Chapter 2

"That was a great movie." Jade said while coming out of the theater along with her friends.

"I like it too." Emma added.

"Not a fan of vehicles, so I pass the 'me too' here." She waved her hand in the air.

"We didn't force you to come." Jade shrugged her shoulders.

"Excuse me?" Lily turned to face Jade. "You dragged me here by pre-booking the tickets without even asking me." She turned Jade to meet her eyes.

"Ok ok fine." Jade chuckled. "You know what I liked most about the movie, though it has a name '5 minute car crash' they also have bikes in the race." She clapped her hands in excitement.

"Hold your horses, Miss bike lover." Emma said.

"I can't, when it's a bike instead of a horse." Jade looked at her. 

Emma scoffed a laugh at her words. She then asked. "Where is your bike?"

"In the garage. Father locked the garage to ground me." Jade responded.

"Then how did you come?" Lily asked.

"I broke out of the window." Jade said nonchalantly.

"Are you serious? You live on the second floor." Lily said.

"I know." Jade said.

"You might die!" Lily exclaimed.

"Might and might not." Jade pointed with her finger 

"Don't you love your life?" Emma asked in a serious tone.

"I have no love in my life." Jade responded. 

"You have a father, why don't you listen to him?" Emma asked.

"He likes money and he wants me to be a machine that makes money." Jade said. "Just like him." She then added slowly.

"Because of your father's money you have your bike." Lily said.

Jade was quiet for a moment. She then opened her mouth. "Maybe if I had a father, I wouldn't need a bike."

"Look, your father gave you everything you want and need. At Least be grateful for that." Emma said.

"You are right. If I try, I can give him less, but less loneliness too. He gave me more with more loneliness." Jade said.

"What do you want then?" Lily asked.

"I don't want a pool full of gold. I am happy with the castle built with sand and made by love." Jade said.

Her words cause silence for a couple of minutes.

Jade glanced at Emma then at Lily. She then patted her hands on their back. "C'mon, why are you people quiet now." She said.

They gave a warm smile in response to her.

"What are you doing in the evening?" Jade asked both of them.

"I have my assignment to write." Emma said, raising her hands in defense, clearly expressing; she cannot join her anymore.

"What about you, Lily?" Jade turned to face her.

"I'm visiting my aunt with my mother." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Ok then. Let's have lunch and part our ways." Jade said.

It was 3:30 pm and they didn't have lunch yet. Going to a nearby restaurant, they order food. With some talk and laughter, it took an hour for them to finish their food. At 4:30 they came out of the restaurant. First, Emma left them. Tomorrow is the submission date and she was already late. After some time, Lily said her goodbye.

Waving bye at Lily, Jade gave a warm smile. Fetching out her mobile, she looked at the time. It was 5 to five. She was thinking, when is her father going to leave for the party and what will she do the whole evening. 

While thinking, she wandered her eyes for a sweet shop. Having a sweet tooth, she always wants something sweet after every meal.

She walked some distance and saw a van, in which an old lady was selling churros. With a content smile, she went to buy some.

"How much for 2?" Jade asked.

"4 cents." The old lady said.

"2 dipped in chocolate." Jade ordered.

The lady gave a nod and handed her 2 churro sticks dipped in chocolate.

With a nod, jade took it and handed her the money.

To pass the time further, she decided to go to a gamezone and have a game of bowling.

On the way, she finished her one churro. When she reached, she narrowed her eyes at the door of the place which displayed the sign 'Under repair.'

"Why today!" She exhaled a breath in disdain.

She then looked around for some other place and realized it was getting dark. The sun was setting in the horizon, turning the sky into the shades of pink and orange.

"How slow the time is passing." Jade murmured and took a bite of churros.

In search of another game zone, she randomly walked in the lane while kicking the pebble on her way. There was a sudden pause in her walk, when she heard some distant voice. Halting her form completely, she was concentrating on the voice. The voice sounded like some kind of growl or scream. Closing her eyes, she was figuring out the source of the sound. She then opened her eyes and took a step towards it. The voice intrigued her. It felt like someone or something was in pain. She couldn't understand whether it was a human or something else. Whatever it was, the cry was clearly conveying the pain.

Jade took a right turn into another lane. There were no streetlights on yet. The setting rays of sun was not enough to lighten the lane. Big building around the lane was the source of darkness.

"Hello." Jade said, going inside the lane.

The lane doesn't look narrow. It was wide and long. She went in further.

The sound of growl increased as she walked in further.

"Go away." A voice spoke. The voice sounded hoarse and breathy.

"I can help you." Jade said in a calm voice.

"Just leave." The voice spoke back in the same manner. 

She then realizes the temperature in the lane bagan to increase.

'Why is it getting hot?' She thought, looking around in the lane. 

"Are you in pain?" Jade spoke again. 

This time, the voice didn't respond. Instead the temperature of the lane began to increase more. Sweat began to roll down her temples and back. Removing her jacket, she looked around for any lighted fire. Wiping her forehead with the back of her hand, she blinked a couple of times.

A sudden whoosh sound alerted her. She looked back through her shoulder.

"Who's there?" She asked.

Clearing her throat, she gulped hard and waited for the response. When she didn't get any, she decided to leave. The temperature was becoming unbearable. If she stands here for a minute more, she might drown herself in sweat. Looking to her right, she found another narrow lane, adjacent to this. The end of the narrow lane was lit by street lights. She rushed in the lane and paced up her walk to leave.

Her breaths turned heavy by the heat. Long and fast steps were raising her heartbeat further. As she reached the end, her walk turned into a run. The moment she came out of the lane, a car beeped at her. The car took an abrupt stop, so did she. She shielded her eyes with her arm as the headlights of the car were blinding her in the dark.

A similar voice then contacted her ears. Removing her hand, she widened her eyes.