CHAPTER FIFTEEN

What happens when a phase goes awry and becomes your daily life? What happens when the darkness prevails, and doesn't fade? You do what you have to, you keep moving, creating art as the expression of your life. When life beats you down, just do one thing. Create art, even out of depression.

Victor Mairo

  More often than most, I ask myself questions that seem as though I'm insane or just an attention seeker. Which, truthfully, is a lie. In my own perspective that is. Don't mind my ramblings, you'd understand soon enough.

   "So, do I go in?" I asked Brianna with trepidation in my voice. Now that I was here, I was scared of what I'd discover, of the secrets I'd unearth. I took a deep breath and tried steadying my voice. I could hear a slight tremble in my voice so I quickly cleared my throat and masked it. I didn't want Brianna to sense my feelings, as she was prone to do. She smiled slightly, and we walked in together. 

   

   Trying to describe this place would be like trying to put to words, the beauty of unparalleled beauty in the vastness of space. It's a beauty that rids you of breath, a beauty that is timeless. It was nature, at its best. 

  "So what do you think?" Brianna said basking in the expression on my face. She was watching me like an intricate puzzle, a look of fascination on her face. It seemed as though she was studying me, trying to figure me out. I only noticed for split second but that was enough for me. 

  "I didn't expect this I guess.." I said trying to wrap my head around it. "I expected... Something else." I said trying to phrase the right words. 

  "Rids you of speech doesn't it?" She said taking in the scenery once more. She had a content look about her, this, was her home. 

  I turned again, and truth is, I'd try to describe it, even if my words fall short. 

    There was an unearthly feel about it, the vastness of the skies ridding me of breath. It was like the whole of space, compressed in one room. With the stars complete. All around me, was pure, unbridled, nature. It was, a sky full of stars, the orderliness of nature, a beauty to behold. When I first envisioned this place, I came short of expectation. It was huge, I was delirious just staring at the whole place. I was stepping on pure grass, looking so smooth, I was tempted to remove my shoes to feel it with my own two feet.

  "Sure, remove your shoe, socks too" Brianna said promptly doing that. So, I did same. My feet sank into the grass, like a massage of sorts. It felt so good. 

   "Wait.. Where's everyone?" I asked suspiciously, seeing as not one person was in sight. 

   

   "That's the best part," Brianna squealed like a little kid just handed a toy for the first time. 

   "Move a little," she said pushing me forward without a warning. I was pissed off at first, but then I noticed what she was doing. She stepped forward, twirled in the air, twice, landed and took a bow. Before I could ask, exactly what the joke was, the very ground we stood on began to shake as though everything would fall apart. Then, the ground we stood on, just that patch of grass remained. 

   Then, I saw the waters, the waterfall, cascading all around us. Like, the earth rising from the ground, pieces of the place we were just standing on emerged. All around us, green patches were materializing like a jigsaw puzzle. 

  "What exactly is this place?" I turned towards Brianna, a look of incredulity on my face. She laughed gaily, her laughter was so carefree, it was like a different kind of music. 

  "This Dean, is paradise," She said jumping on the nearest patch that emerged. I kept waiting for her to fall or something, but it held her weight. This was all so surreal to me but I took it in stride. I would definitely not be the uncivilized one here. Without a second thought, I jumped after her. Before I could congratulate myself, she was already four steps ahead. 

  "What the... How in God's name did you move that fast?" I asked slightly irritated, yet fascinated. I jumped three more, and it seemed easy. 

  "Pfft, easy peasy," I said jumping on a patch of grass. "What exactly is this thing anyway? Does it have a science to it? Does it have a mechanism for it?" I asked, lost in my own thoughts. I didn't see it flicker, or hear when Brianna told me to jump. I was literally in my head. Then, I fell. 

   "Dean!!!!!!" I heard Brianna scream. From what I could make out, the patch of grass I was on just flickered in and out of existence. Before I could get a hold of myself, I was falling, really fast. I screamed  to nobody in particular... Then, I saw her. 

  Her hair flying around her, a tornado of sorts round about her. She was screaming incoherent words I could not really decipher. Is that.. Brianna? And is she harnessing that.. That thing? The tornado? What exactly... I was confused, trying to understand what I was seeing. Then, I hit my head, and blacked out. 

LIFE IN EDEN 

I woke up with the mother of all headaches, and I saw myself in a room, a candle was the only light I could see. I looked at my surroundings, took a look at myself and wondered where in God's name I was. I propped myself to a sitting position, when I discovered that, the whole of my body hurts. Hurts like I was hit by two trains going at full speed, then later hit again by a very angry grizzly bear. I felt pain all over. It was a miracle I was able to sit. I took a calming breath and assessed my situation. I tried to think back, on what exactly happened, but I came up with nothing. My memories were blank. Nothing, there was nothing in my mind. I just knew one thing, I was on a bed, in a strange place. Then wondered where exactly I got the pains all over my body from. As I was trying to wrap my head around it, a girl, with the prettiest face literally rushed in, concern written all over her face. My mind was already running awry. Do you mean that.. Wait.. Am I involved with her in any way? That'd be so amazing. If only I could remember I mused, downcast yet feeling great because, which guy wouldn't want a beautiful girl to visit him? 

  "Oh thank God you're awake. I was sooooo worried. What were you thinking Dean, jumping like that. What were you thinking? You scared me so so bad. Don't ever do that again. Please don't.. Please" She said hugging herself, blaming me for God knows what. One thing I knew for sure though, my name is Dean. That's good enough for now at least. 

  Even though it hurts me to do this, seeing the joy on her face, I just had to. 

   "I uh, I'm sorry, but I don't know who you are." I said with as much calmness as I could muster. 

  She looked at me blankly, all emotions erased from her face. Then, as though it just dawned on her, moved two place backwards. She peered into my eyes intently as though searching for the lies I was telling. I had no idea how I knew, but I knew that's exactly what she was doing. After a while, she moved closer and cradled my face like a baby's. 

  "Ouch, ouch, ouch. That hurts. That hurts." I said as soon as her fingers touched my face. She withdrew as though bitten by a snake, but I held her hand before she dropped it. My body was screaming in protest, because of the pain but I didn't want her to feel like I didn't know, or understand what she was going through. 

  She smiled at me, her eyes looking sad and forlorn. I had to distract her one way or another, so I asked the obvious question. 

  "What happened? Why do I feel so much pain? I asked inching a bit forward. My neck felt like it was on fire, so I rested fully on the bed and tried to catch my breath. I breathed in, and out, a few times and felt a little bit better. 

  After watching me from a safe distance, she replied, "You fell from the stairs when you were running. Even though I tried to hold you, you fell and when I saw blood, I immediately raised alarm and rushed you here." She said after a minute or two of the awkward silence, just the sound of my breathing destroying the ultimate silence of the room. 

" So, tell me about my family." I ask for lack of a topic to talk about. I really do not have any idea what any of this is. But I'd flow if that's what is required. 

  

  "Hmmm. Your family..." She said with a sigh. Her shoulders slumped, as though in a defeated stance. 

   "It's time to meet your family. They'll be here soon." she said smiling though keeping her distance. I had a feeling she was scared of me or, scared for me. Definitely the latter. 

   "On a second thought, you didn't tell me your name. I'm sorry I didn't ask, was so preoccupied. So, what's your name?" I asked staring at the ceiling. It hurt to move my head so I just stared straight ahead. 

  "I'm Bri. And... I'm your betrothed." she said enunciating each word.

  

  "Betrothed? Does that mean what I think it means? I asked curiosity eating me up. 

" Yes, it does. Yes Dean. I'm your future wife."