Only Twenty Wishes

The little bell at the door jingled as I quickly took refuge in a dingy shop across the street. The warm atmosphere gave immediate relief to my damp head and shivering body. I rubbed my arms together to generate some form of heat, as I watched the raindrops flow down the transparent door in jagged rivulets, and then finally getting soaked into the murky ground.

"Ms?"

I jumped at the voice and turned around to see an old lady crouched low on a supporting stick. She was wearing a weirdly printed long skirt and a buttoned up sweater. Her wrinkly face stared up at me, her arms slightly shaking. A pair of round spectacles rested on her slightly crooked nose and her silky, silver hair were tied up in a high bun.

"I...uh...I was just..." I helplessly pointed outside at the rain to explain that I had just come in for shelter.

She craned her neck to look behind me once, and then without another word, disappeared back into a room at the very back of the little store.

As soon as she was gone, I inspected my surroundings. The dim glow of the yellow lights formed ominous shadows on the numerous antique objects displayed on the shelves all around. The dark brown wooden shelves were layered with dust, as if the lady hadn't had any customers in years. Then again, considering the state of the store, I wouldn't be surprised why.

The wooden floor creaked beneath my shoes as I moved towards a certain row of shelves, my eyes locked on a glowing object I had last seen years ago. It was the only object in the room that didn't have dirt settled on it's surface.

The rim of the hexagonal music box gleamed a soft shade of gold. Shockingly enough, the unusual glowing box didn't surprise me. The alluring black and gold stripes around it reminded me of how obsessed I used to be with it.

How obsessed I still am.

I slowly raised my hand and caressed the lid of the box which was embossed with intricate rose gold floral designs.

Just as I was about to open it, I sensed a glare penetrating the right side of my head. I turned to my right and saw the old lady standing at the end of the row, merely eight feet away from me. Her eyes were glazed over with the age old cataract, I noticed. They looked at me with a strong intensity that sent chills down my spine.

For a second, I thought she would chastise me for touching something so precious, so priceless. But then suddenly, she turned around and slowly hobbled away, out of my sight.

I was a bit unnerved.

Did I do something wrong?

I looked back at the shining music box and finally, without any further hesitation, opened it up. A string of euphonious music filled the room, as a small circular platform slowly raised from it's bottom. A hideous figure of a ballerina emerged at the top, spinning along with the rhythm of the song.

All ten of her toes had been cut down haphazardly, as if the person couldn't properly make out where her toes ended. Her fingers were similarly missing, except for one. That one index finger was pointing straight at a window, visible from where I was standing.

The sirens wailed loudly as I looked at the entangled mess of limbs on the road, covered in deep crimson fluid. Her head was crushed and her eyes...her eyes shone with absolute shock and horror. The glass shards lay around her body like decorative pieces. It looked so beautiful. So peaceful.

I blinked back the memory as another one surfaced.

"Deep scars on the face has left the body unrecognisable. Multiple stab wounds suggest the work of an extremely dangerous psychopath." The news channel displayed the blurred image of his body. I sighed contently as I changed the channel to an even more positive one.