𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐃𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓 | ellie williams

prologue

ᖭི༏ᖫྀ

AYESHA HAS ALWAYS WONDERED if dying is like sleeping. Does our unconscious know that it will never wake up? In the end, sleeping is a bit like dying, except that we know we'll wake up the next day. Dying, however, is different: our unconscious certainly hopes that it will wake up one day, without knowing that it's the end. The unconscious is like a lamp in the middle of a room, going out over time, losing hope of waking up one day.

Ayesha wished that this lamp, fading with time, could be in her soul right now. Fading and disappearing with each passing day, just like her person. The blinding rays of sunlight trying to take over Ayesha's room forced her to rise from her bed and draw the curtains, plunging her room back into darkness.

Her hair is a mess, and sleeping with curly hair has never been easy. The wooden floor creaked beneath the brunette's steps as she headed for the bathroom. Ayesha's house on the south side of Jackson was one of the first to be built here, so to say it didn't need a lick of paint would be a lie.

Ayesha arrived in Jackson a year ago after crossing Nevada and Utah to Wyoming. And let's face it, it's very different from California: no sand, no sea, no tar-melting sun, no drought or green bushes dying in the California heat. Here, there are mountains, thousands of pine forests, harsh winters and the sun's rays seem to freeze every time they reach terra firma. Frozen like water just ejected from the showerhead.

"Ah, shit!" Ayesha's teeth grind.

She waits for the water to get hot before undressing and jumping into the tub, closing the white curtain behind her. Ayesha isn't familiar with hot showers, and hasn't had one very often. Let's just say she enjoys the luxury of showering in hot water at least once a week.

Ayesha doesn't find herself enjoying this luxury any longer as someone knocks on her door. Rather, banging on her door. And the brunette doesn't even try to hide her annoyance. She rolls her eyes before turning off the water and stepping out of the tub, quickly drying herself off as the knocking continues. Ayesha slips on a T-shirt and pants before running down the stairs and opening the door, finding Tommy.

"What took you so long?" He frowns.

"I was showering, sorry. What up?" Her left arm leans against the door frame.

Her hair is still wet, falling over her caramelized face. Ayesha has big, dark eyes and full, heart-shaped lips. Her nose is straight and her facial features are quite fine. Ayesha has never really known her origins, just guessed from her features that she is from the Middle East.

"Jesse and Ellie are waiting for you at the stables." Tommy's voice is nonchalant.

Confusion hovers over Ayesha, her eyes blinking as her brows furrow. She leans over Tommy to hear him better.

"Who... Who?" She squints.

"Jesse and Ellie! For patrol!" He says louder.

Ayesha is even more confused than she already was. Dina patrols with Ellie and Jesse, not Ayesha. She's never patrolled with them.

"I usually patrol on Wednesday and Friday... It's Monday." She remarks.

"Yeah, but Dina has very bad you-know-what cramps, so you're replacing her." He tells her.