Shadows Of Reminance

Chapter 7: Briana

When she came running towards my seat, she accidently tripped on the grill of the drain and her upper body fell on my shoulder. I couldn't help but inhale the scent of her hair, it felt very familiar.... ROSEMARY. I guess I said rosemary a bit loud, because hearing that word, she quickly got up and looked at me a bit surprised. She quickly recovered from her shock and said "Mr. Adam. I'm extremely sorry for this incident. It was my fault."
I couldn't help but ask her "Have we met before?"
"NO!" she quickly stated and continued "We have met today for the first time." Just as I was about to ask her, she quickly pressed the button near the door and the door quickly begin to close. Once they were closed, I could hear her faint voice saying goodnight, Mr. Adam and a sigh which almost sounded like a sigh of relief.

The scene kept on replaying in my mind constantly as I stumbled into my apartment, the weight of Mr. Adam's presence bore down on me like a suffocating shroud, his every word echoing in the recesses of my mind.

"Have we met before?"

With trembling hands, I tore off the mask of composure I had worn so carefully, my facade crumbling in the face of overwhelming fear.

I can't breathe.

My nightwear, usually a source of comfort, now felt like a flimsy shield against the relentless assault of memories that threatened to consume me.

Box, I need an empty box.

Frantically, I scanned the room for an empty box, my heart hammering in my chest with each passing second. "I need it now," I muttered under my breath, the urgency of my search mirroring the frantic pace of my thoughts.

My eyes landed on an empty box tucked away in the corner of the room.

Without hesitation, I lunged for it, my hands trembling as I grasped it tightly.
With a sense of urgency bordering on desperation, I began to empty my shelves, casting each shampoo, conditioner, and hair oil into the waiting receptacle. The sound of the items clattering against the cardboard echoed in the silence of the room, a stark reminder of the chaos that threatened to consume me.

Each item I tossed into the empty carton box only served to deepen the abyss of dread that gnawed at my soul. The scent of rosemary, once innocent and familiar, now hung heavy in the air like a sinister omen.

"Damn this rosemary scent!"

I cursed aloud, the words escaping my lips with a venomous intensity that surprised even me. It was then that I felt the wetness on the floor beneath me, a startling realization that tears were streaming down my cheeks, unchecked and unbidden.

I hadn't realized there were any tears left inside me. For so long, I had buried my pain beneath layers of composure, masking my anguish with a facade of strength. But now, in the suffocating grip of fear and uncertainty, my defences crumbled, leaving me raw and exposed.

With a shaky breath, I wiped away the tears, my fingers trembling as they brushed against my cheeks. The ache in my chest felt unbearable, a relentless reminder of the wounds I had long tried to forget.

My mind raced with questions, each one more terrifying than the last.

How had he found me?

What did he want?

The mere thought of confronting the demons of my past sent a shiver down my spine, my resolve wavering in the face of such relentless pursuit.

My body moved with a sense of urgency that I couldn't explain, drawn like a moth to a flame toward the wardrobe where the box lay hidden. Every fibre of my being screamed at me to stop, to turn back and leave the box untouched. But my feet seemed to have a mind of their own, propelling me forward until I stood before the blue box with the inscription "Starry Night".

Starry Night, Oh the irony

As I reached for the box, my breath caught in my throat, the weight of its significance pressing down on me like a suffocating blanket. I knew that opening it had the power to shatter me into a million pieces, yet it was as if my heart was in control, overriding the warnings of my rational mind.

With trembling hands, I lifted the lid of the box, my heart hammering in my chest with each passing moment. But before I could revisit the past, a surge of clarity washed over me, jolting me back to the present. In that moment, it was as if my brain reclaimed control from my heart.

What was I trying to do?

Guiding my trembling hands to carefully replace the lid and return the box to its hiding place. The act of closing the box felt like a physical release, as if I had narrowly escaped a place that I never wanted to visit again. With a shuddering breath, I stepped away from the wardrobe, my heart still racing.

I refused to let myself break under the weight of Ashton Adam's intrusion. I wiped away the tears that had betrayed my resolve, refusing to allow Ashton Adam to infiltrate my thoughts any longer. What did he think he was doing, barging into my life like he owned it? If he wanted something from me, he had another thing coming. I wouldn't be swayed by his charm or his persistence.

As I stood there, facing the closed wardrobe, I made a silent vow to myself. I wouldn't let Ashton dictate my emotions or my decisions any longer. Whatever storm he thought he could stir up in my life, I was prepared. I wouldn't allow him to disrupt my peace or my progress.

In the suffocating silence of my apartment, the weight of uncertainty bore down upon me with crushing force. Every creak of the floorboards, every whisper of the wind outside, seemed to mock my feeble attempts at bravery. In the face of such overwhelming terror, I was powerless, a mere pawn in a game whose rules I could scarcely comprehend.

Gathering what little courage remained within me, I whispered a silent prayer into the void, a desperate plea for salvation from the demons that haunted my every waking moment. But as the darkness closed in around me, I knew that my pleas would fall on deaf ears, condemned to echo endlessly in the emptiness of my shattered soul.

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