Renée

Chapter 5

The sounds of birds chirping slowly pull at my consciousness as a soft breeze blows around me. It caresses my hair and tickles my face as it passes by, making me giggle.

Wait—Birds? Wind?

I suddenly see images of the flight to Brussels flash in front of me. I hear the sounds of people screaming and crying, and it pulls at my eardrums. The plane is shaking so violently, yet everything is so clear. The image of Gwen's limp body. The smell of burning engines. The sound of the plane crashing into solid ground. I can see Shaun's pained expression and hear his voice echos through my head.

"I'm in love with you!!"

My eyes dart open as I lean over and throw up everything inside of me. I grip my stomach as I continue to heave, my body trying to force more out of me than I have. A thick string of saliva hangs from my lips as I shake, my heart thumping in my chest. I stare at the pool of vomit as I try to get control of myself. It takes a while, but I let out a long breath and can think straight.

This is when something feels off. I'm sitting at a glass patio table, and I can see weathered grey stone under my feet. Confused, I look around to see I'm sitting on a balcony made of weathered stone, and there's no one around me. I rise from the chair and walk towards the stone railing, stepping over the vomit.

My eyes widen as I rest my hands on the stone. I stare out at a massive garden and forest that sprawls as far as my eyes can see. My eyes scan the horizon before I glance down, realizing that I'm on a balcony that's fairly high off the ground. Maybe on the second floor?

"What the hell?" I spin as I glance around the balcony again. Where... is this place?

It's all weathered grey stone. The floor, walls, railing, all of it. There's a wall with six large arched windows and a garden door that's wide open in the middle. Sheer white curtains float through the opening as the wind passes by. I stare, frozen, at the curtains. It's as if they're beckoning me, telling me to move in their direction. It's like they're inviting me through the doors. Every fibre within me is telling me I need to go to these doors.

My feet drag me across the balcony towards the door. I don't know if I should do this, but my curiosity is getting the best of me. I can't stop myself. But all hesitation flies out of my head when I see the inside of the room.

The walls are covered in sapphire blue wallpaper with white casings and crown mouldings. On one side of the room is a marble fireplace with antique furniture arranged close by. Centred on the opposite wall is a large canopy bed. On the same side of the room is an antique desk, wardrobe, and vanity.

The entire room looks as if it belongs to a rich young lady.

"I must be dreaming," I say as stare at a jewelled chandelier hanging from the ceiling. "This can't be real. I must be in heaven."

I take a step into the room and tumble to the ground, hitting the wood floor with a loud thud. Pain shoots through my forearms and knees, making me wince. I glance back to see two steps leading to the door, and I curse at myself for not noticing. With a loud groan, I slowly sit up and rub the back of my neck. A sigh escapes my lips. My hands and knees hurt, and it's painful.

Wait... pain?

I lift my arms and see the skin on my forearms is red. I pinch the skin as hard as I can, squeezing as my long nails dig into the skin. A read mark forms, and I stare at my arm while a couple of tears form in my eyes, but that's not what I'm worried about. Something is off about my arm, and it isn't the red marks. My skin colour is different. The skin on my arm is tan-brown, but my skin is a light cream colour. Yet, as I stare at my arm, I can tell it's obviously different.