IVORY | CARL GRIMES |
"you don't know what to believe anymore, do you? your whole life, after this, this thing has overtaken the world, you've been desperately attempting to find some sort of peace with what has happened, but you haven't, and it sca...
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sleep evaded saskia.
she was restlessly coming up for air, fighting the merciless sea. the light dribbled into the deep blue, cascading across the assortment of ripples painting the surface. with a hand outstretched, saskia could not quite pull herself above the weight. the basic instinct of survival was disintegrating as her mind grew hazy. waves crashed over her head and the bubbles clouded her vision.
a groan escaped her lips as she turned in her bed, jarring the pillow beneath her spinning head. beth laid motionless a few feet away, covers pulled up to her chin with innocence painting her features. saskia could not imagine such peace—even her dreams bringing her no such luck.
saskia bit the corner of her lip inside her mouth, eyes rolling to lock on the continuous cycle of the white ceiling fan. letting her attention fall away with each completion, saskia grew dizzy with emotion. her stomach lurched and the ever present, unsettling feeling brewing in the pit of her stomach killed further attempts at the solace found only in sleep.
trying in vain to avoid the clamorous creaking of her bed, saskia cringed as her feet hit the coarse carpet. choosing to entertain the assailants that were the thoughts entering her mind when the moon hung in the sky instead of accepting another sleepless night. saskia ventured forward. her footsteps were methodical, avoiding the spots littered with rickety floorboards in order to successfully evade beth's potential consciousness.
saskia only had to pull slightly on the wardrobe's worn handle for it to swing open in the dead of night. the mahogany wood was cool to the touch, edging saskia to run her hand along it as she fumbled through the dark for her coat. unlike bright-eyed young lucy of childhood tales, saskia discovered not a single snowflake or promise of royalty as her fingers slipped across the back of the wood.
soon, a jacket wound its way into her hands and then up her arms lined with goosebumps. with the material encasing her heart ridden up the sleeve, saskia spared one last glance towards beth before closing the wardrobe while fixing the collar. she paused, however, to witness the dust's rise. it floated calmly back towards the floor with little to admit it had ever even been there to begin with.
the night's air was apparent as saskia breathed out with a small cough emitted from the cold. her cheeks blushed red as the wind nipped at her skin. saskia's steps had led her unconsciously to a house she had strategically avoided the day prior.
a sigh trickled through her lips as she shook her head, unable to push the memory out of her head. despite her confidence in her words earlier, the guilt creeping into her system had begun to eat away at her and swallow her whole. saskia's fears had manifested before her eyes, in the form of a sheriff's hat. she was catching feelings and subconsciously holding on tight.
her foot slipped from the nodule in the tree during her first try. the pieces of bark that hung haphazardly off of the tree scraped her hands in a familiar way that pushed youthful late night escapades through the woods behind her house to the forefront of her mind. advancing upon her leading step once more, saskia continued on her task.
