Fragmented Soul

Emma

In my vision that night, eight years old me is waving my legs over the sea, sitting on the pier in Nice, when we were there for the first time. I, as in my fourteen years old self, turn around and see an albino boy approaching mini me. I immediately recognise the day I meet Nico, my first friend in Nice. His nine year old version sits down next to mini me. "Salut," he says in French.

Younger me seems surprised. Though I was quite good at French because of my grandpa's lessons and school, even then, I remember my brain just blocking. It took me few seconds to process the fact that an albino boy about my age in speaking to me in French. "Salut," I finally replied, looking at him. His skin was whiter than paper and his eyes were red as blood, but, surprisingly, that didn't scare me, even then. Thought I was eight then, my dream vision of things that were happening or happened already appeared. I had only a few dreams, band some of them weren't so pleasant, so Nico didn't represent a fear. "Comment tu ta pelle?" I managed to say in a terrible accent.

"Je m'appelle Nico. Et toi?" His accent was so perfect I immediately knew he was French. Nico was also swinging his legs over the sea.

"Je suis Emma," and yet again, my accent was bad, even though I tried so hard to speak good.

"You isn't French, yes?" he asked in his bad English.

"It is you aren't, no you isn't," I said. "And yes, I'm not completely French, but I think that you are."

"Oui," he said. "I am très français."

Mini me chuckles. "I can see that."

Nico also laughed, and we laughed together, swinging our legs over the sea. His English sucked, and my French too, but it somehow worked. For few years, our conversations were spoken partly in one, and partly in other language. Pictures of our friendship flashed before my eyes. Us laughing, him, Mark and I meeting Adelaide and Theodore, me meeting his twin sister Chloe, who is also albino, six of us jumping from the pier into the water. Nico and Chloe teaching me French (though my dad has already thought me much so that wasn't hard) and me teaching them English. Adelaide teaching us German, which was a challenge, but after I started learning it in school, it became easier. Adelaide, Nico, Chloe and I having a race in canoes, Nico and I winning. All of our water fights and fun we had. All of our friendship.

I wake up just as quick as I fell asleep. It looks like it was early in the morning, but my brain is sharp and ready to think why did I dream of Nico. Dad, though he doesn't have a golden aura himself, explain dreams like this usually meant that the person was in danger. Usually, not always, sometimes it was just a false alarm. I still have to check, and I get to my phone on the table and turn it on, seeing it is not so early, just nine o'clock. After unlocking it in two tries, I called Nico quickly, phone shaking in my hands. He answers almost immediately. "Salut," he says groggily in a raspy morning voice. I might have woke him up.

"Nico!" I exclaim. "You are okay!"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

I think Nico maybe thinks I might have an aura, and that over the years I hinted it many times, but I am not sure and not risking it. So, I have to make up something. I hate lying to Nico, especially since he is one of my best friends, but I have to protect both of us. "I had a dream that you were in danger."

"Chérie, I'm completely fine," he yawns. "Maintenant, est-ce que ma chérie me laisserait dormir?"

"Chér, I don't think you need my permission to go to sleep," I say. "Just stay safe, Nico, alright?"

"Anything for you, mon Chérie," he says and hangs up.

A fucking false alarm that scared the shit out of me. I put my phone away and lay down on the bead again, closing my eyes for a few seconds before somebody knocks on my door. "Come in," I say and open my eyes to see dad coming.