insomnia [✔]

scene. vi

"So? How's this pizza?" the green-haired boy asked smiling.

Opposite him, at the other end of the small table for two at which they were seated, Madeleine was enjoying a slice of vegetarian pizza. She said nothing, but the expression on her face betrayed her delight. Gar preferred to see her like this, rather than haggard as she had been a few moments earlier. Besides, they hadn't talked about it again. For her part, the young woman did everything possible to forget, even if a little anguish caused by this destabilizing experience still remained.

"Not too bad" finally replied Madeleine, patting her lips with a paper towel "I detected a slight touch of paprika".

"Glad you enjoyed it!" smiled Gar, and then he paused for a moment.
What should he do next? Take her home? Advise him to go see a doctor? Tell him about this friend of his, who could perhaps help him?

"You seem upset" remarked Madeleine "Is it because I ate three quarters of the pizza? If so, can we order another one?"

"Oh no! No, it's not about that! Don't worry... Honestly...I was thinking about what happened earlier..." confessed Gar.

"Oh... Now, I'm a freak to you" Madeleine laughed bitterly, looking away.

The green-haired boy blamed himself for being so frank. His goal was not to make her uncomfortable, but the mood was getting worse. So, he decided to confide a secret to her, by way of reparation. He thought that the least we could do was to make the young woman understand that she was not an isolated case, and that there were others like her, capable of things that they themselves did not always understand.

"You're not a freak, Madeleine..." Gar whispered softly, "If so, that would mean I'm a freak too."

"Are you saying this to make me feel better?" asked Madeleine, saddened, looking him in the eyes.

"No, I..." the young man looked left, then right to make sure no one was listening. Finally, he moved his chair forward to get closer to Madeleine and continued by saying: "I just... know how it feels..."

"OK... Have you ever had visions while crossing a road?" asked Madeleine, perplexed.

"Uh no, not that way." laughed Gar embarrassed. "It's about animals..."

"So what? You can imitate the sound of specific animal... Or... just like... you understand what they're saying..." said Madeleine.

"I can... literally turn into a tiger..."

////////////////////

"Wait, Madeleine! I'm not kidding you! I told you the truth! Please let me explain!" Gar exclaimed to the girl who was striding away from the restaurant.

But Madeleine was not listening to him. She was hurt by the meaning she had given to his attitude. Deep down, she blamed herself for being so naive, she who usually didn't trust people so easily. The young woman wondered if she hadn't lacked judgment? The young man seemed likeable and kind to her. Was it really possible to guess this kind of thing just by the impression that a person made on us?

The young woman heaved a sigh of weariness and when she raised her head, she met the gaze of a young man who was standing on the sidewalk opposite. He has white hair, and strange clothes, like rags. His complexion is so pale that you can see his veins through his skin around his eyes and on his forearms. There's something chilling about his gaze, so much so that he pretrides Madeleine. Her heart rate quickens as a child's voice starts screaming straight into her head, "Mom! Dad! Wake up! I'm scared! Don't leave me alone!"

It was a little boy's voice and it resonated directly in the young woman's head. Around her, no one seemed to hear it. Meanwhile, the white-haired young man was still staring at her. A look of guilt, a look that tortured Madeleine without her knowing why. The screeching of the bus wheels startled the dark-haired young woman. The driver asked her if she intended to get in, but Madeleine stammered and then ran off.

She was running aimlessly, tears in her eyes. New images imposed themselves violently in her mind and the cries of the boy still resounded. She felt like her head was going to explode it was hurting her so much! The young woman was in so much pain that she hid in the alley, leaned against a filthy brick wall and tried to calm down while holding her head with both hands. She tried to contain this hurricane which was forming in her, and which threatened to destroy everything in its path.

And then it all stopped. When Madeleine opened her eyes, she was in the main street lined with houses, in a small neighborhood. She didn't know how she had landed here, but the place gave her a strange feeling of deja vu. She walked while observing around her. A total silence hovered. The number of a house she was passing lit up purple. The young woman found it strange, but something in her urged her to enter. So she rang. No one answered. Madeleine therefore pressed the electric bell a second time and a woman's voice answered from inside: "I'm coming! It must be the delivery guy...".

The door opened on a woman in her forties. Her skin was a soft brown, and her dark hair was styled in braided locks, cascading freely over her shoulders. She also wore a small dark purple cardigan over a cornflower blouse. She looked at Madeleine with a bewildered air. The two women then looked at each other without saying anything. Then the youngest was the first to break the ice. She began to cry, whispering: "Mom..."

"Madeleine?" replied the woman in the purple vest "is everything okay?"

"I'm so sorry..." Madeleine said and tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Why are you sorry, sweatheart?" asked the woman in the purple vest in a soft voice.

"Because... I forgot about you and Dad... I didn't know why, but I couldn't remember this place... I just couldn't remember... "