Chapter 2

• FIVE YEARS LATER.
• SYBIL POV.
• "You really need to try to smile more".
• "I already agreed to follow you to this stupid resort, so I don't think you should be complaining about my smile or the lack of it" I snapped, and increased the car's speed.
• Kushi grabbed at her seatbelt, her eyes darting between me and the road. "Hey, slow down, we'll get into an accident at this rate, and if we are dead, we won't be there for the welcome party, you know that right."
• "I couldn't possibly care about that kushi. I didn't want anything to do with the resort in the first place, which FYI, is in the middle of freaking nowhere".
• "Well, it's not literally in the middle of nowhere, and your GPS is one of the best," she said showing me the map on my phone that she held. "We are on the right path, so you don't have to worry about us getting lost..."
• Her voice sounded like a buzzing in my ears as I remembered the last time I drove like this. It was when I and Dian had gone on a road trip together. He'd cheered me on all the way. We'd been living life recklessly as if we would never die. It had been just us, against the damned world... My vision fogged up.
• "You are scaring me, Sybil, you need to slow the fuck down!" Kushi yelled and I stepped on the break without thinking. The terrible sound of screeching made me flinch and it was only by a miracle that the car did not flip over.
• The car stopped, and I gasped as we were flung forward, the only thing that held us back was the seatbelt.
• Kushi looked at me, her eyes blown wide out of proportion. "You are freaking never driving me anywhere, ever"
• "I'm sorry... " I started to say when I noticed that my phone was no longer in her hand. "Where is my phone?" I asked, the amount of panic that crept up my chest almost choking the little air I was getting in the first place.
• Kushi looked around. "I don't know. The window was rolled down, and everything happened so fast, it might have flown out of my hand".
• I wanted to scream. I yanked my seatbelt off and shoved the door open. Grasses flagged both sides of the road. The car had veered into the bushy path during the accident.
• Kushi came out. "What are you doing?".
• "I am looking for my fucking phone" I choked out, my eyes fogging up as I searched blindly among the ankle-length grasses, the ache in my chest growing to the point of pain.
• ******
• It was getting darker, yet I couldn't find the phone. I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream.
• "We need to leave Sybil, it's getting darker. Let's just forget about the phone. We can use my phone's map. It is also good".
• My gaze snapped to those of Kushi. "I know your phone has a GPS Kushi. I just need my freaking memory card. This isn't about the phone" I forced out of my throat.
• Kushi scratched her neck then kicked at the sand, then gasped, bending down to pick something up. "I found it" she yelled, her voice filled with exhilaration.
• I was snatching the phone from her in a blink. The screen was utterly trashed, so I just dismantled it and got out my memory card, got a flash drive, and placed it inside.
• Kushi watched me, the question in her eyes burning into my skull, but I avoided her gaze, not in the mood to dig through my feelings. I already spent hours doing that with my therapist every other week.
• We both got into the car. I turned on the ignition. The engine started, then died almost immediately. I tried five more times, then hit the wheels angrily, and resisted the urge to smash my head against it too.
• "You were a lot calmer five years ago" kushi voice reached me and I refused to meet her gaze.
• "Well people change. I am not a doll with no emotions".
• "I didn't say you were, but these days, it's like you're on a short fuse. You explode to the littlest of provocation. Your doctor said you needed to rest... "
• "Which is exactly what I'm trying to do, but since we are stuck in the middle of nowhere, I don't see that happening anymore" I gritted, then flinched as the sky rumbled all of a sudden. "Great, like we didn't have enough problems".
• Kushi sighed. "Stop being so pessimistic. I am sure we'll be fine".
• My fingers gripped the steering harder. "And how are we going to be fine? Look around you, there's nothing but grasses for miles, and we haven't seen any car since we got on this cursed road."
• Kushi pushed the door open.
• "Where are you going?" I got out, my voice laced with panic.
• "We should take some of our stuff and look for a gas station or an auto shop. There is no cell service here" she said looking at her phone.
• "It's going to rain. I think it's better we just stay in the car".
• Kushi rolled her eyes. "You used to be so adventurous. Well, stay here then, if you want to. I'll go get us help".
• I sighed, picked up my bag, and got out of the car. Kushi grinned at me, and as much as I wanted to return the smile, I felt too raw to do it. The wind picked up, the cloud getting gloomier.
• We'd walked a mile when we saw a car approaching. Kushi went crazy, yelling and screaming for the car to stop.
• I sighed in relief when it finally did. It was a beautiful black limo, so I guessed it was one of those rich guests that were heading to the resort.
• The door opened and the interior looked so cozy it was insane. A pretty lady smiled at us.
• "Are you heading to the resort? Was that your car a mile back?" She asked, her gaze fixed on me.
• Kushi rushed forward, almost elbowing me in the process. "Yes, that was our car. It just suddenly died on us and now we are stranded. My feet are freaking numb already".
• "Well, you can ride with us and when we get to the resort I guess the management will find a way to get your stuff. I'm Helaena by the way" she introduced as she waved us in.
• Kushi turned to seek my consent and then went inside when I hesitated. I followed her into the car. It was not as if we had a lot of options anyway.
• "You are so nice. You're practically helping us when you don't even know us".
• "Well you both look pretty harmless" she replied vaguely. "Also, we recently invested in the resort, and we want only good reviews about it, and we won't get that if our guests are stranded with no means of finding their way."
• I exhaled tiredly. Helaena touched my thigh and my gaze snapped to hers. "Do not worry about your car. It will be taken cared of".
• Kushi scoffed. "She was planning to trash the car and now that it did this, I'm sure Sybil won't be riding it ever. She hates things that fail her"
• "Kushi" I called in a warning and she gave me an incomprehensive look. I turned my gaze to Helaena. "You keep saying we. Who are you referring to?"
• "My boss. I'm a glorified assistant" she joked but I was too stressed to even smile.
• "Where's your boss?" Kushi asked, and Helaena pointed to a covered figure beside me. I jumped, for the first time noticing the body sprawled beside me. "Jesus Christ! What the hell" I got out, my hands clutching at my ribs.
• Helaena shushed me, a serious look on her face. "Please, don't yell. He doesn't like to be disturbed when he's sleeping".
• I looked at the figure, then at Helaena. "But we've been talking since we got in".
• "Earbuds" she explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
• I stared at the figure, unable to draw my gaze away. The body shifted, the blanket slipping a little to reveal a tattooed hand, and my gaze snapped back to kushi who was still talking animatedly with Helaena.
• I rubbed at my face. What had I been expecting? His hands... they were almost the same proportion as Dian's, just that he was more buffed up, and there was the tattoo. Dian didn't have any. His height... It was exactly like Dian's... How could I tell tho since he was literally covered up? I needed to stop before I drove myself insane with both anger and longing.
• It's been five years, and no matter how much I wanted answers to all my unanswered questions, I knew they would never come. Dian was gone. He'd disappeared never to return and I had to deal with it. I had to move on, because it was either that or drive myself insane and do something like looking for him, then shooting him in the chest with an automatic weapon before he even had a chance to plead his case. Gods, I hated him so much, yet, I couldn't stop obsessing over him. This had to end. I was going to end this. Once and for all.