Step by Step

Chapitre 4

Hello everyone, and thank you to those who continues to read. And I beg you, if you like my story, drop me a line to tell me! it's so motivating!

A warning this time: there is a mention of attempted suicide in this chapter.

*************************************************

Fourth floor, south wing.

The elevator doors opened and suddenly her chest felt like it was being crushed in a vise. Despite her best efforts, she could hardly get any air into her lungs.

Her vision was blurry and the ground seemed to sway. She could barely make out the numbers written in silver letters next to the rooms on either side of the corridor. Rey suddenly felt the bile rising in her throat. Her heartbeat pulsed loudly against her temples, and all the noises around her were muffled. In fact, on second thought, she couldn't hear any sound at all.

And the hallway just kept moving...

Gravity was working against her, making her legs feel like they weighed a ton, yet she knew she had to get to the room at the end of the hallway.

Room 11.

She gulped painfully and left the elevator. It was strange. The more she walked, the more the end of the corridor seemed to move away, impossible to reach. So she tried to make slow progress, one step after another, leaning against the wall. Finally, by God knows what miracle, she got to the right door.

The vise tightened again, along with her throat. Her fingers gripped the handle.

It was locked. She pushed with all her strength but it was a waste of time. Yet she knew she had to enter. She had to act fast. She tried again. Her shoulder banged against the wood several times and she started screaming, calling for help, as loud as she could. But she had no voice, and when she looked back, she saw no one. She was alone. Alone and helpless in front of the closed door of room 11.

So she started crying and banging her fist against the door.

Kicking it over and over.

Lindsay! Lindsay!

Rey woke up with a start, completely disoriented.

It took a moment to realize that she was sitting on her bed in her little apartment in Greenwich, trembling and drenched in sweat in the middle of her messy sheets. Her hand moved instinctively to her chest and she forced herself to breathe calmly.

It's over. Come on ...

Another minute passed before she decided to get up, still a little unsettled, and head for the bathroom. She turned on the water, drank from the tap, and splashed her face several times. Then she stood there for a moment, leaning over the sink to put her thoughts back in order.

She thought she was done with the nightmares. It had been almost two months since they'd come to disturb her sleep, but Rey suspected that her return to the clinic would inevitably bring bad memories to the surface. But it was time to move on. Her life couldn't stay frozen in that incident indefinitely.

Breathe. She's fine. Lindsay is fine....

The young woman observed her reflection one last time in the mirror hanging on the wall, wiped her face with a towel, and returned to the bedroom. The alarm clock on the nightstand displayed 6:30. She knew very well that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, so she drew the curtains. The first rays of the sun were beginning to set the horizon ablaze. A beautiful day was dawning.