“Follow me, Lily,” she opened her eyes, staring up at the same cloudy sky.
The voice... it was back...
Her hair blew with the stormy wind as she sat up. “Who’s there?”
But when she looked around... the wolf wasn’t there...
“I’ll show you where you belong. I’ll give you what you’ve been dreaming of. Just let me inside.”
After glancing around, she saw a figure in the distance, calling her name.
Their brown hair haloed with shadows, and he held out his hand, offering her support.
“Jason?” she whispered. “What are you doing here?”
And she stood, stepping toward him.
“Take my hand,” he whispered. “And I’ll give you what you’ve always wanted.”
His eyes were a dark green... and as she stared into them... falling into the void of his gaze...
And before she could think it through... Lily reached his hand...
Only to feel someone grasp her arm and reel her back, throwing her to the ground.
As she gasped for breath, looking up to see Jason standing before her, glaring at someone behind her.
“Get the hell out of here,” a girl said. “Stop toying with her.”
What?
But his glare vanquished, and he looked down to Lily, eyes growing soft. “But I... I love her....”
Something warm consumed her, and she stood, heart pounding harder against her chest. “You... you what...?”
“Leave,” the same girl said. “Stop toying with her.”
But he only looked to the girl, tears brimming. “I can’t....”
“Don’t make him leave!” Lily cried, spinning to the girl, but the wind blew her hair over her face, shielding it. “I want to hear what he has to say!”
“Lily,” she said gently, “it’s not—”
“Lily,” Jason said from behind her, “come here... Can you take my hand?”
“Don’t,” the girl warned.
But Lily looked at Jason, then at the girl... seeing an eye shine through the golden hair...
It glowed yellow...
Lily took a step back. “Who are you?”
“Lily,” Jason said again, “please....”
“Don’t, Lily.” The girl shook her head.
“I...” she whispered, “don’t understand... Is he... bad... for me...?”
“No,” she responded.
“Then... why can’t I...?”
“Lily,” Jason said again.
The girl pulled out a pistol from a holster on her side, making Lily’s heart race ice into her blood. “Wha... What... are you....?”
She raised it to Jason. “Stop toying with her and leave her alone, Damian.”
Damian...?
Right as Lily turned to look at Jason, a shot fired from behind her, piercing him right between the eyes.
Horror plunged into her chest, shattering her heart into a million pieces... And tears boiled her eyes, spilling down her cheeks.
She could barely hear herself scream...
It was as if... her body and mind were miles away from the other...
“Jason!” she cried, launching toward him. “JASON!”
She fell to the ground where his lifeless corpse sat, eyes wide with horror as her breaths came out in shivers.
She was dying. That’s how this felt.
“Why would you do this?” she questioned to the mysterious girl. “WHY?”
But before Lily could grasp a hold of him, her body was thrown from the horrific nightmare, through the darkness below...
*****
Lily woke screaming, her voice scratching her throat where sobs caught, choking her.
When she finally quieted down, she stared off in horror, the dark room blurred from the burning tears in her eyes...
It... wasn’t... real...?
As she felt her heart beating rapidly against her chest... the world seemed to slow, and she heard her shallow breathing echoing through her ears...
And the distant sound of a door opening.
Though she didn’t seem to recognize it... staring off into the darkness as her eyes stung from the bitter salt water... and how something warm dripped down her cheeks...
She knew it was tears, but didn’t really care to wipe them away even though they drenched her clothes and blankets.
But she felt the side of the bed dip down... as if someone sat there... and warm hands grasped her shoulders, gently pulling her toward their warm body.
She didn’t melt into them like she did with Jason the night before... Didn’t dare speak or sob...
Because every part of her hurt... Her voice caught in her throat... muscles sore and weak and she couldn’t understand why...
She could feel herself shaking rapidly against the figure...
As if she were stuck in an icy storm.
She didn’t let herself give into their body... afraid to move...
Afraid if she was dying...
But that didn’t stop them from pulling her out of the drenched covers, setting her on their lap and gently pressing her head to their chest...
It was a man... though for some reason... Lily couldn't remember who...
“Shhh...” Jason cooed, rocking back and forth as if she were a terrified child. “I’m here... You’re safe now....”
Jason...
She wanted to... but she couldn’t say his name out loud... afraid to move or speak... because everything was dark... and this could’ve been another nightmare...
And she just waited for the moment... to watch him die again... to hear herself scream with grief she didn’t even know existed...
Because Lily didn’t know him that well...
And she didn’t know why she felt this way...
“Jesus…” he muttered, “I leave you for two minutes….”
And it was then that Jason slipped his arms under her legs and back, lifting her off the bed and carrying her out of his bedroom.
She would’ve asked him where he was taking her, but she remained silent.
Just stared off into the distance as he flipped on the lights, temporarily blinding her, but she didn’t really react like usual...
Just kept her eyes on the wall of the hotel room...
And Jason settled onto the couch, her in his lap, gently pulling a blanket he grabbed from somewhere—she didn’t remember when—over her shoulders, looking down at her tear-stained cheeks as her breaths came out shallowly.
“Wolf again?” he wondered gently, brushing some hair out of her face.
All she could manage was a slight shake of the head, keeping her gaze on the front door.
It was as if she was terrified that someone would come barging in, though Jason didn’t know who.
But she was afraid of the yellow-eyed girl... Who murdered him out of cold blood.
Right after Jason told her he loved her...
But she couldn’t understand why…
“Hey,” he said, tilting her chin up.
Her eyes looked darker than the night sky, but the lights from the room glistened in them like stars...
“You’re so beautiful...” he whispered, tucking some golden hair behind her ear.
Her face broke at his words, tears falling down her cheeks but he held his grip on her chin when she tried to turn her head away.
They were both silent, Lily just watching Jason as his green eyes studied hers curiously.
“Please...” she cried silently, her voice sounding so rough and foreign to her ears, “I can’t do this again....”
Again?
What was she talking about?
“It was a bad one, huh?” he said gently. “The nightmare?”
She closed her eyes as if in pain and opened them again. “I’m scared....”
“That your still in it?”
A nod.
“I can assure you that you’re not.”
She was silent for a moment. “It felt so real....”
“I can tell,” he said, eyes growing darker. “Scary, too, huh?”
Another nod.
“Do you know how to tell the difference between a nightmare and reality?” he wondered softly.
“Pinch myself?”
She started reaching for her arm but Jason caught her wrist. “That doesn’t involve hurting yourself, Lily.”
She stared at him for a moment, and couldn’t stop herself from saying, “I watched you die....”
He was silent at her words, but kept his gaze to hers, watching her eyes grow darker and darker after every words she spoke.
“You told me... to take your hand... I was confused... but for some reason, I wanted to... Then someone grasped my arm and pulled me back... She had the same hair as me... and... yellow eyes... Like some kind of Goddess... And she told you, ‘Get the hell out of here. Stop toying with her.’ And you...” her voice cracked, more tears pouring down her cheeks, “you were begging me, ‘Lily, take my hand. Lily... please...’ but... she... she....”
Not being able to say the words, Lily pretended to shoot the air with her fingers.
His eyes darkened at her words, and he drew in a breath, letting it out softly before he spoke. “It wasn’t real. I didn’t die, Lily. I’m right here.”
She was silent.
“Rest your head on my shoulder,” he said then. “And relax.” Then added at her concerned expression, “You don’t have to sleep, just relax. That’s all.”
And she blinked, lashes soaked with tears but not a single one left her eye.
But she still listened, lying her head on his shoulder and easing in his grip when Jason laced his fingers through hers, locking them together.
Even when her previous self would scream at him for it, she let him... because for the first time in her entire life...
She felt safe.
But she didn’t have to tell him that.
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