A Nightmare Within a Dream

(16) Dim Hope in darkening times

Alex woke when she heard guards laughing outside her cell.

I must've been dreaming about when we met. She thought quietly. Her wrists burned and screamed for mercy. She made a weak attempt to reach the floor but couldn't. She softly sighed and gave up, hanging from her arms like a corpse, without a will to live.

She felt something hit her head, but she didn't look up.

Despite the third time feeling something hitting her head she still sulked, she had given up.

Then a flash of light peered at her. Her eyes squinted at the sudden burst of light. A hand reached out to touch Alex's face; Alex flinched at the sudden contact. A gasp erupted from the person they had felt the rough edges of a beating. Alex fought the urge with all her might, she fought to ask, fought to say.

"cathrine?" She asked softly, not wanting it to be her and wanting to see her face. Her voice burned and fought against her thoughts to speak again. The light flashed and Alex looked at its direction.

"anton," she roughly said as she recognized the freckled face of Wigget's partner. They furrowed their brows and waved their arms

'Getting you out,' they signed as they began to fumble through the chains looking for a way to break it.

"don't bother," Alex said closing her eyes in defeat.

Anton stopped and looked at Alex confused.

'What's wrong with you? There's chaos out there and you're here hopeless?' They signed frustrated. Alex scoffed and closed her eyes.

She felt a knock on her head and opened her eyes to see Anton crossing their arms.

'Have you lost your goddamn mind? What about Cathrine? She's worried sick!'

Alex's shoulders tensed at the mention of Cathrine. As if she had stopped thinking of her but yet it hurt. Like salt to a wound. But the pain became in surmounted and Alex boiled and snapped

"Cathrine is the enemy of this Deus forsaken country Anton! Don't be a dumbass She's a de- she's one of them. It doesn't matter anymore!" Alex shut her eyes tightly as if she pretended hard enough Cathrine would stop haunting every single breath she took. "Nothing matters. Just leave me here to die," she finished softly.

Anton stopped. They couldn't believe it, but if Alex was fully convinced that the love of her life was a demon than how couldn't it be true? They clapped their hands and Alex glanced at them.

'Does that matter? She's still the person you love,'

"You don't get it. She lied to me all our lives. What else has she been lying about?" She replied.

'So what if she lied about that? it's not like haven't lied about yourself,'

"Not even. I've never done that," Anton rolled their eyes and huffed.

'Wigget told me you got really sick when you were a child. Even on the verge of death,'

"That? I was a child. It was mino-,"