I woke up as the sun rose, lazily got out of bed and went downstairs to have breakfast. Wendy gave me a cold kiss on the cheek when she entered the kitchen, and sat down next to me, with bags under her eyes.
—You look too pale, dear, you should go to bed or you’ll get sick¬— I said.
—Oh, don’t worry about it, I just didn’t sleep well—. She smiled tiredly and closed her eyes to feel the warmth of the cup of tea between her hands.
Her voice, which she rarely used, was a soft breeze that caressed every word as she spoke; but this time I felt it like a burst of cold, emotionless wind. It was the only way I could explain the change that had taken place in her person; she had gone from being a delicate zephyr to a hurricane in a bottle.
But now she was quiet, so I got up and stood in front of the window, longing for a breath of actual wind. The last time I had gone outside, she was strong enough to stroll around the park with me. She was now a fragile doll made of glass, I was sure that she would break if I was not gentle with her character. Had she been made of feathers, I would not have stopped loving her as much as I did the first time I saw her.
Her eyes caught a quick sight of the black clouds, which announced the proximity of a storm. It was dark outside so I lit a candle, and took it with me back to the table. Even though the window was closed, the wind of the storm seemed to be inside the house in some way. Wendy looked at me with her almond eyes full of sadness. I tried to take her hand but she shook her head.
—I think it is time for you to wake up, Charles.
I stared at her in confusion. She was raving and mumbling nonsense already and needed to rest. I walked towards her to take her to the bedroom. She laughed and touched my shoulder. Her fingers were as cold as ice.
—No… Not again…— I cried.
She was laughing at me again. I just wanted her to stop. She got free from my arms and ran to the door, ignoring my pleads for her to come back to me. The wind was howling inside the house. The storm had found us. There was no escape now.
She opened the door and disappeared with a last breeze of freezing air. I was, once more, alone in the dark.
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