Smoke, smoke everywhere. I should be dead by now, but I'm not. No smoke enters my lungs, the fire spreads out in a ring around me, not daring to touch me. Screams plague my ears, all I can see is the burning forms of my long dead friends.
We're all in the house, and they're hanging there, trapped by the nooses around their necks. They try to escape, but they're pulled back, suffocated. I run for them, trying to share my safety, but every time I get close, they are pulled back even more.
The dreamscape escalates, fiery orange turning to blazing red. Cloudy grey to thick black. I can no longer see anything but them, all I hear is their cries of torture. And then, one by one, Kiara, Riley, even Maddie join the inferno. They're not hanging. They are trapped by chains held by their loved ones.
The chains are threaded into the skin of the hanging, and no matter how hard they try to set them free, the chains don't come out. Kiara, Riley, and Maddie claw at Kat, Cassidy, and Abby, begging to be free, but the chains never fall.
In a flash of scorching heat, Ky is there next to me. He is protected by my circle, but whenever I lurch toward the others, he screams in pain. I can't join my friends without hurting him.
The circle gets infinitesimally smaller, beads of sweat creeping up my neck. The ring of fire implodes on me, engulfing me in flame. Instead of burning in a glorious explosion, it creeps up slowly, every anguishing inch makes me shriek in agony.
The worst part is seeing Ky suffer, an innocent person, and one I love, suffering because I can't hang a rope right! The flames reach my neck, charring my skin. When I think I can't take anymore, and that I'm finally dead, the house collapses.
I wake up, soaked by my sweat and tears. Cas is gonna freak when I tell her about that dream. Then it hits me again, as it has every morning since I woke up in rehab, crying because I didn't die.
In a desperate attempt to delude myself into the thought that maybe this is a dream too, I dig my nails into my skin until I draw blood. And still, I'm alone.
I do this every day, and every day, the same result. A lonely girl, crying for a future she never should have had. I'm tired of this cycle, going in circles. I'm tired of hearing their final words replayed on an endless loop in my mind.
"Are we really going through with this?" Kat whispered, met by solemn nods.
"Finally," she murmured, eyes gleaming, "I'm never going to be left behind again, forgotten and alone."
"Do you think they'll miss me?" Cas had mused, resignation darkening her eyes.
"Yeah," Abby smiled, "They will. And now, I'm going to see him again. We'll never be apart again."
"All right then," Kat finalized, "Here we go."
As we were bleeding out, about to kick the chairs, she left with one last statement.
"I finally feel alive."
And now, two years later, that moment is still the most alive I've felt in my life. I guess you only really live when you're about to die.
YOU ARE READING
Mirror Mirror Can't You See, What You Show Is Killing Me
Teen FictionTwo years ago, Caia lost everything and everyone she loved. Now every day is a struggle; she's lost the ability to eat, and not care. Counting calories, and days since the tragedy, Caia's not sure she wants to live anymore. The only one who can con...
