Be my sunflower and I will burn for you

Chapter 2: The boy who never died

"Wake up Mirra, it's late or else you will be late for college!" her mother yelled from downstairs.

She woke up rubbing her eyes.
"Coming mom!" she replied back, 'the same dream again' she thought. Every night she was having the same dream and it was becoming more and more tiresome for her than she imagined. In every dream, she found herself standing on a bridge, tears flowing through her eyes and then she jumps into the river with a smile on her face and wake up.

After taking a quick shower and changing into her college dress, she ran down the stairs to the dining area where her dad was reading the newspaper as usual and her mom was cooking sandwiches for her.
"You slept well, dear?" her dad spoke.
"Huh? Oh, yeah.. yeah dad" she lied as she didn't want her parents to be worried for her.

She picked up the newspaper her dad had just left after reading and starting turning the pages, heading towards the astronomy section. She loved stargazing and planets and everything about space, basically. She liked astronomy so much that it was the subject she took for completing her graduation. She was a student of astronomy college of Hembore (ACH) and was currently pursuing her career as an astronomer.
She looked down at the astronomy section-

Monday, November 1st, 2024

Star of the day: FOMALHAUT
Fomalhaut, designation Alpha Piscis Austrini is the brightest star in the constellation of Piscis Austrinus, the "Southern Fish", and one of the brightest stars in the sky. It is a class A star on the main sequence approximately 25 light-years from the Sun as measured by the Hipparcos astrometry satellite and famously known as "the loneliest star in the galaxy"

She was about to read more about it but was interrupted by her mom as she kept bagels and sandwiches for breakfast. She rolled the newspaper, kept it aside and continued with her breakfast.
After 10 minutes or so she stood up and realising that she is late for college ran upstairs to her room, picked up the neatly kept college bag and ran towards the main gate when she was stopped once more by her father this time-
"It's the first day of your college's second year, you have made your mom and me proud, Mirra and we both love you, just don't overdo yourself, okay? All the best", he said in a calm and warm manner with a wide and proud smile on his face.

"I know dad and I love you both too. Now, can I go? or I'll be late on my first day and that's on you" she said with a grin on her face and left.

The day was very clear today. The skies were blue and no clouds anywhere to be seen and even the sun rays felt warm and soothing in the November's cold. She walked towards the bus station that was located near her house from where she used to take a bus to her college every day.

She thought of what her dad said this morning about her parents being proud of her and she found herself smiling at this but stopped the very next moment as she looked around.
The bus station was unusually empty today. There were many cars and other vehicles, yes ... but there was no one apart from her there who was waiting for a bus or something.
'Maybe it's still early and that's why people haven't come out from their houses yet' she thought and the weather was also a bit breezy now, 'i should have brought a sweater along with me, why didn't I think of that? Stupid me' she was blabbering to herself.
She looked around for the bus and then she noticed someone. She wasn't alone. A homeless looking guy maybe in his late 20s or something was staring directly at her, his hair were a mess
Long and bushy and apart from that, dirty; and so was his beard.
He looked as if he hadn't eaten in a long time, his face had scratches all over it and his face was all bones. He was wearing a very dirty but fashionable looking coat and a white shirt (which was not so white now with all that dirt on him!).
She turned her gaze away not wanting to draw anymore attention but it was too late. The homeless guy has stood up and was now walking towards her like a walking dead vampire zombie who hadn't fed properly for a thousand years.
She was getting a bit uncomfortable now by the way this person was nearing her. When he came very close, she stood up and started backing off. Her hands reached her college bag as she cautiously took out her pepper spray which her mom gave her for her safety as she often came late from her college when it was considerably dark.
He was now just a feet away from her, She felt her heart racing, her breathing rose and a lump in her neck was making it hard for her to breath.
There was a very strange and weird look on this man's face as his eyes were wide open and barely blinking and he was somewhat shaking himself and she just got really scared at his fierce look, there was no time to call for help. She gathered all the power that she had and sprayed the pepper spray in his eyes and started running across the main road in order to reach the other side of it to get away from him.