The silhouette inched closer; its hands up in surrender. Light crept upon the figure. Golden blonde hair fell over its shoulders, and the light shimmered in her golden brown eyes. She wore a nervous smile, unsure if she would be welcomed. Eden. Kimia would recognize her anywhere. Her stomach turned, and her face twisted. For a moment the decade of loneliness disappeared. “Eden?” her voice was soft, hopeful. “Yeah, Kimi. It’s me.” “You were dead. You left and they told me you died.” Saddness and grief seeped into her voice, “you were gone.” “I am here now. I am sorry I had to go, but we can be together now.” Eden stepped closer, closing the space between them. She reached down to Kimi’s clenched fist. Before contact could be made, Kimi pulled her hand away. She took steps back, recreating the distance Eden made all those years ago when she chose to leave. Her face contorted and the static, muffled yelling in her head grew louder. “No…” Kimi shook her head. “No. You left. You left me.” Her voice became urgent, “You said you wouldn’t leave me, but you left.” Her eyes bounced between the space around Eden, as she was unable to make any type of contact with Eden. She felt heat rising in her chest. “You…” her breath became ragged, “you left me.” The realization made the rising heat turn to a flame. “You said you’d be at the checkpoint and- and you weren’t. I was ten, and I was left all alone.” the flame reached the fuse that had been supressing for the last twelve years and every emotion, every moment of emptiness, every choice she made in the past twelve years erupted. “You think after everything, I will just what? Come crawling back to you.” Her shrill laugh sent a chill through Eden. “Oh, what a class act. You expect me to just forget about the past twelve years and be happy with you?” She doubled over from the laughter crawling its way up from her stomach. “That’s gold! You are still that naive, are you? Your’e a fool. No, instead let me show you what I have been doing since you left.” There was no gleam left in her eyes. The dim look in her eyes accentuated the dark circles under them. She pulled the pistol out of it holster and tapped the barrel against her temple. “You know, I heard rumors that you were still alive, Eden. And I looked into them. I did. I looked for you, but I guess you didn’t want to be found, did you? So instead of spending my time searching for a ghost who didn’t want to be found, I decided to take a different venture. Yeah, I can show you.” She spun the gun around her finger and pointed it at Eden and let out two rounds.

Back when we were young he would always b the one to organize the family get-togethers. There halls of their sounding and smelling mansion were now filled with a stench and melancholy silence. I was determined to bring the family back together and re-ignite the spirit of joy within.

(I know this didn't follow the prompt I first wanted to continue the story but I don't have a premium subscription.)

Stay details for part 3 next week.

Charlie has been ignoring me for months, and it’s starting to feel like she’s igniting me. I feel a simmering rage building toward her. Each time I try to be kind to her, I end up with bird poop on my face (metaphorically, of course).

First, I tried to show her the cheerleader bird at the gas station, and she acted like I was insane. Then I wanted her to listen to the laser tag bird, but she didn’t have time to even take off her headphones. Now I hear a chirping bird that reminds me off Charlie talking to a friend. Her tone is so different than when she talks to me. I can’t take it!!!

The words were politely insulting it stirred I feel tense in the stomach dizziness in the head a rumbling noise like a storm brewing I dream off lightning torturous thunder like a hammer blow bubbles rising from beneath my stomach rising surface tension surface boiling hot feeling of of eruption plate of volcano trapped unable to its might roar. And then it finally exploded. It would cause the biggest environmental disaster ever greenhouse effect the world will ever know it would be like a thunderous rule crushing down the mountain ashes and rocks flying around.

This was the day, Jake thought, lighting a cigarette and watching the bank.

It was a regular day, nothing out of the ordinary in Dodge City. Customers going in and out. Deposits, withdrawals.

One bank teller interested him most. Miss Molly Kinkade. She was his girl. Well, had been his girl. Until she dumped him and started seeing that Percival Jones, big important bank President. He had money, Jake didn’t.

He had loved her more than any other girl he’d ever courted. And she just dumped him like trash. As if he was nothing. Well, now he’d show them all.

Taking the cigarette from his mouth, he pressed the hot end of it against the fuse string, and watched as it traveled toward the bank.

But wait - Miss Molly just ran out of the bank door, with Percival in pursuit. Her bodice was torn and hair all undone. She was crying. Percival wrenched her arm.

“Jake would never have treated me this way!” She shouted.

Jake came to his senses and burst out of his hiding place.

“Get out!” He screeched. “The place is about to —“

💥 💥 💥

I opened my eyes, blinking back the blurriness. Shook my head, trying to rid it of the grogginess. I looked at my surroundings. It was a cave. Cold, damp, and mildly dark—mild because lamps were hanging at various points around the shadowed room. It was a small and round cave, as most caves might be. I could even hear the lonely, echoing drips of water, one drop by one drop, as they trickled through crevices. It smelled of moss, and mushrooms, and perfume, and something else. Something acrid. Metallic. The perfume was coming from Darlene, the beautiful blonde in front of me. Her long, lithe figure stood some fifty feet away. She was toying with something in her hand. I noted this vaguely, as cobwebs still clung in my head. "Do you know why you're here?" she asked, her voice soft. I shook my head again, both in answer and trying to shake out the cobwebs. "Hmm?" "You're here," toy, "because you have been," toy "very" toy with the thing in her hand, "bad." She flicked the thing in her hand, and a small flame erupted from its end. A lighter. I blinked, struggling to focus on her. On the lighter in her hand. I tried to stand, but the world, the cave, spun around me. Something was holding me back, restraining my hands behind me. She was going on. "Do you know why you've been very bad?" She held the flame to something at her heeled foot. With a bizarre coolness, I settled down with a contented smile, as I stared at her slim calf. There was another small eruption. She held the flame to a thin wire, and it ignited. Slowly, like a sparkler drawn in the air, it sizzled toward me. She stood and trailed it. "Do you know why you've been bad, John?" Her voice held a manic lilt. Her heels clicked against the stone floor as the fuse hissed closer. Forty feet. I scrambled backward and hit something firm, and hollow, and full, all at the same time. I turned to see what I staggered into and flinched. XXX Barrels. Three wooden barrels with three painted X's. Jesus Christ. Fuck the metaphorical fuse. Darlene had been blasted off her rocker. Thirty feet. "Who's Tiffany, John?" Darlene's voice had taken on a higher pitch. More crazed. "Who. The. Hell. Is Tiffany?" My heart surged faster than the advancing fuse. Faster than the click. Click. Click of her heels. Who was Tiffany? I didn't know. Didn't care. A someone. A no one. A fling. "A freakin' fling," I said aloud. Oops. Twenty feet. Click. Click. Click. "Dar," I said, "you have to believe me. Don't do this. I love you." I tried pushing the barrels back. Shoving the wire aside with my foot. "You think I care, John? You think I fucking care?" She was yelling now. Her voice shrill, and feminine, and insane. Ten feet. My eyes were wide and wild with fear. I could smell sulfur. It smelled a lot like hell. She crouched in front of me, her blonde hair falling over her shoulder. She smiled. That pretty Darlene smile I used to know. I tried to scamper away as she embraced me. She sobbed in my ear. "If I can't have you, John. No one will." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the fuse crawl behind the first barrel, and there was a brief pause. Click. Click. Click. The echo of Darlene's heels reverberated through my head like a ticking time clock—counting down. Fucking Tiffany. I awoke with the explosion. I rolled away from the pretty blonde beside me and checked my phone. There was a text from Darlene. “We need to talk.”

The fuse had been there the whole time. Always there, always watching, waiting. But when it was lit, people ran. They ran because they chose to ignore the fact that the fuse had been there the whole time and was only just now erupting in flames. They ran because they knew they had lit it. A fuse can’t light itself, for even the smallest and most irrelevant sparks can start a wildfire. It was never the fuse’s fault, no matter how much people want to blame it. The fuse had beeen their the whole time, and it was at the fault of the sparks for not seeing it.

Butterflies pounding in my chest — a thumb itching to hit the striker. Eyes locked — falling into an endless captivating pool.

Aches and pain beloved and sought-after sensations tearing my soul asunder with yearning.

Flesh pressed against flesh, lips locked, the fuel bubbling up.

One spark to ignite — fire.

Tick Tock goes the clock Another minute my Alexa displays

Tick Tock my thoughts Go bye just like a millisecond

Tick Tock one minute passed

Tick

Tock

It's eleven o clock

Early to rise dread the sun

Up in the early hours

Yet my brain runs every thought every minute

Tick

Tock

need my sleep

11:15

Still awake

Tick tock

Thoughts keep running

Close my eyes then readjust Peek ones more it's

11:16

Still can't sleep

Early I rise

The snooze button puts up a battle tired body begging me to stay under the warm covers yet my feet hit the ground

Still tired

Need to get up early

Just rambling now sorry

Anyone else can't sleep??

So bloody tired yet I can't sleep -____-

(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞

(´༎ຶٹ༎ຶ`)

Three days had passed since she crawled into that bed. Three days since he’d seen the vibrant light in her eyes. Gray had been bringing food and water to Adie’s side table for the last day and a half when he realized she wasn’t planning to move anytime soon. She’d sipped from the cup and taken tiny bites of the now stale bread before rolling back over and either falling asleep or staring at the wall. Worry was starting to gnaw a hole in his gut. He’d seen the waves of sadness overtake her gaze before and on multiple occasions, but he’d never seen her like this. It was as if she’d fallen into a hole and had given up trying to get out. Sitting in a rickety chair across from her, he gazed at her figure balled up under the thin fabric. He could tell she had her knees up to her chest and knew she was still breathing by the soft rise of her shoulders. Shifting his weight farther back into the chair which made a loud creak, Adie began to stir. She stretched out and rolled onto her back before slowly turning her head towards him, eyes open and blank. Gray shot to his feet and was across the space in an instant. He knelt on the tattered rug beside her bed and gently put his forearms on the bed, hesitant to reach out to touch her. Her hands were still under the blanket and he didn’t want to startle her by grazing her face, no matter how much he wanted to feel the soft skin under his finger tips. Her citrine eyes found his and she blinked. “Hey,” she said quietly. Gray took in her features, which seemed sharper and dull all at once. The lack of food and quality sleep had taken its toll. “Hey,” he responded and took a chance. He reached his out and light ran the back of his fingers down her cheek. He wasn’t sure how she would react, but he wasn’t prepared for the feelings that stirred in his heart as she slowly closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. Taking that as an invitation, he open his hand and placed his entire palm along the side of her face, thumb sweeping across her cheekbone. “Will you tell me where you went?” He whispered. Adie opened her eyes and he realized her bottom lip was quivering. She rolled to her side, but was still facing him. He could tell she had gathered the blanket and brought it up to her chin as high as it would go. Gray started to stroke her mousy brown hair and his heart began to ache at the silence. He didn’t know what was going on with his emotions towards this woman. Even with their history, he wasn’t sure he could take another secret but he also didn’t want to push her. He wanted to respect her boundaries and allow her to talk to him as she needed to. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” he said as he pulled his hand back, crossed his arms and placed his chin on the edge of the mattress. “But if and when you’re ready, I’ll be here to listen.” Adie wiggled on the bed until a hand was free and rested it on his arm. Her hand was a cool weight on his skin. He tensed and his hand fisted in the fabric. Meeting his gaze, Adie let out a long breath. “I want to tell you, but I need you to just listen and not try to fix me.” Gray sat up at that and blurted, “I won’t try to fix you.” “Everyone tries to fix me once they know the truth,” she said and he could her deflate even further. Gray relaxed and realized she was offering up a small kernel of herself that no one had ever accepted before. “You don’t need fixed as there is nothing wrong with you,” he said and placed his hand on top of hers. Adie pulled herself into a sitting position and leaned against the wall. The thin blanket pooled in her lap, revealing her white undershirt with thin straps. Her shoulders hunched, but never moved her hand from under his. She looked towards the wall and took a deep inhale. She began speaking. “I have a curse of the mind.” Gray stiffened. A curse of the mind? He’d heard of people who were plagued by different forms that affected their mental state. He listened to her as she continued. “I’ve had the melancholy variant for the last ten years. It comes and it goes, and I haven’t had an episode this bad in a very long time. The last time was actually after I left you six years ago,” her eyes seemed distant and Gray was worried she’d burrow into the bed again. “It actually runs in my lineage. My great grandmother took her own life when my grandmother was a child. Usually when it hits me, it is for a short period of time and I am back to normal rather quickly. Other times, I have to make a conscious decision to keep moving forward in the day. On more rare occasions, I succumb to its draw and I’m usually bedridden for the gods know how long. “Imagine all of the sadness you’ve ever felt in your lifetime sitting in your chest all at once. Some days I wish I could die and others, I wish I could just disappear. If I voiced the thoughts that sometimes flit through my mind…” She trailed off as she shook her head. Gray had tightened his fingers around her hand and hadn’t even realized it. He stared at her beautiful face for probably a moment longer than he should have before clearing his throat and asked, “Is there a cure? Or some sort of enchantment out there to help?” “Imagine a fuse being lit, a really long fuse but you aren’t quite sure when it’s going to entirely detonate. The thoughts are always there, but they gradually get stronger and darker but you never know when it’s going to hit. It’s extremely exhausting. I sometimes see a mind healer who casts a small spell to keep the thoughts at bay, but it doesn’t work every time and can sometimes affect my own magic. Think of it as…a negative reaction. Other than that, it’s sheer willpower for me to keep going.” Adie turned towards Gray, tears welling in her eyes and her voice quivered as she said, “It is the worst feeling in the universe to feel this way, to feel as if there is no happiness left in your soul. When it feels like there is nothing worth living for or that everyone would be happier if you left, yourself included. Thinking there might be a better life out there for you if you turned your back on everything. There is nothing that feels as low as that.” Gray’s chest tightened at seeing the tears run down her face and his curiosity got the best of him and he asked, “How did you come back this time?” She tipped her head to the side and gave him a small smile, “Do you really want to know the answer to that? You might not know what to do with it,” He smiled back at her and said, “Try me.” Adie’s smile faded and her eyes became golden moons as she realized he called her bluff. He saw her determination set in, eyes now burning and leaned forward before whispering, “It was you, Gray. You were the one who pulled me back.” Gray was shocked, but something in him was set ablaze and he pounced before he could stop himself. Jumping onto the bed, he wrapped his arms around her. He felt her stiffen for a moment, but then she seemed to melt. Her usually strong arms wrapped around his middle and she nuzzled her face into his neck. Gray felt as if he was shaking when he realized it was actually Adie sobbing. Full-on chest sobs racked her body and she gripped the back of his shirt with both hands. He tightened his arms just a little bit more around her, leaned his head down towards hers and quietly said, “Thank for telling me. I will keep it close to my heart. Whatever you need from me, just tell me. Just promise that you’ll come back to me somehow.” Adie’s sobs subsided and she sniffled as she pulled back to look at him, whispering, “I’ll do my best.” She leaned forward into Gray once more, but her grip on his clothing had lightened. He began to stroke her hair and they sat on the simple matter until the sun set.