the Missing Memories

Chapter Two

I bolted to the direction of the door on the left side of the room and pulled it open with a little bit more force than needed. The owner of the voices I heard entered the room as I closed the door that I realized is the bathroom.

I secured the lock and leaned my back on the door, catching my breath after a rushed attempt of escape. I'm panicking for the sole reason that I don't trust these people.

I don't know them.

The cold tile against my feet sent chills along my body, adrenaline wearing off. The light is out and everything is behind the shadows. I flicked the switch on that I found on the right side of the wall.

As light flood my senses, the mirror in front of me showing my reflection engulfed me.

A girl with dark brown hair, thick brows accompanying hazel eyes with long dark lashes. A cute nose complemented the thin cracked lips.

A healing bruise on the left cheek and a very small cut on the end of the left eyebrow is what I could make out of this girl. The battered, broken and abused face of a girl stared right back at me.

Slender fingers and split skinned knuckles is what I noticed when I reached out to touch my bruised cheek.

Using my pointer finger, I poked on the tender skin where it is located. My face contorted with pain I didn't expected. I really thought it won't hurt that bad since it started fading but it proved me wrong.

Now, I think I must have broken some bone and not just an external damage is done.

I feel tired. Sore shoulder muscle spiked my painful anatomy inspection. I pulled the oversized shirt and check my shoulders through the mirror.

Red angry scratches that tore some skin welcomed my sight. Patches of red and violet surrounds the area extending from the base of my neck aligning with my shoulder blade with a deep gash to my collar bone.

What exactly happened to me?

Who did this to me? Or moreover, what?

I have a feeling that it's not done by a mere human. These are probably inflicted through the use of claws.

Big claws.

And my knuckles, goodness! They're ---.

My eyes widened when someone knocked on the door. "Hey, girly! Are you in there? Open up." It's the same girl earlier.

I contemplated whether to open the door or make up a silly excuse to find an escape route.

"I'll --". Clearing my throat, I spoke in a loud voice. "I'll just take a shower."

There's only silence from the other side of thr door while I just kept on staring at it. Who knows? They might just try to forcefully break in. As I'm about to get in the shower, a voice so familiar yet so strange spoke.

"Don't think about doing anything stupid. You'll just end up hurting yourself." A voice so dark and his words seems to hold a deeper meaning. Like he's going to punish me if I ever try to escape. And escaping.. isn't supposed to be considered in my position.

So they really want me to just stay here and be a nice little girl? Seriously? Because even if I have no idea who I am, I know that I am far from a nice and obedient girl. They can't keep me here like a prisoner. I want my freedom. Though that voice really gives me chills. It sounded dangerous and a promise of pain.

"We're just worried about you. You are deeply injured and we don't want you to get hurt for moving so much." The voice of the girl is coated with sincerity. I smirked. Do they think I'm that stupid? Yes, she might be different from them but there is something really wrong with this.

If they think I'm badly injured then I should be staying at the hospital right now. Not in a scary mansion with horrendous lighting. Instead of speaking up my mind, I said what a scared nice girl would portray.

"I understand." For better effect, I even spoke in a smaller voice. "I'm sorry if I got you all worried but I just want a shower... Or a bath." I said. Eyeing the bathtub on the corner of my eye.

Footsteps sounded as the girl replied.
"Ok! I'll prepare some clothes for you." She sounded too cheerful for my taste. I grimaced. The diversity of their behavior is actually disturbing.

She seems like a cheerful and a spitfire so how come she get along with that serious and dangerous guy? Well, they might be friends or relatives. Or lovers in which I don't give a damn.

As long as I gain my freedom, I would forget about all of these like a nightmare of the past. After all, it seems that forgetting is probably my forte.

I heaved a sigh and filled the tub with water. I undressed and put some oils and salt on the water to relax my aching muscles. As I sat on the bathtub, my mind started wandering again. Thoughts that bombarded my brain would drive me insane. An asylum won't be a good place to spend my 'freedom'.

I tried to relax. After massaging my temples, I closed my eyes. The water is nice and my body needs rest. The idea of sleep is too hard to resist and I ended up succumbing to the darkness.

Voices...

That's all there is. No face, no image. Just voices.

"You have to face your fate. Running will just make you tired." A voice came from a woman. Surprisingly, she sounded familiar.

"Fighting back would only worsen the conflict. Chaos would erupt and bloods will flood the once golden soil." My heart clenched. This is my voice. This is me, speaking.

A growl caught my attention. "So you'll just leave? Is that what you really want?" Frustration fills his voice. My heart breaking with every word. It hurts. So much to the point that I could just break down and cry.

Too many emotions caught my heart.
"If it's the only way.. I have to sacrifice myself for the lives of others." I can't survive the guilt of people dying for the sake of my happiness. I have to do my duty..

"How could you?!" I gasp with the way he spoke. His voice resonated on the whole place.

"I understand that it is your duty to protect your people. But you also have a duty to me.." He continued.

I choked on a sob. His voice cracked and he's on the verge of crying as he pleads for me to change my decision.

I shake my head. And as he uttered "Please", I woke up from another dream. Or nightmare realizing that I am also crying.

In my dream, I am hurting. As I wake up, I'm still hurting. I pulled my legs to my chest and hug my knees.

Crying to ease the pain..

Why does it hurt this much when it's just a dream?

It's not real..

Or is it??