Noah walked along a beach with white sand and black water. The waves kissed the shore and moved back with a gentle rush. But, unlike every other time, he was on the wrong side. He no longer stood with his toes buried in the sand or jogged at the edge where the water moved in. This time, he was knee-deep in the black ocean itself.
He watched himself trudge through the waves, an outsider viewing his own body. But, as he followed himself down the shore, Noah realized it was not really him he was watching.
The Noah who was not him turned around, smiling a smile that was much too wide for his face. "So, you noticed?" His amber irises were surrounded by black instead of white. "Thank you for finally opening up to me. I appreciate that."
A sickening feeling prickled Noah's stomach, like badly digested food. He did not speak. He could not speak.
The other Noah went on, wearing a sardonic expression. "You do not have to worry about anything. Your sadness, your pain, and your anger, give them all to me." He clasped his hands over his chest, the skin marred with darkness until his elbows. "I shall remove the source of these feelings for you. I will destroy them. I will stop your suffering once and for all. You need not despair any more because it was never your fault to begin with."
Noah watched in silence as his counterpart neared the shore. He did not climb up all the way, rather he waded in the shallow parts just before the sand.
Some part of him wished to stop this...monster. This thing which resided within him. But, once again, Noah could not muster the strength to speak back. He could not find the heart to refute him. He could only stare at his murky reflection in the water, at his pitiful face.
Perhaps all this time, those were the exact words he had wished to hear.
It was never your fault.