The Other Side Of Me [Sequel to Faen's Child]

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

“Rayin, you shouldn’t be here. No, I shouldn’t be talking to you. You’re not real. You’re just-” I was beginning to look away, but she came even closer to me instead, very-real hands cradling both sides of my face gently, as Raisy had done before.

“Feel me, Raun. Am I not real? Am I not tangible? Am I not a being? Do I looke like a mere illusion to you?” She begged, in a soft voice that I had never attributed to her before. Rayin had always been hyped up, a crazy girl, if I must. But she was crazy in a fun and entertaining way –and there was nothing wrong with that fact.

Except that she wasn’t real. Or so Brother Noel and Zane kept on insisting to me. Ever since we found out about Rayen, they had been dead convinced that Rayin was just an illusion that my Dark Doppelganger came up with to open my heart so that he could enter without problem. I had to admit; using Rayin to seduce me had been the perfect way to go about it, until Rayen made the mistake of showing himself too early.

"Fine, you’re real to me. But nothing changes the fact that no one knows you, you haven’t showed me your elements, and you refused to talk about yourself. No one has seen you around, Rayin, and I have seen you around none either. You never appear when anyone else does.” I accused, swiping her hands away –but still fairly gently.

"But that’s only because I-” Her shock turned to hurt, and eyes began to glitter as she drew back, hands pressed against her chest as if it had hurt her very much when I swiped her away roughly.

She looked too much like a wounded puppy, a girl who seemed so helpless and lost that I couldn’t help myself.

“Look, Rayin, I didn’t mean to hurt you in that way, but we know you are sent to me by Rayen. I know you’re  trying to convince me to give up to him, but I won’t. I have people to protect from myself. I have friends and family suppoting me. So go tell Rayen that I’m not going to submit.”

She turned her back on me, sniffling away as she sat herself on the edge of my bed. She bowed her head, only looking down, at her feet, but the tears were falling from her eyes. Oh God… had I been so harsh?

“Isn’t that why I didn’t want to talk about myself? If you have Rayen as a dark side, don’t you think he’s my dark side too? I don’t want to do this either, Raun, but he’s forcing me to do things I don’t want to. I wanted to stop –that’s why you didn’t hear from me for so long. Then Rayen forced me again…” She sobbed, pressing hands to her face as if she didn’t want me to see the sight of her crying.

“Wait, but I don’t get it. Aren’t you an illusion Rayen made…”

“The Dark Doppelganger comes with me. Rayen, in a way, is like my big brother, my master. Both of us are with you, Rayen inside, me closer to your mind. He makes me seduce you –he wants me to get to your heart, so that through me, he controls you.” Rayin explained through sniffles, and I couldn’t help it. A girl crying so sorrowfully never did well on me, and neither did the fact that my cold refusal at her warm greeting had been the cause of the tears helped anything.

“I’m sorry for the harsh words. Maybe I should have asked first…” I took a seat carefully beside her, looping arms around her sholders to bring her closer to me when she didn’t try to push me away.

“I thought you would have a little more trust in me. I thought we got on well enough for you to believe in me. I didn’t think you would be so easily misled to think that I would do you harm. You’re my chance of being freed from Rayen, Raun. Why would I work for him? He mistreats me in ways you can’t imagine… he shuts me in a cage… it’s always so cold… so lonely… so… just nothing everywhere.” Rayin continued her sob story, and I couldn’t help but feel guilty. I had made a big mistake this time around. But I really hadn’t known that Rayin had it so hard. It must really be sad, being her. On top of that, the only person she could communicate to was pushing her away.