Psychopathy

Chapter 57- Awakening

Isabel walked down the road she had chosen. The sun was setting in the distance, but she knew she'd get to her destination in time. She wasn't sure what would happen when the sun finally set, but she'd be with the people she had chosen. She looked up from the road to see her friends smiling brightly at her. And he was there, running to her. She picked up her own pace and met him in the middle, letting him wrap his arms around her. She returned the hug, sighing in contentment. He pulled away, keeping his hands on her shoulder.

"Let's get you home," he said, and she nodded, looking past him. She watched twinkling lights appear in the distance, and she smiled fondly. Home. At long last.

***************

"You know, if you're going to wake up, it'd be nice if you could do it now. Ria and I have to get back home soon." Ciara slowly came back to awareness. After her meeting with Reid, she had appeared at a crossroads. In each direction, she saw a destination. In one, she saw her parent's house. In the other, she saw what looked like the skyline of D.C. She had thought long and hard about her decision, thinking about everything that had transpired. In the end, she had decided that she couldn't leave her sister and her friends. So she had chosen to live. There was a bright light, and the next thing she knew, she was staring at the back of her eyelids.

To say that she was confused would be an understatement. She tried to open her eyes but found herself unable to. They felt like they were made of lead, and she soon gave up on the venture. She instead tuned into her other senses. Wherever she was, it smelled of disinfectant, and inwardly, she cringed at the smell. It reminded her too much of the bleach that had burned her hands and had once been forced down her throat.

Everything sounded so far away. There was a beeping sound she couldn't identify, and even further away, she could barely recognize Teresa's voice. She wanted to find a way to tell Teresa that she was there; she was slowly becoming more aware, if not necessarily awake. But she was just so tired. It would be so easy to just go back to sleep, but she knew she had to try and fully wake. She had to know what was happening.

Where the hell was she? She was lying on something soft, something she couldn't quite identify. The house was the last place she had known, and there was nothing soft in there. Not anymore. So where had they taken her? And what was she laying on? There was something under her fingertips, something soft and almost silky, but that didn't tell her much of anything. She didn't know where she was. She didn't know what was happening. And so Ciara started to fight harder to open her eyes.

"Ah, don't listen to me. You wake up in your own time, okay, Ciara? We'll all be here when you do," Teresa said. Her voice sounded closer this time. Ciara wasn't yet able to open her eyes, but she was slowly gaining control of her other senses. And with the increasing awareness came the pain. Everything hurt. If anything, she needed to open her eyes so she could tell someone that. But she wasn't even sure she could talk. She tried to swallow, but the dry scratchiness of her throat made the motion nigh unbearable.

But worse than the pain were the memories. In the in-between world, her memories hadn't plagued her. It was as if they had never existed. She was whole, mentally and physically. But now that she was back in the real world, they were a tsunami, crashing upon her and sweeping her away with no warning. She tried to wiggle the fingers on her right hand, but only two responded. The only two that were still there.

"Wait a second." There. That was her chance. Teresa had noticed her fingers and knew that she was waking up. If there was ever a moment to force her eyes open, it was then. So, with all the strength she had, she forced her eyes to open. And slowly, they listened, and the world began to show itself to her. At first, everything was bright and blurry. Her eyes couldn't focus on anything, but at least her eyes were open. She could see. She was awake. "Ciara!"