Don't Fall Asleep

Chapter 2

Asleep

Sunday. July 20, 2014. 10:37 PM

The girl had fallen asleep as soon as she got home and laid on her bed. She had tried to fight it, but only for a brief moment. Humans couldn't live without sleep, and she knew that. So why did she still try? It was completely pointless and a waste of time.

We had the same body and soul, but our minds were completely different. We shared the same brain, but each of us had access to different parts so we couldn't remember what happened to the other while they were conscious. I took over during the sleeping state, and her, awake.

I got up off the bed and took a deep breath, listening carefully to my surroundings. Since I had no sight, my other senses were heightened. I could see with my hands, ears, and nose rather than my eyes. I wasn't sure what my other half did while she was conscious, I didn't really care, but I liked to spend my nights exploring and learning about the world. I valued knowledge more than anything.

Takings few steps towards the door, I tripped on what felt like a wire and landed on my face. I could sense the other girl gaining consciousness and control of our body, so I forced her into a deeper sleep. She wasn't the only one who could play the game of forcing the other out of consciousness.

There was a young boy who lived in this house that often awoke while I was leaving, calling out a name. Zena, I think it was? I assumed that was the name my other half was given. As I lay on the floor, I listened carefully to make sure he hadn't woken up. I slowly got back on my feet after a few minutes and continued out of the room and down the stairs, careful not to fall again.

Once I was outside, I took in the smell and feel of the summer night's air. It was easier to walk around outside during summer because the nights weren't as cold as fall and winter. After enjoying a moment of pleasure, I turned left. The night before, I had gone right. Each night I went out, I changed direction so I could explore new things rather than the same things.

I walked straight down the street for a while, five or so minutes, before turning left again. About one block down that road, I stopped. My nose was overwhelmed with the beautiful scent of my favourite flowers, tulips. I turned my head towards where the smell was coming from and walked towards it. I ended up in someone's garden, smelling and feeling all the different flowers.

They all smelt absolutely wonderful. Daisies, roses, and of course, tulips. I grabbed a few of each and made myself a bouquet. This would make my night walk much more enjoyable. After grabbing two of each, I was on my way.

I ended up just out of the downtown area, being drawn there by the sound of other humans. I had never explored downtown, only the area around it because I feared that the other girl would awaken if there was too much noise. I always ended up listening from a distance.

After exploring a while longer, I decided to head back, taking a route I never had before. I was only an hours walk away from the neighbourhood my body lived in and my sense of direction was better than most peoples, so I was never really afraid of getting lost. Still, nearly two hours later, I still hadn't reached my destination.

It must have been getting pretty close to sunrise because I felt my control over my body starting to fade. Since it was summer, sunrise was really early, but that's usually when I started to lose consciousness and my other half would wake up. The night before I had made the mistake of going somewhere that was familiar to my other half and she took control earlier than usual.

Stumbling down the street I was on, I hoped my other half would know where we were when she awoke. It was the first time I'd ever been lost. As long as she knew where we were, it wouldn't really matter much. I walked for a few more minutes before hearing another set of footsteps walking behind me. I turned around and they stopped. I listened carefully, but heard nothing.

Out of nowhere, I was suddenly grabbed. I had my ankles and wrists tied behind my back before I could respond and I was pushed to the ground, dropping my bouquet. Unable to get back up, I laid there, completely defenceless, waiting for my capturer to do whatever they were going to do to me. Next thing I knew, they were dragging me by the collar of my shirt.

As my consciousness slowly started fading, my senses were no longer heightened. This is when I would usually stop walking around and lay down, waiting for the other girl to take over, but I didn't have control over what was happening to my body anymore. Finally, the person stopped dragging me.

I was thankful that my senses were no longer heightened, because a sudden sickening smell invaded my nose. I started gagging and holding my breath, hoping to block the horrid smell out. My hands and feet were untied, and I heard my capturer run, their footsteps fading in the distance. I felt around, trying to find the source of the smell.

My hand fell into some sort of liquid. At first, I thought it was water. Then I realized it was warm and when I raised my hand out of it, it was sticky. I tried to think of what it was, but the awful smell was making it hard to think clearly. I was developing a pounding headache. Feeling around some more, I found something solid and cold. A moment later, I jumped back at a sudden realization.

I was sitting next to a dead body in a pool of blood.

I regretted not letting the other girl regain consciousness back at her home.