed the hours of three in the morning, but none of them felt sleepy; this was a time of resolution, a time to settle matters, and no one wanted to be left out of it; this was way beyond one person’s issue now. “He had his way with me, his eyes widening as he reached orgasm. Even after that, he was not done; he went in again and again, turning a deaf ear to my pleas. When he was satisfied, he stood up, adjusting his trousers, while Eliana walked in; the door had been unlocked. “She saw him and instantly ran to where I was crumpled, my body covered in a pool of my own blood. I was crying uncontrollably, regretting why I had come home for the break,
He took a deep breath, his breathing ragged like stones dragging on the jagged side of rocky mountains. He rolled his eyes in his socket, not focusing his gaze on anyone in particular before speaking out. “This isn’t enough punishment for my sins; I’m just hoping that hell wouldn’t be hotter if you just found a way in your heart to let it go.” Sophie and Rhys wondered if it was still the abuse she reported to Veronica that spurred this palpable tension in the air, or had he done something worse than he did to her? Sophie tried to take her mind off it, daring not to even think in that direction. Veronica faced Eliana and said, “Now that we are all here and the eyes are complete, I was regaling Sophie with stories of our childhood, and I was just arriving at the point where Adrian came in. Since you’re here and you’re always accusing me of feeding Sophie false stories, if I say something off-the-point, correct me here and now. And then,” she said, facing Adrian with mocked anger on he
“Despite the football guy being the handsome guy and the nerdy guy being a little below average kind of guy, Eliana was still jealous of our relationship. Her boyfriend was like a guy that was specially carved by God; his features were extraordinary, and his skill set was amazing; he was everything a woman ever wanted. “My guy, Drey, was just the perfect type for me. He was not too nerdy or too naughty; he was just standing somewhere in between, but when talking about looks, he wasn’t really the one, but where he lacks in looks, he makes up for it in brilliance. “Drey, my guy, and Fontaine, Eliana’s guy, were both friends from middle school; they lived in the same neighbourhood and were like impossible twins; but when Eliana’s jealousy started to manifest, she instigated Fontaine to pick fights against Drey. “Fontaine, being gullible, readily believed anything she spewed out of her mouth and acted on it, including picking a fight with his best friend. When I learned what happened,