VALERIE

Chapter 31: Who's Gail?

~ UNEDITED because it's already three in the morning. I need to sleep already. Argh!~

Copyright © zylgnagnaba 2013

Waking up in a slight jolt, my eyes blink open and immediately dart to the yellow-orange light reflecting from my lamp. Without further hesitation, I groggily sit up in my bed, removing Harry's lethargic grip from my stomach in the process. Yawning, I check the time in my phone-3:00 AM, it indicates. I take couple of woozy tip toes to the bathroom, rubbing the drowsiness away from my eyes temporarily.

Chills travel from the soles of my feet up to my shins as I take few more steps to the frigid tiles of the bathroom. Stopping by the sink, I take a good five seconds glancing at myself at the mirror.

I smile bleakly as I observe dark bags form under my eyes marked by lack of sleep, and sweats in my forehead damp my skin. I wet my dry lips with a swipe of my tongue bringing back a plump pink appearance to it, complimenting my flushed crimson cheeks. I run a hand through my dark curls, widening my eyes as I observe a lighter colour emanate from its roots. I immediately straighten my back before fixing my hair, intending to hide the lighter hue.

I sigh as I open the cabinet, drawing a cylindrical bottle which contains aspirin to aid my throbbing head. Leaving the cabinet wide open, I swallow the tablet with a glass of water hoping that the pain would somehow be eased any minute now. Closing the door of the cabinet, I study my face in the mirror once again.

With unsteady legs and pounding chest, I take cautious steps backwards as I try to muffle my frightened cry with my trembling hands. My eyes grow even wider at the same time that the reflection of the blonde girl in the mirror flashes a wicked grin at me, I gasp. She's the same girl that terrorised me in my dreams too many times before.

"Hello, Valerie." Pure evil is laced in her voice as she greets my horrified appearance. "How are you?" She adds when I don't answer.

I squeeze my eyes shut, mentally blocking the patronizing voice from sending signals to my auditory nerves. When I open my eyes once again, the image in the mirror is still there so I dart my sight towards the doorway. There's nothing I want more than to escape the maddening instance.

"You can't escape me, Valerie." She tells me as if she read my mind. I look at her again and I see an intimidating grin still plastered on her pale white face. Despite her beautiful face, the low and demeaning tone is reason enough to be scared of her.

"Wa-what do you need from me?" I manage to say despite stuttering at the beginning. The shaking in my voice along with my quivering lips make her grin grows even wider in satisfaction.

"No, Valerie. I don't need anything from you. You're the one who needs something from me." She tells me, chuckling at the end.

"I don't know what you mean." I argue, my voice a little bolder this time.

She tips her back and laugh at my expense. Her voice echoes inside the confines of the cold bathroom, making me shiver a little more.

"You sure forgot about me, didn't you?" She asks me once she stops laughing, her sight darts on my blurry brown eyes. The thumping of my heart accelerates as her scolding voice sifts through my ears, travelling to my head. My head is spinning as I try to remember her, but fails.

Swallowing the lump that's been disturbing my throat since I see the terrifying reflection, I dare to ask, "Who are you?" and I let go of the breath I don't know I was holding.

"Oh, Valerie.... You remember me. You just pretend you don't." She chuckles and I sigh in frustration shaking my head in aggressive disapproval.