Learning to be Strong Alone // Jeraphina Fanfiction

Chapter XII: A Lie, a Truth, Sincerity, or Who Knows What

"Sadness can change a person.
Sadness can change us all."

...............

Seraphina's POV

"He's in the second patients wing, room number: 42. Should I alert him for you?" Sonya asked me as her hands hovered over the keypad to buzz patients of visitors.

My head turned to the dimly lit hallway-multiple lights occasionally flickering on and off every couple seconds.

"If it wouldn't be too much trouble, then yes," I told her, smiling gently in her direction.

Sonya nodded and watched as I started to amble my way cautiously down the hall-feet tripping on the carpet maybe once or twice.

"O-oh, Seraphina?" she called out to me, raising your hand forward.

"Mm?" I hummed in reply, turning my head sideways to meet her gaze, legs halting in their tired strokes across the ground.

Her face's happiness faulted. "If . . . if you came here to see William, then why didn't you know where you were?" she asked me, referring to earlier.

"Just happened to be here. Thought I'd visit," I told her, slowly continuing on my journey.

I stopped when she shook her head and took a step forward. "No, no, no. That can't be right. You said that you ran all the way here to see him. You were on the brink of physical exhaustion!"

I bit my lip and brung a hand to run through my unruly hair, my back still facing her worried figure.

"I've been given . . .  um, given enough-" the sentence I had formed in my head suddenly vanished and was replaced.

"You k-know William's son? My friends were talking about how he . . . he could still be alive," I said, tears forming at the ridges of my eyes, turning my body back to face her.

Sonya's mouth turned agape; confused, shocked. "W-why would you run, then?" she asked.

Without skipping a beat, my first thought came back to mind, "I've been given enough false hope-fed enough lies. I didn't need anymore."

"O-oh."

"Now, if you don't mind," I stated, fingernails scraping at the palms of my hands as to not cry, "I'll be off to see William."

My legs slowly dragged along the narrow hall, limply tripping over lumps in the uneven carpet. As I passed each heater, my face was harshly fanned with warm, dry air.

39...40...41...

42.

Here we go.

Quietly, I raised my hand to lightly hover above the door before sending through three hesitant knocks.

"Sera?" a small voice asked from inside the room.

I shuffled my feet inside, being careful to quietly close the door behind myself as I looked at the poor man.

He was pale; tired bags hung under his drooping eyes, unshaven prickles of hair sticking out from atop of his face, and hair as unkempt as mine.