3- "Beginning of the curse."
1644 Words
(Emma’s POV)
The last thing I heard before my body hit the bloody end was Brandon’s horrified cries while he was screaming my name.
My helpless body as I hit the ground felt was comparable to a crumpled paper. Blood dripped from the back of my head. And it only meant one thing—it was finally over. This was the end of it. As I closed my eyes, I knew that I never had to go through the same amount of pain and suffering ever again…
“Emma!!!” I still heard Brandon’s screaming atop the cliff, losing his sanity.
It was as if he could, he wanted to just jump too and follow me. But his friends by his side, holding his arms tightly, were stopping him from doing so.
I smiled in both sorrow and joy. Sorrow because it was a tragic end for me, and at the same time, joy because finally, all the pain would go away, and I didn’t have to endure it any longer.
If I ever see Brandon again in another life, I would like to keep my promise—no room for forgiveness for him, and that he had to go through double the pain I had felt when he used and betrayed me for his own gain.
Waiting for my breath to cut so I could say goodbye to the world forever, I suddenly felt a soft hand gently caressing my cheek. Curious, I opened my eyes and looked at who it was. I didn’t know her. She seemed an elderly, mysterious woman who was completely unfamiliar to me…
If she were a fairy godmother or a witch, I didn’t know for sure. But the hint of a grin on her lips was the one thing I noticed…
“Emma… Oh, my poor Emma…” she said in a low, almost swaying voice.
“W-who are you?” I still got to ask in the midst of me spitting my own blood.
“I’m the Witch of the Never-ending Pain…”
My forehead just furrowed in confusion. What was she saying?
“How did you know me?”
“Let’s just say that I have discovered you from the intense madness and hatred you have in your heart after you’ve been betrayed by the very man you once loved truly. And thus, your anger leads to a ferocious desire to get back to that person. You are thirsty for revenge. You wish nothing but to get even and make that man feel double the pain he had made you feel…”
I was already feeling so helpless and weak, so I could no longer comprehend deeper what she was saying…
“I have a proposition for you, Emma. I can help you get back to that person and make him pay triple the price of what he owes you,” she offered.
“How? What proposition?”
“After you die today, you are going to go back to life, Emma. However, my greatest condition is that you’re restricted from falling in love and being happy again. You will only be allowed to be alive again because it’s solely for your revenge. Forever, you will live with seething loathing, and there will be no room in your heart to love and be happy. Do you get what I’m saying, Emma?”
I wasn’t sure if I should believe her or what, or maybe she was just intoxicated?
What power did she have so she could decide if a person would stay alive or not? Was she some sort of a goddess? Or was she just a purely crazy woman?
“You want to avenge your father, who had been killed by your ex-lover, don’t you? I’ll help you get his retribution, Emma. You just have to agree to my terms.”
My dear father… If this way were a true way I could take revenge for what Brandon did to him, then yes, I would be willing to do it…
“Time is ticking… You've got to decide now, Emma.”
I stared at her. She was standing beside my fallen body. She was smiling confidently as if she was sure I was thinking about and considering accepting her proposition.
“When you finally have your answer, just hold my hand, Emma. And I’ll take such a gesture that you agree to my proposition.”
She offered me her hand. Still confused and unsure, I slowly raised my hand and accepted hers that was waiting for mine. I didn’t know what was waiting ahead, but if she really meant to help me get my revenge, I would be willing to do what it takes.
Holding my hand firmly, she smiled in her most sinister way ever. “Great, Emma. Great choice.”
In an instant, everything washed away like a flash. The next thing I knew, I felt like my body had fallen out of the bed while I was in the midst of my sleep!
“Lucy? You’re dreaming, Lucy! Wake up now, my child.”
I heard my mom tapping my shoulder and heard her concerned voice, making me open my eyes.
“Mom!” I said like a little girl and hugged her.
Good thing I was home and inside my room!
She comforted me by patting my back. “It’s alright. You were just dreaming.”
When pulled out from the hug, I felt some sort of unexplainable heaviness in my chest…
“Are you okay? What did you dream about?”
I nodded. “I’m okay, mom. But I don’t remember anything about the dream I had.”
“Oh. But are you still feeling sick?”
“I don’t know, mom. I just feel like my heart suddenly feels a bit heavier. I can’t explain it. It seems hard to tell it.”
“It’s maybe because you’ve been sleeping for a bit too long now, since you began to feel unwell the past few days.”
I agreed. Perhaps she had a point. Maybe it was because my body was lacking physical exercise, and thus, this made a heave in my chest. I was sick and had been staying in my bed for quite some time, and all I did was rest and sleep all day and all night.
“Anyway, Emma, did you take your medicine tablets more than the supposed dose recommended by the doctor? I saw the pills strewn on the table and the floor, and I noticed they were no longer half a bottle, which I remembered was still full when I bought it from the drugstore a few days ago, when you started feeling sick. Did you consume a lot of it at once?” Mom asked in a very concerned voice.
I tried recalling, but my memory was not serving me.
“I couldn’t remember, but I think I didn’t take more than the supposed dose, mom.”
She nodded and didn’t doubt me. “Alright.”
“I feel a lot better now, so I want to go back to work already and be productive.”
“Are you sure, hija?”
I nodded.
She smiled. “It’s up to you. Just don’t forget to take good care of your body and health, and don’t overwork yet, okay?”
I smiled, too. “Okay, mom.”
She left my room, and I went to the bathroom to freshen up. After taking a warm bath, I checked my phone and saw a sweet morning text from my beloved boyfriend, Theo.
“Good morning, hon. Still feeling unwell? I miss you…”
I replied, “I miss you, too, hon. I’m feeling so much better now, and in fact, I’m on my way to going back to work.”
“That’s great. But anyway, you don’t have to be too hard on yourself yet, okay? You must still let your body fully recover.”
I smiled dearly. This was one of the things I loved about him—caring so much about me.
“Yes, hon. I don’t forget that, so no worries!”
“Just don’t exhaust yourself by overworking.”
“Yes, rest assured. Talk to you later!”
Before I went straight to the building where my office was, I didn’t forget to stop by my favorite convenience store to buy some of my favorite go-to snacks.
I was waiting for the change of my bill at the checkout counter when suddenly, I felt as if somebody somewhere was looking at me…
Instinctively, I searched around to find it, and there, at the beverage section, a stranger was standing while he was staring at me, and he seemed to be lost in his thoughts, whatever they were, only he knew about.
He was holding a can of soda. His facial expression seemed to be mixed with surprise, melancholy, and other emotions; only he himself could tell what they were.
We stared at each other. Wait, did I meet him somewhere before? Did I know him? I knew for sure that it was the first time I had seen a face like his, but there seemed to be a part of me telling me that I had known this man for a long time. I didn’t know. I wasn’t sure. Something about his eyes made me think we were somehow connected, but it was so hard to explain!
Connected? In what way?
I shook my head and my thoughts away. I was sure I didn’t know him!
I looked at him thoroughly. Thick brows, well-pointed nose, chiseled jaw, tanned skin, and damn, the tall height! Wearing black jeans, a white shirt, and rubber shoes. What was more stunning about him was his great posture, like screaming how sure he was of himself, taking so much pride. Hmm, manly enough…
- Writer
