❝ Give me ten days. Until Christmas, to give you ten reasons to not die, ten reasons to show you that life is worth living. ❞
They first met in a dark alleyway.
The catch? The gun in his hand, pointed at himself.
Ten days until Christmas; ten days...
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8:52 pm
Snow.
The world was covered in a vast expanse of sheer white. The beautiful snow, hanging off tree branches, falling from the sky in soft clumps, and encasing the ground in a blanket of shimmering white.
The sight was beautiful. Peaceful.
Gorgeous enough to make Azura simply stand and stare at the sight before her, the white such a contrast to the midnight blue of the night sky.
She let out a huff, making mist form in front of her mouth. She licked her lips and held her books closer to herself. She had lost track of time while reading near the hearth in the public library.
In fact, she probably would have remained there for hours to come, if not for the nice librarian who'd spotted her while closing up. He had graciously allowed her to take the books home to read, regardless of her being such a nuisance to him.
The cold was starting to chill her to the core, so she set off moving along the cobbled path.
She pulled out her cellphone and gasped at the time. It was five to nine! Her parents must be worried sick! She scrolled through her messages and found dozens of texts from her parents and brother alike, asking where she was.
Hastily typing out a quick message confirming she was safe and returning home, she set out on her way. She picked up her pace, but still stopped to admire the beauty of her town in the midst of winter.
Gazing at the pretty lights strung from tree to tree, and the warm glow cast on the snow by the streetlights, she let out a heavy breath, as a fond smile found its way to her lips. She breathed in the delicious fragrance of gingerbread and peppermint, of carols and bells, of Christmas nearing. It was a pleasant feeling, the excitement leading up to Christmas day.
She looked forward to it, to celebrating it with her family.
Lost in thought, her feet carried her away from the lit up street and towards a dark alleyway present a few meters away. She peered in and saw no end to the darkness. No light to show that the path led anywhere.
However, there was a sign pointing to it, saying that her own street- Crescent Lane- could be found at the end of it. Her eyes flashed with irritation as she realised that the trudge home using the normal route could take anywhere between five minutes and an hour. And a glance upwards at the rapidly falling snow was enough to make her consider the risky option.
She pursed her lips in thought.
On one hand, the alleyway was dark and looked pretty dangerous. Not to mention, she couldn't see another soul for miles. Everyone was bundled up in their own homes by their cozy fires. Like she could have been, had she paid any attention to the time.
"Stupid," she muttered to herself, tugging at the ends of her hair in a futile attempt to shake out the flaky white substance falling from the sky.
