Smoking Mirrors

Chapter 12: fading away

Natalie's hands trembled as she grasped the steering wheel, her eyes fixed on the darkness outside. Memories she thought were long buried rose to the surface, like a ghostly visitation. Six years ago, she had felt a connection so deep, so real, it had left an indelible mark on her soul.

Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes as she recalled the laughter, the whispers, the warm embraces. It was a love that had made her feel seen, heard, and understood. But like a fleeting dream, it vanished, leaving only shattered remnants of her heart.

The pain was still raw, still suffocating. Natalie's chest tightened, her breathing labored, as if the weight of her sorrow was crushing her. She felt like she was drowning in an ocean of longing, unable to escape the undertow of her memories.

With a sob, she started the car, the engine roaring to life like a defiant cry. She turned up the music, the melody a bittersweet solace. As she drove away from the past, Natalie's voice rose, singing along with the lyrics, her tears mingling with the rain on her face.

The music was her refuge, her confessional, her catharsis. In its embrace, she found the courage to confront the ache within, to let it consume her, to release it into the night. With every note, every beat, she felt the pain slowly ebb, like the tide receding from the shore.

As she drove into the darkness, Natalie's voice grew stronger, her heart lighter, her spirit freer. She was not just singing; she was resurrecting a part of herself she thought was lost forever. The music was her resurrection, her rebirth, her redemption.

In that moment, Natalie was not alone. Her pain was universal, her sorrow a shared human experience. And in the symphony of her tears, her voice, and her memories, listeners could feel their own hearts beating in harmony, their own pain and longing reflected in hers.

Natalie's fingers trembled as she dialed the number, her heart racing with a mix of anguish and desperation. The phone rang, and with each passing moment, her anxiety escalated. Finally, a voice answered, and Natalie's emotions erupted like a dam breaking.

"Why?! Oh, God, why?!" she screamed, her voice cracking with pain. "Why did you have to hurt me like this? Why did you have to take him away from me?!"

Tears streamed down her face like torrential rain, her body shaking with uncontrollable sobs. The memories came flooding back, and Natalie felt like she was drowning in a sea of despair.

"I died that day, do you understand? I died with him! My soul was ripped apart, and I can never get it back! Why did you have to take him away from me?!"

Her cries echoed through the car, a haunting lament that seemed to reverberate through every cell in her body. The pain was palpable, a living, breathing entity that consumed her every waking moment.

"Why did you have to break me? Why did you have to destroy me? I thought you loved me, but it was all a lie, wasn't it? You never loved me. You never loved us!"

The words spilled out like a confession, a desperate plea for answers that never seemed to come. Natalie's heart felt like it was being torn apart, her very existence reduced to a mere shadow of its former self.

"I hate you! I hate you for what you did to me! I hate you for taking him away from me!"

The venom in her words was palpable, a toxic mix of anger, sorrow, and betrayal. Natalie's screams faded into sobs, her body exhausted from the emotional turmoil. The silence that followed was deafening, a stark reminder of the chasm that had opened up in her life.

Natalie's gaze remained fixed on the road ahead, her vision blurry through tears. She was still screaming into the phone, her words barely intelligible. Suddenly, a figure appeared in the distance, and her heart skipped a beat. Panic set in as she slammed on the brakes, the tires screeching in protest.

Time seemed to slow as the figure drew closer, its features becoming clear. It was a woman, her eyes wide with fear. Natalie's scream froze in her throat as the woman's body collided with the hood of her car, the impact sending her flying.

Natalie's world went dark as her car careened out of control, the sound of crunching metal and shattering glass filling the air. The phone slipped from her grasp, the person on the other end screaming her name.

"Natalie! Natalie, are you okay? Natalie!"

The sound of her name was the last thing she remembered before everything went black.

When Natalie came to, she was met with a wave of agony. Her head throbbed, and her body felt like it had been put through a wringer. She tried to move, but a searing pain shot through her chest, leaving her gasping for breath.

As her eyes fluttered open, she saw that she was pinned between the steering wheel and the seat. The airbag had deployed, but it hadn't been enough to cushion the impact. Blood trickled down her forehead, and her vision blurred.

The phone lay nearby, the person on the other end still screaming her name. Natalie tried to respond, but her voice was barely a whisper.

"Hel...p..."

The darkness closed in again, and Natalie's world went black.

The black car's wheels screeched in a cloud of smoke, halting mere inches from the wreckage. The man's heart raced like a jackhammer, his face pale with terror. He flung open the door, phone still clutched in his hand, the call still active.

"Natalie! Oh God, Natalie! Answer me!" he screamed, his voice hoarse with fear.

He sprinted towards the mangled car, his eyes fixed on the crumpled form inside. The phone slipped from his grasp, the line still open, as he frantically tore at the twisted metal to reach her.

The silence on the other end of the line was deafening, the only sound the man's labored breathing and the creaking of the wreckage. The world seemed to slow, suspended in a nightmare of uncertainty.

And then, a faint whisper, barely audible, sent the man's heart plummeting: "Hel...p..."

His eyes locked onto Natalie's face, her eyes glassy and unfocused. With a surge of adrenaline, he wrenched open the door, carefully extricating her from the wreckage. Cradling her in his arms, he begged, "Hang on, Natalie, please... don't leave me."