Altered Reality

the broken

IRIS POV
We run and run and run. We're clueless on where we're heading but maybe Viv was clueless too.

VIVIAN POV
The moonlight has faded. All that is left is black. Thick, unforgiving air like tar. My back screams against the raw bark but I'm too afraid to move; I feel like there's someone watching me, waiting in the too still tar.

I don't know how long I've sat here. The same scene continues to play in my head like a broken tape recorder. Despite this, I'm oddly calm - unmoving and waiting for nothing, or maybe something.

Then all of a sudden, like a knife drawing its way through the tar but picking up speed each frightening second - I hear a rumble of footsteps and then a rumble of voices, and then the noise comes to near that I can hear a rumble of anxious, quick, breathing. The slight rumble before turns into a thunderstorm of shouts and I realise: it's my name which is being uttered. Then suddenly, like a stampede of frightened bulls, Iris, April, Quentin and Theo crash into my surroundings, finding me.

I don't know what to do, or think.

I stare at Iris's face as she bolts towards me, a picture of regret and pain, and for a second I melt. But the image of her and April begins to repeat in my mind and I can't drown out the voices that tell me she doesn't love me, not this time. She begins to speak, but I don't want to have to hear what she has to say to I stand abruptly, making her stumble backwards with a look of fear cast on her face. Now it's my turn to be the thunderstorm, crashing down on her.
"Get away from me Iris! I saw you kiss April and you can't make this better. I should have known!"
"It wasn't what it looked like! I promise you Viv!" She screams apologies which I can't make myself believe. Silent until now, Quentin adds in,
"You kissed April? Why would you do that?"
"I didn't! Well, I did but-" Iris doesn't get to finish before Theo steps in saying,
"But what?" He looks scared and confused, wary or what's happening.
"But it wasn't like that! I pretended to kiss her!" I don't get what she means, how can you pretend? All I do is scream at her in return -
"I can't trust you! I don't want to!"
"What do you mean you don't want to! Why are you being like this? What are you so afraid of?" Iris is screeching accusingly at me and I can't believe what she's saying, why is this suddenly all about me?!
"Don't you dare say that - you're the one who kissed someone else!"
"You're not listening to me!"
"Stop it! You're just confusing eachother!" Quentin bellows at us and Iris shouts back furiously, anger dropping from her tongue,
"Says you! All you ever do is lead Theo on!" I gasp, she can't mean that.
"Is that true? Quentin is that true?! I thought you liked me." Theo's wavering voice gets louder as he speaks and I can almost picture the pieces of his precious heart crumble. He's stepping back, stumbling, tears like rain falling from his eyes.
The hatred drips like acid out of Quentin's mouth, and I've never seen anger like it.
"Go away." He says it softly at first.
"Go. Away. Iris." Louder.
Iris is just stood still, so is April, Theo, and me.
"For the last, god damn time. Go away Iris! You don't get to ruin me and Theo just because you ruined you and Vivian okay?!" He's shouting, glaring anger like beams.

Worlds crash between our breakable bond as I hear Iris's words:
"If you're not going to listen to me, fine! I don't want to see any of you again! Agreed?"
I wonder if she's saying this out of only anger, but with all the pain and regret inside me, it's enough for me to agree.

I don't know if I just imagined the look of pain on Iris's face because it's gone as quickly as it came.
I wonder if this is all a nightmare.
I realise it's not when everyone spits words of agreement.
The realisation hits when all of my friends, best friends I thought, walk away.
They walk away with tar dripping from their hearts.
Leaving me alone in the darkness, leaving me suffocated.