Different | ✔️

1 | The News

"Wh-where am I?" The hair on my skin rose as I realised where I was. My two hands were towed behind my back, tightened by bulky silver chains... in a tempered glass tank overflowing with water. I wriggled in the wooden chair in an attempt to set myself free as the water slowly rose to my knee. A silhouette figure materialised in front of me, I lured my attention to the figure—her long light golden brown hair swayed below her waist as she sauntered towards me, placing one hand on the glass, she mouthed the words, "You're next."

Just that moment, the tingle of the water at the nook of my neck pulled me back to my predicament, "N-no! Please, I don't want to die, please!" I shivered frantically, panic oozing out of every inch of my body as tears rolled down my cheeks.

As the water ascended over my head, filling up the tank completely, a satisfactory smile graced her lips before a gush of water surged through my nostrils.

I was dying, and there was no one to save me. My eyelids clamped shut as I succumbed to my fate. Out of nowhere, a faint sound reached my ear. It became more audible by the seconds.

"Honey, are you still sleeping?" I jolted out of my sleep. Sweat drops tumbled down my face. Damn it, not again.

The same dream that haunted me for years returned once again. It had ceased two years ago but surprisingly returned. The same face and smile plaguing my dreams. I brushed it off, concluding it was due to the horror movies I had watched on Netflix.

"Don't you think it's about time you get off that bed? You've been sleeping for ten hours straight!" Michelle yelled as she shoved the door slightly open and popped her head in. I waved my hand in the air, indicating I was awake.

I growled and swirled restlessly on the bed, crumbling the matelasse coverlet to the tiled floor. "Don't make me come in there to get you, Vivian," she added. The light sound of her heel against the floor became distant as she descended the stairs.

"Finally, I can get back to my beauty sleep," I mumbled, placing the pillow over my face.

Living with my aunt hasn't been the most exciting journey I had anticipated it to be... No dad, ditched by my mother at an early age. I've been living with my aunt for almost five years, and I'm glad she doesn't see me as a burden... my appearance—the reason my very own mother disowned me, or so I thought. At a point, I got spooked by myself, too, until my aunt explained it all to me.

I was born with this very rare condition, don't know what it's called, but since birth, I had this beautiful pair of eyes that just made me stand out. With this sparkling red pair of lenses, I've been asked by a lot of people if I wore contact lenses, and I gladly admitted I didn't. I always loved witnessing that terrified expression of theirs as if they had just encountered a vampire, crazy but funny, already gotten used to it and I just had to be gifted with long natural red hair also, that just completes it all, red eyes, red hair, what's next, red skin? Hehe, ridiculous.

The door flew wide open, clashing with the wall with a loud bang as a familiar figure walked in. "Hey, Maleficent, Mum said to come get you, this will be the last time she's gonna send me up here to get you, or else I'm going to upload that picture of you with drool all over your face." Her eyes shimmered with resentment as a scorn lingered on her face. She rolled her eyes and turned to leave, slamming the door on her way out.

Oh yeah, I forgot to add, my aunt's daughter hates my guts.

"Why must she always be so annoying." I peeled my eyelids open, shoved the pillow aside and grudgingly hopped up on my feet. I cleaned myself up and hurried downstairs. Didn't wanna keep my breakfast waiting.