Unbeknownst

Chapter 25- Unwanted Memories

What would you be thinking if you were about to die? Through the unimaginable pain I was still subconsciously thinking about my life. Did I have any regrets? What would I be missing out on in the future? Why did it hurt me more to hear the sobs and panicked screams of my friends than the pain itself? Would my father cry? Where was I going? Would I finally see my mother? I no longer felt anything. I was just a soul. Just a being that laid patiently awaiting what was to become of me next. Though it seems the world had not been done with me just yet.

The blackness that had me submerged, peacefully drowning within its grasp, had thinned. Once I no longer felt weightless, I knew that it had let me go. I frowned slightly, though curiosity probed me to open my eyes. Slits of dim light filled my sight as I slowly opened them. I lied in an extravagant room, the light pink walls illuminated only by the soft moonlight that poured in from a huge window. The bed I laid on was massive compared to my stature, and the frame had intricate metal swirls that matched the gold painted accents on the rooms walls. Stuffed animals filled a shelf in front of my bed while a music box sat atop a vanity next to it. It had not been playing any music though I knew what tune would play if I wound it up. I sat up in the fluffy white covers of my bed. This room was foreign to me, yet, I knew that I was in my home. That this was my room. I wore a light pink night gown, its soft material falling to my knees as I let my small feet hit the hard wood floor. I unsteadily walked to the vanity, the pitter-patter of my bare feet hitting the sleek wood floor was the only sound that filled the dark room. A mirror, rimmed with intertwining swirls of gold, sat atop the vanity. I peered into it, a little girl stared back at me. Her pale skin only contrasted by her rose dusted cheeks and plump pink lips. Her hair silky and long, while it framed her extravagantly beautiful features. Her maroon eyes looked curious and shocked at her own reflection. A pale pink crescent framed her right eye. I knew that I peered at my own reflection, though my own features still stunned me. A loud crash filled the emptiness of the room, and I allowed a quiet gasp to escape my lips as I slightly jumped at the sudden sound and quickly turned my head toward a shut door at the far end of my room. Another crash rang through the space sending my heart into a frenzied race. The noise was getting closer to my door. I had to get out of there before whoever was in the house decided to pay me a visit. I approached the door silently thinking of only one place that would provide me safety. My parents room. When I reached the door, I realized that I was much too short to reach the handle. I raised onto my tip toe's stretching my slightly chubby arm to extend above my head as my small fingers grazed the top of the gold-plated handle. Finally wrapping my unsteady fingers around the handle, I slowly opened the door. The house had once again become eerily quiet, the only noises filling my ears were those of my short, shallow breaths and the panicked thumping of my own heart. I opened the door slightly, only peeking out into the hallway to inspect my surroundings. Another loud crash assisted by an ear-piercing scream sent my little body into overdrive. With a speed I could not comprehend, I flew to where I believed my parents room to be. I slowed, approaching the door, as an uneasy feeling filled my chest and squeezed my stomach. No sounds left the room, no quiet snores, no shallow breaths, no beating hearts. A strange scent filled the air, it seemed familiar though I could not quite remember where I had smelt it. Their door was slightly ajar, allowing light from the hallway to flow into it. I slowly approached the door, my shaky hands developing a thin layer of fluid over them as my pulse rose. I forced myself to peer through the crack. A new feeling washed over me, dread.

Crimson.

The horrid color stained my parent's white sheets and soiled their soft blue walls with its awful patterns and streaks. My vision blurred with watery tears as my eyes fell upon my mother and father. Their corpses intertwined within the covers of the bed. They held each other tightly and wore expressions of worry and fear that were now permanently imbedded into their features. Two limp organs lied between their bodies. Their hearts, violently ripped out and placed between them as an eternal show of their love until the last moment of life. Drenched in crimson they lied dead, frozen in time in their own bed. A tear slipped from my eye, running its course down my cheek, it left a wet trail behind where others could follow its lead down my small features and to the floor. I took carful steps back, trying my hardest to burn the image of my parents from my memory, but it seemed it was carved into my brain. A sound came from the end of the corridor. I tried my hardest to not make a sound, though when I looked toward the direction of the noise a dark figure loomed at the end of the hallway. His hands were coated in blood, forming gloves of scarlet. The nasty liquid dripped from each finger slowly as if taunting me with promises of pain. The dark figure's fierce eyes met mine, and a wide grin spread across his features. He carefully brought a hand to his lips, darting out his tongue to lap up some of the dark liquid that covered the back of his hand.

"Found you." He chimed, his voice filled with malice while it rang through my ears.

I immediately turned, fear poured out of every pore in my body. I knew what he would do to me if he got those deadly hands on me. I bolted back to the only other place I could think of, my room. My heart beat furiously before I forced it to stop. Its frantic beat would give away my location. I sprinted to my room and locked the door, darting my eyes to every corner in search of a hiding place. The closet. I thought. I ran over to the large door, that stood next to the attached bathroom, and pulled it open. The closet did not lock, so I gently closed the door before staring at the open space before me. My eyes locked onto a rack of hanging dresses, a chest laid beneath them. I crawled over top of the chest and behind it. I sat in-between the wall and the back of the chest, the dresses covering the gap of my entry above me. I ceased my breath, knowing that I would be just fine without it. A muffled bang filled the space of my bedroom, and I cringed knowing he was in my room. I stayed perfectly still, making no sound as I listened intently. The heavy sound of his boots hitting the floor was the only noise that occupied my ears as he paced my bedroom. I heard a loud crash, as something was undoubtedly thrown across my room. Another followed, and another, until he had obliterated all my possible hiding places in that room. His heavy boots approached the closet door, for a moment there were no sounds. No crashes, bangs, or breaths. Only complete stillness as he unquestionably listened for the sounds of my breaths or heart. No matter how hard I tried pure panic was causing my body to tremble as a rogue tear slipped from my eye and fell to the floor. The sound would have been inaudible to human ears, though that does not change the fact that a small vibration was created. Rippling the air, the sound disrupted it enough for him to hear a sign of life. With a deafening sound the door was launched from its hinges, while he entered the room I was in. Another wave of panic flowed over my skin and snaked through my veins. My breath was forced into action once again as my heart kick started as well, pumping adrenaline furiously through my veins. He had found me and I would die. The chest I was tucked behind was flung effortlessly across the room. His wide grin was visible through my tear-blurred vision, though his features were still unclear. He placed a bloodied hand around my throat and lifted my struggling form off the ground. I weakly hissed and growled at him, but to no avail, my small hands clawed at his as I tried to unwrap his fingers from my throat. I did not need oxygen but his grip made me vulnerable and unable to escape his deadly clutches. A rowdy shout echoed through the mansion and I watched my captors head sharply turn to face the sound. A curse slipped from his lips and he turned to me once again, as if contemplated what to do with me. I did not cry or quiver in fear I only fearlessly fought against his harsh grip. Once his decision was made he threw my body against the wall like a ragdoll. My head ricocheted off the wall and I fell helplessly to the floor. Dark spots filled my vision and I watched as the man turned his back to me and walked out.

"Don't fret, I will return for you." He said harshly, I did nothing but watch him leave, something on his blood-stained wrist glimmered in the dim moonlight that illuminated my destroyed room. It was a ruby, dangling limply on a chain around his wrist. My vision blackened and I was swallowed by darkness once again.

Red.

My eyes were shut and I could feel the harsh rays of the sun hitting my eyelids, causing me to see nothing but the red tones of my own flesh. I lazily opened my eyes, squinting as the harsh light hit them, causing my pupils to contract impossibly tight.

'Where am I?' was the only thought that rose to my mind.