The Black and the White Rose

Chapter Six

        It's cold, very cold. And dark, very dark. I'm standing up, and I can't see anything around me. I grasp my arms to keep myself warm, but it doesn't help. I'm shivering, my breathing is shaky. My head is sore and still bruised, it feels like. I don't know where I am. I wonder if Valcon brought me here...
        A dim light shines in the distance, and I start to walk toward it. It's getting closer and closer. I feel electricity shoot through my body, and I begin to feel a little warmer. It's dark, but I can, somehow, faintly see my breath in the air.
        The light looks strange. As if it's a flashlight and someone is running with it. “Skye!! Where are you?!” I hear a guy's voice shout. I walk faster toward the light, but my legs are so cold it's hard to move. My lungs are burning  from the freezing air.
        “Damien...?” I try to shout but I can't—I can barely breathe now. My windpipe is practically frozen. Am I gonna die again, like I did in my dream? I try my hardest to run to the light.
        It shines in my face and I come to a stop, putting a hand in front of my eyes to shield them. “Skye?!” he shouts again. I can't see his face. He's tall and has broad shoulders, but that's all I can see.“Is that you?!” I try to answer, though, the words won't come out. My lungs feel like they're going to collapse.
        I start walking toward him again, but this time my legs give out and I fall to the ground...or the floor—I can't see it, but it's cold and hard. I am going to die again... I know it...
        I hear running footsteps, coming closer and closer. Then a warmth encircles my body. Suddenly, I don't feel the ground anymore. Am I completely numb, now? Have I lost all feeling in my body? No. I'm being carried. Whoever is carrying me is pretty built. The warmth from his chest is practically the only thing keeping me from freezing. My head is leaning against him, and my arms are crossed.
        I can't feel my legs, my fingers, my toes... My eyes are closed, and I'm taking in every sound I hear: footsteps, wind, breathing, and a heartbeat. Who is this guy? Is it Damien?
        After a while, the stranger sets me down somewhere, and I feel his presence next to me. I feel a warm hand caress my cheek and I try to open my eyes. They open slightly and I only see his silhouette. Then my eyes close again.

        I awaken to the sounds of people talking. I keep my eyes closed and just listen. I can hear my siblings arguing. “She is a teenage girl who has the right to make friends with whoever she wants. It's not your decision, James,” I hear Amy say.

        “Fine. Fine. But if he hurts her in any way, I swear...”

        “He won't. Damien's a good guy. He wouldn't hurt her,” she informs. “Did he leave?”

        There is silence for a moment, then James speaks up. “No. He said he'd wait. He wants to make sure nothing ‘bad’ happens. I told him to go, and that Skye would talk to him when she got the chance, but he wouldn't listen.”

        “Well, I probably wouldn't listen to you, either, if my friend was in the hospital,” Amy comments. They're silent again. Then the door opens and closes.

        “Is she awake?” I hear my mom ask in a small voice.

        “She'll be okay, Sarah. It's just the medicine. The doctor said that the more she sleeps, the faster she'll heal,” my dad responds. I hear footsteps walk over to my bedside, pause, then walk away.

        “We should go home and get cleaned up and get her some new clothes. Let her sleep,” my mom suggests. I want to open my eyes and tell them I'm awake. Though, I also want them to leave so I can be by myself for a while.

        “Yeah...let's go. Come on Amy, James,” my dad says. “We'll come back in about an hour or so.” I hear shuffling and then the door opens and closes again. The room is completely silent, and I am alone.