The Blind Witness

2: False Hope

The bus jolts to a stop, and I step off, feeling the rain hit my face like hot needles. My shoes splash into shallow murky puddles. My mind plays tricks on me, red shouldn't be there, red should be dead.

I stumble up the front steps, soaked through, reaching the house's front door, my fingers stiff and cold as I fumble with the key in my hand. It feels foreign, the lock reluctant to turn, as if the house itself doesn't want me here.

I step into the warmth, but it doesn't touch me. Seeing the familiar surroundings of my living room. Passionless beige walls paired with our dusty green sofas caused the room to look like dried grass. The detailed floral arrangements nestled on every surface were not only claustrophobic but the aroma was suffocating.

"Y/n is that you?" my mother Daniella calls from the kitchen.

I love my mother, her cooking not so much. It's like eating burnt cactus, clawing and tearing at your throat as if it were a starved stray.

"Yes" I answer dryly, not having the sanity to hold a conversation.

Staggering up our staircase never took as much energy as it currently does. Catching a glimpse of panic-stricken brown eyes in the mirror. My mental strength has been rapidly deteriorating after seeing him. Pulse still racing, hands still shaking, each heartbeat thundering in my ears as a reminder of my vulnerability. I head to my room, dragging my feet as if I'm wading through thick mud. Each step feels heavier than the last. By the time I reach the doorway, I'm already sinking. I close the door behind me, the click of the lock echoing in the silence. I should feel safe here, but I don't.

Not anymore.

I collapse onto the bed, not bothering to change out of my damp clothes. I lie there for what feels like hours, staring at the ceiling, my breath shallow, my chest tight. Dead for three years. How is that possible? Why me? Where was he going? Am I delusional?

The questions buzz around my head, each one more unsettling than the last. I close my eyes, trying to shut it all out. To shut him out. My mind drags me back, back to before he died.

The dreams start as soon as I'm pulled into the elusive grip of sleep. 

*Sleeping*

I'm back in the same place, the same dark alley, the smell of damp brick and rot in the air. The rain had been falling then too, though it was more of a drizzle that was trying its hardest to be rain. And he was there, standing in front of me, his face shadowed, his eyes searching. But they weren't empty then. They were alive. Frantic. Desperate.

"I need your help," he'd said, his voice barely above a whisper, like he was afraid of being overheard. "You're the only person I can tell."

I remember the way my heart pounded, the way my hands trembled. I didn't know what he was asking of me. I still don't. But I remember nodding, agreeing to something I didn't understand. Everything fractures, splinters into pieces I can't put back together. All I know is that whatever happened after that moment, I failed him. And now he's dead.

In the dream, I reach out for him, my hand trembling, but he steps back, slipping into the grimy brick walls like they're made of water. I stumble forward, trying to follow, but the ground crumbles beneath me. The alley warps, twists, and suddenly I'm falling, falling into darkness, into a place where there's no escape. I try to scream, but no sound comes out. I try to move, but my limbs are frozen. The shadows wrap around me, pulling me deeper, swallowing me whole.

But then, just as I feel like I'm about to be consumed, I see it, something glinting in the darkness. It's small, barely noticeable, but it's there. A key. I don't know how I know it's important, but I do. My hand reaches for it, fingers brushing the cold metal, and as soon as I touch it, everything shifts.

The shadows pull back, the darkness recoils, and for a split second, I see his face again. But this time, it's not hollow. It's full of pain. Full of blame.

"Y/n..." He murmurs "You could have saved me." 

"I'm so sorry Jaxon." I choke out. The dream comes to an end, more like a nightmare to be honest.

A/N - Iv'e been debating weather to give her a name or just keep it as y/n?? Any suggestions for her name would be awesome :)