Black

IX

I shook my head.

No, no, no, she is here. She is safe.

"Zoella, " I shouted. Nothing.

"Zoe babe, " I said as I limped to the bedroom's bathroom. Empty.

"Zoella, where are you?" I screamed and ran out of the bathroom, holding my hip. But, before I could go anywhere, I saw a small figure enter the room with a dog beside her.

It was her. She was standing in front of me, looking fine.

"Bebe?" she yawned and rubbed her eyes with her tiny hands. "Why you scream?" she asked me.

My eyes traveled to every inch of her body for two reasons: make sure she was completely fine and to comfort myself that I didn't lose one more person.

I didn't know if it was pain or relief that kept me in place this time, "Where were you?" I managed to ask her.

"Kitchen. I wanted water," she said as she pointed downstairs as to prove her point. "I saw you run, but you no see me."

"Yeah. Yeah, I didn't," I whispered and walked to her, falling on my knees and opening my arms for her. She walked into my embrace and I hugged her, taking in her scent, the only scent that still reminded me of home and safety.

My eyes watered. I shook my head, I wasn't going to cry. I had promised myself that I would stop doing that.

I hugged her tighter, "I'm sorry," I whispered in her ears. "I'm so sorry."

She kissed my neck in return, dozing back to sleep on my shoulder. I carried her back to bed and laid her there carefully before lying beside her and pulling her towards me. She curled into a ball, moving even closer to me.

I breathed and watched her as she drifted back to sleep. She was okay, she was still in my arms.

And he is still out there, my conscious remarked. He is closer to you and your sister more than you have ever thought.

Trying to stop the racing thoughts in my mind wasn't as difficult as it is always had been because I didn't even have enough energy to think. Black spots started filling up my vision and I finally gave into the darkness, fading into nothingness, escaping reality and falling into the hands of nightmares.

~

"Look at my drawing." Zoe shoved a paper in front of my face.

It's been five days ever since that night.

It had been three days ever since the school week started and we hadn't attended a single day. I couldn't leave the house. Every time I urged myself that it was no use locking ourselves in the house, and that I obviously wasn't going to keep us cooped in here forever, I hesitate and remember what had happened before and decide to just stay in the house.

I still couldn't get over or even process what happened that night. I couldn't wrap my head around it.

Maybe I imagined it all. Maybe he wasn't there.