Rain pours from the dark skies, the moon hidden behind clouds. Goosebumps raze my skin as the chill bites into bone, but I don’t know if I’m shaking from cold or anger.
I’m waiting for the snap of a whip. The sound of my brother’s voice while flames engulf me and peel the skin from my flesh, then flesh from bone. My eyes screw shut, and I grab the sides of my head needing—no, begging for—this not to be another form of torture.
Sable is real.
This is real. This needs to be real.
Sheneeds to be real.
I’m not trapped down there anymore.
I’m free.
I’m out.
Breathe. Fucking breathe.
Each beat of my heart hurts. The wound seeps blood and stains my skin. My hands won’t stop shaking. I raise my eyes to the forest and storm toward it, needing distance from her. Water soaks into my clothes and makes my shivering worse.
I can’t look at her—can’t breathe the same fucking air as her. I need to get as far away from her as possible. I’ll sit down and think. I’ll try to wake up—and pray that when I do, my brother is playing with one of his toys while I get him ready for school.
The world swirls around me, my mind growing dizzy as I struggle not to tumble to the ground, but I fail and dirt wedges itself beneath my blunt nails and I’m on my ass. My breaths come in forced bursts, like I’m exhausted from exercise, my heartbeat ricocheting off my ribs.
Sable is either my punishment or my reason for being punished—regardless, I need to rip out my own heart and cut her off. Walk away for good.
My vision blurs more, black spots everywhere, but I force myself to sit up and rest my elbows on my knees, breathing through each ache in my chest.
Why the fuck am I so dizzy? I haven’t felt this way in a long, long time.
Centuries, in fact.
I squeeze my eyes shut and count to five, ten, twenty.
With strength I don’t feel like I have, I get to my feet and stagger to the side, stopping myself on the brick wall of the manor and using it to move forward until the dizziness subsides.
As soon as I get into the forest, I sigh, leaning against a tree to catch my breath, filling my lungs with each deep, ragged inhale. I only make it a few more minutes before I need to lean against another stump; another ten and I’m crouching and choking until I vomit all over the mushy ground.
I haven’t vomited in years either.
I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand and straighten, continuing into the forest. Deeper and deeper, the world around me growing darker as night takes full control.
The snapping of branches grabs my attention, and Tidus leaps in front of me, his teeth bared, hackles up. But then his fangs vanish, his fur flattening when he realizes it’s me.
He sniffs, taking a step closer.
My brows knit together. “What?”
“Hu-man.”
“The fuck are you talking about?”
Tidus comes closer, sniffing harder, his head tipping to the side in confusion before he whines, ears flattening.
Confusion overtakes me because I’ve never seen him like this before. Tidus doesn’t get scared or skittish—he’s more of a beast than anything.
He shifts to Tony with another whine, and then my friend’s wide eyes are locked on me.
“Dude,” he starts, his voice failing him before he takes a deep breath. “What happened?”
