Serenity to Souls

Who are you

I felt cold. I didn't understand why. It bit at my toes, shaking my torso. My teeth began chattering uncontrollably. Yet, that was all I seemed to have felt. I felt nothing else. No joy. No pain. No nothing.

I...can't remember anything...

What happened?

Why is it so cold..?

What's going on?

Why?

Suddenly, a strange warmth conquered my body. A dull sound of shuffling rang in my ears. Pondering, I eagerly lifted my head to look around me.

But my vision was blurred. My head was stuck to the comfort of my bed too. Instead of investigating, I succumbed to a peaceful slumber.

...

There was that ringing again. It was that rage-inducing alarm clock. With a groan, I lazily drove my hands to the snooze button, unwillingly forcing myself up.

Glancing down at my legs, I regarded them with a look of suspicion. They were covered with a blanket, the very same one I recalled hurling off the bed. How could it possibly have gotten on my body?

I inspected the whole room, sitting on the bed. I rubbed my eyes, staring at the table in profound confusion. On it lay my bag, the very one I recalled dropping on the floor near the entrance. How on Earth did it perch itself on the table?

Boosting myself out of bed, I observed myself in the mirror. I donned the exact same sweater and skirt I had worn to yesterday's activities. That didn't matter right now. The dorm was awfully quiet.

A little too quiet.

Where was Luke?

"Luke!" I called, mentally cursing myself for already forgiving him for his accusations yesterday. I called again. And again. But there was no answer.

"Quit the sick prank, Luke! Come out already!"

Yet, there was silence. Had he gone out with his friends again? Perhaps so.

However, my eyes detected an unusual flash of white on my nightstand. How did I miss that? It was a small piece of folded paper. As I opened it, a foreign, feverish flash pierced me. He had to go visit his family. I had totally forgotten about that.

I couldn't comprehend what had happened next. As all the energy evaporated from my soul, I collapsed on the bed. My eyes grew half-shut. I couldn't move, no matter how hard I tried. I thought it was a fever, but the thermometer said otherwise. My brain was arguing with my heart, and it was like my immune system was working hard to break them up. 

Hours crawled and creeped by. I hadn't eaten anything at all. I didn't feel like it.

I lazily shifted my eyes towards the windows. Darkness. I had laid until - probably - the middle of the night. 

...

My phone rang. I jumped. It's been long since I received a call from someone. I shot my hand to the nightstand to secure my device. An unknown number.

Furrowing my eyebrows, I pondered. Who would call me at this time at night? I picked up the phone.

"Oh my god, hi! It's been so very long since we talked to each other!" said the electronic voice.

They must have gotten the wrong number. I proceeded to cut the call.

"Uh, Danielle?" came the voice.

I jolted upright from bed. Whoever they were, they knew my name.

"Who are you?" I answered, accusingly.

"It's your best friend from high-school, Lilian! Do you remember me?"

Gradually, my eyes brightened in recognition. 

It couldn't be. 

I refused to believe it.

Vivid imagery haunted my brain. Could she really be...one of my long-lost friends?

She kept talking, commenting about my changed voice and interrogating me on my college life. I simply blurted random responses, paying more attention to the billions of feelings flooding my head. Unknowingly, I had regained my energy, and for the first time since forever, my heart began to warm.

A little bit.

Out of nostalgia, a lump formed at the back of my throat. I swallowed hard, crushing that fuzzy feeling rising in my chest. 

"So, why did you call me all of a sudden, at this time of the night?" I asked, intrigued.

"Right! I nearly forgot to tell you!" she began. "Do you remember Sophie and Scarlett?"

I sharply inhaled. Myriads of memories came rushing back as I finally mentally distinguished the faces of my three treasured friends from those days. My heart began beating quicker, pumping warmth around my body. It felt as if the ice in my body had finally been thawed.

Astonished, I mumbled in response.

"We're going out to an island for vacation, since it's summer holidays. We want you to come with us."

A pang of unusual joy crashed into me. Before I could answer, Lilian spoke.

"If you say no, I will personally make sure I come over to your place and drag you with us." she informed, teasingly yet firmly. I had always admired her will.

"It doesn't look like I have a choice, do I?" I muttered, vying to taste her response.

Her voice went high with bliss. "It's decided then! Oh wow! I can't believe I'm finally going to see all of you after an eternity!"

After talking with her for a while, I grew skeptical of something.

"Lilian?"

"Yeah?"

"How did you get my phone number?"

To my interest, I heard a series of giggles from the other side of the phone.

"Oh, Danielle. I have my ways."

Although I didn't quite get it, I dismissed the topic. For the next few minutes we discussed about the plans for our get-together.

It was going to take up quite a bit of money, but I didn't mind one bit. After all, I had saved up quite a lot from my part-time job. It paid really well.

So, it was fixed.

After a little more small talk, Lilian let out a gasp.

"Gosh, would you just look at the time! It's so late!"

I checked the time. It was 1:30. That's it?

"That's late?" I thought out loud, but then stopped short. I could feel Lilian's concern flowing out in heaps.

"Danielle, how late do you sleep?"

"Uh..."

"Tell me."

"I sleep at 3."

"What's wrong with you? Is something wrong? Are they giving you too much projects that you stay up so late to do them? Have you gotten used to this? Have you-"

"Lilian! I'm fine. I can take care of myself, you know?"

She answered sarcastically, "If you say so."

After we said our share of goodbyes, the call ended.

...

This holiday is going to be...interesting.