Find Me...

Hey Cruel World

Chapter 1 – Hey Cruel World

{2011}

“Find me…”

Marilyn awoke with a start, a light sheen of sweat covering his pale skin as the haunting whisper echoed around inside his head. With a sigh, he sat up and ran a hand down his face tiredly. He’d dreamt of that night, and that girl, for years… although nightmare was probably a more apt description of the feeling it left him with when he awoke.

He worried that he’d never found her. In all the years since she’d first begged for his help…he’d never found her; or found anyone who looked remotely like her!

Getting out of bed, he grabbed an old canvas, removing the cloth that kept the dust away. As Marilyn looked at his rendition of the beautiful, sad girl, he made a silent promise.

‘I will find you…’ he thought as he looked with longing into the paintings’ eyes. ‘I promise you… I will find you.’

***

Winter Meadows cried fearfully as her father dragged her by her hair and threw her into her bedroom. He’d been like this as long as Winter could remember. She cried out in agony as he stomped down on her back.

“Go and dream your life away you stupid, useless girl!” he shouted as he stormed out of her room, slamming the door and locking it.

She shouldn’t have spoken about the dream…but it was all she could think about. Picking herself up off the hard, unforgiving wood of the floor, Winter leant against the end of her bed and sighed sadly.

She’d been having the dream for as long as she could remember; his face haunted her every thought. Winter knew who he was of course, though it had taken some time to put a name to the face. Rock icon Marilyn Manson appeared to her every night in her dreams. Though his look had changed over the years, the events of the dream never did.

Every night Winter would drift towards the handsome man with sleep filled eyes, murmuring something about being hurt and lost as an overwhelming sense of despair and fear filled the air about her. Marilyn always asked if there was anything he could do to help her. She always pleaded with him to help her “Help me by helping yourself” …and it always ended with the words “Find me…”

Winter inevitably woke up then; always pondering the meaning behind the words. Now, with a sad, shy smile, she figured it out. He could help himself… to her.

She sighed softly as she crawled up onto her bed, pulling the covers over her head. She would never meet him… he would never find her…