Orange Tree

It's already passed 10pm when she walk along the narrow street to go home from somewhere. While she's walking on the side walk, she suddenly passed on a strange nearby abandoned building near the rainforest not too far from where she is. She stopped from walking when she notice that there was something different on the sky, she didn't know if she was just hallucinating or she just saw a light from it. But in a moment of realization, there was really a light on the sky that opened which she can't bear to stare. It's so painful in the eyes and it's really glamorous. A moment later, the light was vanished and there was a faint cry. The cry bacame louder until she notice that it was a voice of a man. A man who obviously suffering from the most painful thing. She composed herself from what she just saw earlier as she started to walk slowly to the direction where she heard the cry. Her legs brought her at the back of the abandoned building when she heard a heavy breathing behind the big tree as her heart begin to pound. "Is anybody here?" She said as she walk closer to the big tree, when she felt something who passed through her. She didn't recognize if what was it because it was too fast. When she reach the big narra tree, she took a peek on it that made her heart pound more. There was nothing behind the big tree but a blood on the ground with a soaked silky gray beautiful feathers.

I was a human girl raised in turns by vampires, elves, and werewolves. To repay them, I signed a three-year repayment contract with all three races, dividing my time and service among their leaders. When the vampire count was weakened by sunlight, I cut open my wrist and let him drink my blood. When the elven prince's Tree of Life began to wither, I stepped into the forbidden forest and traded ten years of my life with a witch in exchange for spring water that restored the tree to full vitality. When the werewolf Alpha's wolf spirit grew restless, I searched for the herbs that could soothe him. I always knew my place, and I never crossed the line. The vampire count sneered at me. "Leah, you're more obedient than the blood servants I keep. The moment I summon you, you offer your wrist on your own." The elven prince warned coldly, "This is only a transaction. Once the Tree of Life recovers, you will leave as agreed. Don't imagine I would ever make an exception for you." The werewolf Alpha tossed a check at my feet. "This is your contract fee for the next three years. It's enough to last you a lifetime. Don't forget this. You haven't been marked, so don't overstep." Later, I finally repaid everything and prepared to return to the human world. The vampire count was willing to stand under the burning sun just to make me stay. The elven prince threatened to destroy the Tree of Life if I left. The werewolf Alpha dropped to one knee and presented me with the Luna's crown. In unison, they said, "You're not allowed to marry anyone else."

"Sierraaaaa… oh sieerrrraaa… where are you??? Enough of your hide and seek already. You should come out so we will play my favorite game." I heard that masculine voice again and I froze into my place. I looked at the girl who had saved me. She was shivering with fear. "No, he is here. We need to hide. If he sought us, he would play his games again. We need to hide." She whispered and jumped inside the tree. The log of the tree was very big. And with the big hole, Sierra was able to hide inside its log. I also jumped into the tree and hid myself from that devil. His voice was more scary than the demons. I have not seen his face ever. But I could imagine his demonic face with the scary voice he had. "Don't worry, Sierra. The angels are coming. They will rescue you."

When Dylan Sullivan took a new type of hallucinogen, I was forced to give myself to him to curb the effects. Innately fertile, I got pregnant, giving birth to fraternal twins—a boy and a girl—after marrying him. However, Dylan refused to let them call him daddy, drinking away the nights while staring at the picture of his one true love. Then, on our tenth anniversary, he locked us up in the basement and burnt us to death. As it turns out, he remained hung up on that moment when I saved him all this time, stubbornly convinced I intervened when he was vulnerable to satisfy my ambitions. That in turn drove a rift between himself and his one true love, whose heartbreak led to psychosis and the accident that killed her. But I somehow opened my eyes to find myself alive, returning to the day Dylan took the hallucinogen by mistake. This time, I let his one true love have him, while I headed towards the study…

The tree I fell from was rotten. It's leaves were rotten, it's bark was rotten, and it's roots were rotten. Unfortunately, I am an apple that didn't fall far from that rotten tree. I was groomed in the shadow of that rotten tree and sprayed with poison to ensure I would be nothing but it's germinated seed. My earliest memories are dark and painful. My most vibrant memories are coated in crimson red and shame. The small pieces of my soul that I kept hidden and protected are the only parts of myself I can tolerate. The rest of who I am... The despicable trash that haunts my dreams... I hate. Death is the only answer to my life. Not love. I don't deserve love. A tainted apple is never put amongst the ripe juices apples. It is thrown away, discarded... As I should be.

"I felt brave enough to accept what was in front of me, they say you only find love once in a lifetime, that everyone has their partner, their half of the orange; it was a miscalculation for me, in my mind there was several possibilities for a person to be compatible with more than one person; but, love? No... love is only felt and has it once, and you know when you have found it, you feel it, there are no doubts and fear is not there's space." Is it possible that love can overcome the barriers of distance? Esther and Benjamim, found each other again, after a long time apart and discovered a reciprocal feeling, dormant in both; but not every love story is like movie romances; and they needed to face their fears, distance, and time, in the name of a love never lived.

This isn't a love story, but almost a love story. Irina and Eric share a world through dreams and time travel. They have a strong mutual understanding about the feelings they have for each other, at the same time understanding that they cannot be together. Eric: I open my eyes and find myself standing alone in an empty room. The ceilings and the walls are neatly painted white. And the floor is composed of polished light brown wood. And there is a dark brown framed window at one corner where the light comes from. A bright yellow and pale red orange light tells me the sun is setting and soon it will be dark. Eric is a ghost who always appears in Irina's dream. Irina: I open the door to the bedroom. There is a dark brown framed window at one corner where the light is coming from. The yellow orange light passes through the open window. I see Eric standing right there on the spot captured by the yellow light. ‘You came back.’ I said. He stood there looking me in the eye. I almost died. Irina is a time traveler who may or may not change his fate. They alternatively tell a bitter sweet story. Love doesn't always mean together, sometimes it is deeper apart. Eric: I stand alone in the rain looking at the dark sky where all I can see is water, for it is both the rain and my tears flowing to my face. Irina: And suddenly it is no longer my reflection I see inside the mirror. What I see now is a figure of a man. I draw closer to see him clearly. But the closer I walk towards him, the farther I become from him. I couldn't get close.

As floodwaters rushed into the garage, I called my boyfriend. "Wade, help me... I'm trapped in here! The emergency exit's locked!" He sounded annoyed. "Tia, stop. Mandy's cat is stuck in a tree—we're handling it!" Then he hung up, taking the rescue team with him. My last hope was gone.

I secured a big deal for the company and was promoted to manager. However, I overheard my boss' secretary gossiping in the pantry, saying that I was brainless and only got where I was by using my body. I was so angry that I wanted to report it to the police. Surprisingly, her husband stopped me and forced his wife to bow and apologize to me, begging for forgiveness. Things got worse on the next day. Someone shared my inappropriate photos in the company group chat along with records of me supposedly checking into a hotel with a man. My colleagues looked at me with contempt, as if they all knew what was happening but refused to speak up. Even my boss fired me, saying I had moral issues. My husband immediately divorced me when he found out, took our daughter away, and left me with nothing. Neighbors pointed fingers and whispered about me. I was so overwhelmed that I lost my senses and was killed by a car crash. When I opened my eyes, I returned to the day I was promoted.

Run, Run, RUN. Don’t stop. The night was falling and like the creatures of the day, I needed to hide. My heart is thundering in my chest, echoing the sounds of the war that rage from the fields of my once loved home. That was before the coven came. Surprising us and taking my home and pack. The attack happened so quickly that no one was ready. We had no warning and after hours of waiting I was found. I had to run. Don't stop running. “CRACK” the current of magic shoots by and hits the tree to my left, my bare feet crunching the earth hard and fast. My small heart fluttering faster than a hummingbird's wings, my once sparkling beautiful dress is no more. It’s tattered, dirty, and torn. The edges burnt to a crisp and coated in blood from bodies of the battlefield that I raced away from. “Come here little wolfie,” a harsh raspy voice calls out cutting through the trees I hide quickly behind a tree to take cover to breathe, “I just want a little chat!” He calls singsong like, taunting me. He wants to find me to kill me. Ducking further behind my tree I hold my breath, my young body shaking with so much force my bones ache. Holding my breath and closing my eyes hoping for safety that surely won’t come. At only 11 years of age, I can’t fight this grown warlock... he will surely kill me like he did my parents... “Wolfie princess, where are you?” He mimics the rhythm of a child’s tune, as if I’d listen. Closing my eyes tighter I don’t want to die. I’m too young. My mind is racing, and my hearts bound t....