Stories Weave From The Bruises Of Imagination

The Kindly Offer 🪞

Warning caution: mentions of blood, self-harm, and death.

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A girl is sitting idly under the cacophony of wild leaves from an untamed undergrowth of a plant. Pinching on each stem of small grasses near her, plucking each their heads.
She had heard of another ugly truth about her. It is true, for that was what she always do yet it is not really reassuring the roots of places the truth had grasp upon. It is prickling her skin especially her ears whom heard the very words spoken while she was half-asleep.

The wind's been rustling and tossing each leaves and thin branches for some time while the girl was in an awful daze of the repeated words in her mind. She sighs in melancholy and hope for death or for something that punishes her. Unaware she was, a stranger has been observing her for a couple minutes now. It was on its daily hunt for food when it found out its roaming place was occupied by a human. As it roll its belly towards her, the girl notices its presence, was startled and run a few meters away.

The snake hisses and spoke,"Why do you run? I am only half of your arm and my body is as thin as that fallen stick in which your rushing feet has cloven into halves."

The girl did not talk back as she was still startled and having a slow reaction to collect her wits, she stood there watching the snake. She's always been feeble and weak-minded at existing.

When the snake did not get any respond, he turn around and decided to go someplace else to look for nourishment in his hunger, when suddenly the girl said (almost shouted),"Wait!"
The snake look back and crawl its way to a nearest log as it faces the girl. She, plucking up her courage, walk forward near the log and asked, "You can talk very well. Can you help me in my state?"

The snake, quite offended about what 'talking very well' meant, hiss and says," Of course I can talk. It has been learn by everyone from his great fathers and mothers whom came before them. You yourself is talking quite greatly for yourself."

"Oh I didn't mean my words to offend you in any way," apologizes the girl,"it's just that. . . .what I mean is can you help me? For suddenly you came when I thought of hope. You must've come this way for a reason."

The snake had not been ask of help in his lifetime so he was curious,"What kind of help shall I give? I am no hope for any of those I came across with."

"I do not know "answered the girl, contemplating,"anything that can punish my ears for hearing things, perhaps."

The snake whose mind was still on his hunger for being slowed down to his hunt, suggested,"Perhaps, I can bite and gnaw it for you."
Quite aware of himself after hearing his own voice, the snake regretted the words he spoke of. For it sounded quite cruel so he thought of taking it back when the girl surprisingly agrees,"That might be a kind offer, for I have no use of it. And all I hear are mostly ugly words and ugly news from my kind."

The snake, doubtful at this situation, said,"Are you quite sure you know what you're deciding?"

The girl thought deeply as she sat down among the dried fallen leaves. She blankly stared and thought of many sounds for a long time, sounds she won't hear anymore. The song of birds, the flapping of leaves, the creaking of branches; all these things forgotten. Despite that thought, she agreed at the snake and let her ears depart from their flesh places.

The snake crawled at her arm and she shivered at the touch of its scale.

"It is not the usual agreement one can have with another. A cruel offer it has sounded after I spoke of it but it is your own ears and therefore your own judgement for you to decide. Will you not regret if I'll take it away? Will you not feel distraught? Isolated to all sounds?"