And I know you're down and out now, but I need you to be brave Hiding from the truth ain't gonna make this all okay I see your pain, if you don't feel our grace And you've lost your way I will leave the light on
-Leave a Light On, Tom Walker
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
THERE WAS A WAR HAPPENING IN CAROLINE'S MIND, AND SHE WAS LOSING.
The monster roared, tearing apart her sanity with every lost moment. She sat, huddled in the corner of her head, hands over her ears, screaming right back it it, but nothing was going to change.
It was winning.
Then, for a long moment, it went silent. Nothing but dark and black, almost as if she'd been put to sleep. But the monster never rested, even when its host's body was catatonic.
Caroline didn't know how they did it, but she was grateful it happened. Her and the person she was connected to... Will?... couldn't do any harm when they weren't awake.
Soon enough, though, she started to wake up.
Or, rather, He did.
And immediately, Caroline felt a burning pain spreading all over her body.
Caroline's eyes snapped open at the exact same time as Will's, deep brown irises staring into a flickering orange space that was too muggy to decipher yet.
She felt her chest begin to cramp as she struggled to breathe air into her lung. Her skin had started to burn.
"What's happening?" She croaked, the monster using her mouth to spit angrily.
"It hurts," she could feel Will to her left, struggling. Something was tying their wrists and ankles, keeping them held down as the heat increased.
"It hurts!"
Will started yelling, increasing her own anxiety. The monster in her head had started to roar again, causing her to cry out. "It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! Let me go!"
"Let me go!" Caroline shrieked. "It hurts! It hurts!"
Someone else suddenly cried out, a vaguely familiar voice. It was someone she had once hated; the monster sensed it and decided to feed on that. A girl with a wild curls, bright blue eyes, and long, nimble fingers. "Her ears! She's bleeding again!"
Caroline could feel it was true. Hot, sticky crimson trailed down her neck as the monster screamed.
"Mom," the voice was pleading. "Mom..."
"Let me go! Let me go!" Will screamed, "It hurts!"
Suddenly the heat increased, burning and melting her skin off her bones, she was sure of it. Her muscles contracted and a scream ripped itself out of her throat. Her back arched against the cot and her wrists and ankles burned as the ropes holding her down burned into her skin.
