After she unexpectedly sees her ex-best friend back on campus, Lizzy's entire world is flipped when she wakes up in an unfamiliar house. Now she's stuck among three strangers who won't seem to leave her alone. Slowly, they start to form a bond, only...
My eyes flickered open. I flinched at the closeness of the face right next to me. Through my blurred vision, I could see her body jerk back from what I could only presume to be my unexpected awakening. I slowly lifted myself up, shifting my weight onto my arm for support. My vision slowly started to clear as I rested my back against the couch. I took a moment to register the unfamiliar faces around me, all looking at me in pure shock.
The memories of the crash came back to me. I could hardly register the severity of that situation. It was a feeling that was both recent and distant at the same time. For the time, I focused on more concerning matters. Where was I? Just as I was about to enter a state of pure panic from the strangeness of the scene in front of me, came a familiar voice.
"Hey, I'm right here, don't panic," Eva stood the furthest away from me. Her shoulders slumped as her body leaned against the narrow edge of a grey-tiled kitchen island. Her eyes were slightly wider than usual and she wore a small frown on her face while her hand rubbed the side of her neck. Her head slightly bowed as she broke eye contact, now staring at the woman closest to me.
I was in what seemed to be the living room of a home that I had yet to familiarize myself with. The grey sofas with matching cushions in addition to the rectangular wooden table in the middle, placed expertly above a patterned carpet, radiated comfort. On my right were paintings of marble texture hung centralized on a wall covered by an off-white wallpaper. Next to the paintings was a wooden railing attached to what I could only guess to be stairs leading to the next floor. Directly in front of me was a dining table that cut off my complete view of the kitchen section.
"Not to spoil the moment or anything, but shouldn't she be... I don't know, panicking right now?" spoke the girl sitting on a couch perpendicular to the one I was on.
She had medium-length wavy brunette locks that fell to her shoulders, framing her face perfectly. She sat with one foot resting underneath her other leg that reached the ground. Her left arm rested on the edge of the seat while the other remained in her lap. I stared directly into her warm brown eyes, looking for any sense of familiarity. I would have likely found her breathtaking under different circumstances. Instead, all I found was some lowly appreciated intimidation.
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"Yeah," came from the woman who stood the closest to me. This one was a blonde. She had hazel eyes that had a slight hint of redness to them, indicating what could only be countless nights of sleeplessness. She had light yet visible wrinkles at the nooks of her eyes. I guessed she was well into her thirties from that alone. She had an indescribable comfort to her, whether that came from her warm yet respectable posture or something else I wasn't certain.
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Accusingly, both of their lines of sight shifted to Eva. I followed. Eva's attention now seemed to be singularly on me, her mouth straight and her lips slightly parted and quivering. Once she noticed the eyes digging daggers into her front, she quickly straightened, leaving the island to stand just behind the couch in front of me.
"What?" She paused and then spoke again. "Don't look at me, I'm not magic," she forced a low-effort chuckle into her words while folding her arms in front of her.
I turned to the other two ladies in the room, patiently waiting for their response. After a moment of silence, in which all three of them stared into my soul, the brunette stepped forward till she stood an arm's length away. Reaching out her hand, she introduced herself.
"Jaycee," she spoke. I assumed that was her name.
"Lizzy," I replied, taking her hand in mine. Gently she shook my hand, her eyes holding mine, her gaze curious. "I know" Her hand pulled back as she retained her previous position, leaving me longing for more of her delicate touch. It was strange.
Next was the older woman. "I'm Anna," she said, diverting my attention away from Jaycee and towards herself. To which I nodded.
Expectantly, I looked toward Eva. Not for an introduction but rather for an explanation of where I was. She gazed in my direction but her attention seemed to be fully absorbed by her musings.
Just as I was about to say something, the woman claiming to be 'Anna' stepped nearer, somewhat overstepping my bubble but what was I gonna do? Say something? She bent lower till we were at eye level. Her fingers gently gripped a small flashlight that she used to direct light straight into my eyes, momentarily blinding me. With a cautious up-and-down motion, she glided the bright white light on and off of my eye.
When she moved away, I squeezed my eyes and re-opened them a few times, the after light leaving me unable to see for a few seconds longer than I assumed was healthy. Slowly though, the scene in front of me regained its normal illumination.
"That should've done it," Anna said as she turned to meet eyes with the others.
"Done what?" I surprised myself as blurted out, faster than I had time to think. My body grew tense as silence took control of the situation.
"Rhythm's normal," My eyes narrowed at her response. What rhythm?
"Normal normal or normal normal?" Jaycee questioned, dragging out the second normal as if implying it had a different meaning.
"I don't know, which is which?" Anna replied, not once glancing in my direction again.
"We talked about this," Jaycee continued.
"Did we?" She paused to look back at me and then continued "Just listen," they all stared at me once again. This time in utter silence that no one seemed to have any intention of breaking.
"Um, Eva?" I hesitated. A sudden and all too familiar feeling built up in my chest. It was like an urgency of sorts. All of their sights remained fixated on me. I wanted to go home. I swallowed the lump in my throat when she didn't reply. "Eva," This time my voice was louder, my tone harsher. I exhaled deeply as I witnessed her focus coming back to the present moment.
"It's fine, just relax," She replied, her voice light as a feather. My mouth slightly dropped in disappointment. I was stuck in the middle of three strangers, none answering my questions or willing to help me. Yet, strangely enough, the feeling in my chest had quieted and my mind was blank.
"Yeah, it's normal I don't get it," Jaycee replied. What were they even talking about now? These people were strange. Seemed even crazy. How did I even get here?
"Does it matter?" Eva interrupted, her voice more regretful than ever. She lifted her sight from me to the other women. "I mean it worked." she continued.
