DEATH'S HEART

Chapter 20 (Radish Fiction Version)

Cat's whole body shivered at the memory of that fateful evening. She had never imagined herself to be someone capable of doing something so cruel. She was so angry, and knowing the real reason behind her anger led to her own self-loathing. The issue was not about the fake glasses anymore. It was about Lark. Her jealousy began corrupting every kind fibre in her body on many occasions than one. When he brought Asha a towel. When he was in the laundry room with her. When he was feeding her. When he was paying so much attention to her. When he argued with Zach to take her home...No one ended up taking her home that night.

It was amazing how one can change overnight. Cat was an emotional wreck since she became an unwilling witness to her friend's attack. She was not a religious person. Despite attending fellowship gatherings all her life with her parents, her mind was never really there. She always regarded herself as a better Christian when she was a child. She prayed. She said the words as they were taught. She knew what prayer meant. Sort of. As she got older, the words came out smoothly just as she had memorized them. Words. That was all prayer was to her...Until she saw Asha lying down on the cold concrete with her head soaking in her own blood did she discover what it really meant to pray. They said she was dead. How could that be? Was it really that easy to kill someone? One hurl. One instant contact on a hard surface. That's it? Gone?

Without hesitation or inhibition, she dropped down on her knees. She worshiped. She begged. She prayed. Pleaded God to wake her up from the nightmare, and manifest a miracle that would turn the horrible reality into a perfect fantasy. She watched the paramedics carry Asha on the gurney. Her tears fell as the world started to spin around her. She didn't understand how it all ended up this way. We were just talking awhile ago! She felt more nauseous. She had never seen so much blood gush from someone's nose and forehead in her life. Was it normal for blood to continue gushing even when they're dead?

In her mind, she tried to convince herself that she was in the set of a horror movie, and Asha was an actress, playing the victim. Bloody good actress she was! Great even! And the award goes to the make-up artist, and special effects people who did a fantastic job on the prosthetics that made a perfectly structured face immensely swollen, and bruised within a couple of minutes from impact! Yey! Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! Now, why wasn't the director yelling, 'Cut!'? Stop the scene! Stop the scene! No one stopped the scene. This was not a movie set.

Truth of the matter was, she was not the perfect Christian. Throughout her life, her prayers had been shallow. The only time they became more meaningful was when she needed to ask God for something. She was the typical child whose tone changed ever so sweetly when she wanted something from mom and dad. But this prayer is not for me! She peered through a curtain of tears to see Asha one last time before they pulled the sheet over her. Was it so much to ask God to save her life? Dear God! It's not for me! Please save her!

"Wait! Stop!" she heard the paramedic bellow. "Did you see that?"

To Cat, that didn't make sense. All she could hear were random murmurs of the crowd screaming in her ear. Amidst the noise, she begged louder. She noticed someone go in and out of the ambulance with an armful of packets, and hurriedly ripped them open. What were they doing? She watched a lady hold a mask in front of Asha's face. What was the point of letting a dead girl breathe? Unless...Could it be? Were her prayers answered? Cat collapsed down to her elbows. Can she possibly bow even lower to worship an unseen being? More tears streamed down her cheeks. Between her sobs, she laughed. She wasn't going to mourn that night. "Thank you! Thank you! God! Thank you!"

Indeed, one night in the face of death, one could change; including those who were around to witness the tragedy and the miracle. Cat was a different person the very next day. Every free minute she had was dedicated to a prayer of forgiveness and of gratitude. Her mother was surprised when she asked for the schedule for the fellowship, and if there were activities she could help with. In one night, she found proof that there were such things as miracles. Where there were miracles, there was a god; that was what her faith told her. God existed and He answered her prayers. He allowed Asha to come back to life. God returned her to this world...But who exactly did He return?