Breathe Me

Paradise

When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach
And the bullets catch in her teeth
Life goes on, it gets so heavy
The wheel breaks the butterfly
Every tear a waterfall
In the night the stormy night she'll close her eyes
In the night the stormy night away she'd fly
And dreams of
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh

Alison's POV

Everything is dark. I'm walking around on a pitch black floor. But there is no floor, just darkness all around.

Then suddenly lights come up, as if in a theater after a play.

I'm standing at the front of my living room and it looks like it's Christmas. But the room looks like it did years ago.

I hear someone playing the piano and look over.

My brow furrows as I see an eight-year-old me. I look so innocent with my little blonde curls and cream colored cardigan.

But what is this? Why am I here? I can't remember anything after we found Mom dead.

"This isn't real." I whisper to myself, gulping. I look over again at the little-girl version of me. She doesn't seem to notice me, so I don't think she can hear or see me.

Suddenly, Little-Ali presses a key and it makes no sound.

Now I remember this. I remember what's about to happen but I don't wanna see it. I look around, but there's no place to run. I have to stay and watch.

The little girl lifts up the piano top to see two identically wrapped presents. She Takes them to the couch and sits down with them.

My eyes can only follow her.

She opens the first one and smiles sweetly at the pretty yellow dress inside of it. Then she opens the next and her brow furrows, seeing an identical dress that I know now, was for Bethany. My mom considered her a second daughter since she was having an affair with Bethany's dad. But the little girl doesn't know.

That's when my mother enters. "Alison." She scolds.

The little girl looks up and pouts. "I didn't mean to, but I found your hiding place." She pauses. "Did you and daddy get me the same present?"

"I don't know what you mean." The older woman says, as she sits down across from the younger me.

I feel my eyes tear up.

"Daddy will think it's funny when I tell him." The little girl smiles.

I know what's to come, but even so I pray to god. Please, please don't let her say what I know she will. Please change the past. Make me turn out normal.

But God wasn't listening clearly.

"There are not two dresses."

"I think you need glasses." The little girl bites, a bit harsh.

Mom smiles her dazzling smile. "You only saw one dress." She insists. "You found the present. One present. You opened it, and there was one dress."

Her little face looks so broken and a tear slips down the present me's cheek.

"Why mommy?" She asks.

"Because I don't want daddy to leave us and he will if you tell him about the dresses."

I shake my head bitterly. She was a terrible mother.

But I still want her back. Bad.

The little girl sighs. "I'll say whatever you want me to."

"NO!" The present me shouts. I know they can't hear me but I have to try and stop it. "DON'T! Just don't and everything will be better!" I sob.

"Good girl. Now tell me what happened. The real story."

"I was playing the piano, I looked inside of it and found one present. One yellow dress." The little girl recites. I can tell how much it pains her to say it and I remember the pain.

"Good girl." Mom whispers. "One more time."

"I was playing the piano, I looked inside of it and found one present. One yellow dress."

"And the monster was born..." I whisper to myself, letting the tears fall. How could she let this happen to me? It's all her fault. I love her but I hate her.

And I'm surrounded by darkness again.

Emily's POV

The doctor comes into the waiting room and we all stand. I can feel my heart pounding almost out of my chest. My palms sweat. God, I'm nervous.

"She's alive." He says.

We all breath sighs of relief.

"But there is bad news." He says in that sorrowful doctor voice that they must teach in medical school.

"What is it?" I ask quickly, worried.

"Well first off, she's suffering from severe malnutrition. She hasn't been eating properly for weeks."

That's why she was never at lunch. She wasn't eating.

And there's a worse thing... She's in a coma. And we're not sure how long it'll last."

I put my head in my hands and feel tears slip out of my eyes, and drip off the tip of my nose. "Can I see her?" I ask quietly.

"She won't be able to respond."

"I know. Can I?"

"Of course. Room 113."

I sigh and walk down the long hallway. Why are hospitals so white? Bleach white. It's so ugly and nauseating. Makes my eyes hurt.

I reach the room and take a deep breath. Then I go in.

She's lying on the bed.

But she also isn't.

She looks so pale and bony. Her frame is even smaller than usually. Her usually bouncy golden curls look dull and limp.

How could this shell of a girl be the same confident, bitchy Ali I knew?

I sit in the chair next to the bed and grab her hand. It's freezing and pale, but I need it to bring me comfort, and it does despite the lack of heat.

"Hey, Ali." I say as tears slip down my face. "I'm really sorry for being so blind. And for not seeing what was right in front of me." I wipe my eyes with my sleeve. "But I love you so much. I always have since I first met you, and I never stopped." I sniffle. "I was scared. You hurt me a lot, Ali. And I was mad at you. I know it's wrong, but sometimes I wished that you were actually dead. It was easier when you were dead because I could rewrite everything in my head. When I thought you were dead, I used to make up stories where you would come back and you would realize you loved me. And you'd tell me and we'd run away together. I never expected it to actually happen, so when it did I didn't believe you. It seemed impossible. And I'm sorry for hurting you when you've already been hurt so much in your life." I let out a sob. "But please, please wake up. You have to. And when you do we can be together. Please, Ali?"

She doesn't even move or make a sound.

Tears fall faster and I bring her hand up to my lips and shakily kiss it. My tears fall onto it, getting it wet.

Then I just put my head in my hands sobbed. "Come back. Please, please come back. It's all my fault, I know. But please come back to me."

AN: So yeah. Double update bc why the hell not? Every chapter that Ali is in a coma will have different flashbacks. Some I will make up, and others will be flashbacks from the show. Sorry this was so sad:( Hope you guys liked it! The song is by Coldplay. I started writing a new Emison fanfic called All For You. Give it a read? Thank you!

- G. Schreiber

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