Deceived Me

Chapter 36:

As she stared at Alice helplessly, she felt that something was wrong. Alice looked a little pale. She wanted to look around but couldn't. This person seemed to have heard her plea and walked forward. They sat down on the bed beside her. This person just kept looking at Alice. Finally, she looked somewhere else. It was the air conditioner.

Stella saw that it was really low and maybe Alice was cold. She wasn't wearing the quilt. She wanted to help her but couldn't. She felt a little worried even though it was just a dream. Then this person looked somewhere else. She looked towards the windows. At first, Stella didn't see clearly but when the curtains moved a little because of wind, Stella saw heavy snow falling. She was stunned.

While she was still in shock, the person looked back at Alice. This time, Stella felt like she could see better. Alice was so pale. Stella's eyes burst with fear and she struggled in the darkness to get out of this body and help Alice but she couldn't. A while seemed to have passed and Alice seems more paler. She was freezing and if she didn't do anything, Alice would froze too death. Stella felt an unknown but terrible fear. Just then, her wish seemed to have gotten fulfilled.

Alice who was curled up turned to lay on her back. Stella saw her face more clearly. She looked like she is in a terrible condition. Her eyes were super red and dry. Her cheeks seems to be hurt from cold. Her pale skin was a little red. She slowly laid on her back. Her breath forming puffs in the air.

She opened her mouth and Stella wanted to look away. Alice lips skin ripped when she opened her mouth and from one of the ripped region, blood slowly started oozing. Seeing that, Stella's heart hurt. She wanted to stop her but no matter how much she moved, it didn't help.

The person in this body seemed to get closer to Alice and lay beside her. She laid on her side looking at Alice. Stella saw Alice mumbling something. At first, her voice wasn't coming out. Finally after a little efforts, she seemed to bring out her extremely hoarse voice out. Her broken voice came and Stella heard her.

" I wish... Was born... You... That... I... Died instead... Without... Living... Not possible... me... " Alice voice was too broken and low so she could only hear parts of what she said but she could fill in the blanks.

' I wish I was born as you so that, I had died instead of you. Without you, living is not possible for me.'

When she understood what she said, she was stunned. And then she saw Alice closing her desolate eyes as if light is fading from them. And she collapsed.

Stella cried desperately and tried to move around crazily but nothing seems to work. Then she woke up with a start and found herself drowned in tears. Her hands still shook with fear as she quickly turned to look at Alice. She saw her softly covered in quilt breathing steadily. The breath she had been holding was released as she breathed desperately. She got up and put her feets in the sleepers. She stood up and almost fell down with the way hegs were shaking.

She opened her dressing table drawer with trembling hands. Tears fell on her hand. She couldn't stop crying waking up. Finally she found what she was desperately looking for. She took the secret packet with the lighter and hurried out to the balcony in that condition.

She qucily took out a cigar as soon as she stepped outside and the lighter wasn't opening as she couldn't flick properly with her unstable hands.

Finally it did after the fifth try and she quickly burned her cigarette. As she released the smoke, she thought she'd feel relief but it only helped a little. The horrible fear as if the world is ending didn't go away.

She desperately smoked until she finished the almost full packet of cigrates. When she was done, it seemed the sun was going to rise soon. So she cleaned up the cigrates and went back inside to take a bath. Alice woulnd't like it if she knew she smoked. She was just glad she didn't get to throw that packet away. She would've gone crazy if she didn't have the cigrattes.