Dream Shop

Life and death is separated by a thin line. Staying alive is very hard, but dying is very easy.
Reid had to wonder if living were just that—life and death. Had he known it would result to this, would he still have had the courage to grab her hands and run out of that house? Seeing the horror in her eyes as he plummeted into the water below, Reid regretted every single decision he had made.

When that gun was fired, he could almost see the bullet spiraling toward him as if time had slowed down. But strangely enough, he couldn’t prevent it from piercing through the skin that had endured years of hardships. The warmth from her tiny hands slowly faded away in the cold of the surging river, pulling him further under. Reid struggled to resurface, forcing his muscles to work, but the wound that had begun to dye the water around him red, deprived him of the last drop of his strength. Reid screamed but all his throat could manage to do was making gurgling noise as the water choked him, drowning his consciousness.

He failed about, clutching his throat. All was in vain. He was slowly slipping away from reality, he knew. His vision had begun to blur in irregular blotches. Reid heard his name—a terrified scream aching in his ears. Through heavy eyelids, he could see the waves lapping above him, blue and sparkling with sunlight. Then through it all, was a figure.

“Jeanne,” he said, but what came out was a stream of bubbles.

He forced his eyes open, longing to see her lovely face once more. Reid, out of desperation, reached out his hand as if begging his beloved to hold on. Through the blind of waves, he caught a flicker of a smile. The smile didn’t belong to Jean.

“Dear boy,” the voice was smooth against the roar of the river. “What would you like me to do with that hand?”

His heart dropped with disappointment when he realized it wasn’t Jeanne he was seeing after all. Of course it couldn’t be her. Jeanne couldn’t possibly have the ability to stand on the surface of the water without sinking. Jeanne couldn’t possibly stare down at his drowning body with an impassive expression, without a hint of emotion betraying her façade.

Who are you? He thought.

As if she could hear his thought, the woman with strange lilac eye spoke again, “Who I am does not matter. What I want to know is whether you are satisfied with dying in this place.”
Reid at first was surprised by the vivid voice in his head. Then he sneered, “What does my life have anything to do with you.”

She stared down at him, her eyes twinkled with amusement. “Oh, no, I don’t. But someone very close to you has requested you saved.”

Reid’s head continued to pound harder. He knew he wouldn’t be able to stay conscious much longer. The strange woman bent down and touched the water with the tip of her finger. A tremble stirred through the water, pushing Reid back slightly. Her feet dipped into the water, then her torso, and then her entire being was submerged under water. What was more shocking of all, Reid observed, was her hair, which was flowing elegant down her back, instead of shooting into a millions rays as hair should when under water.

She sauntered to where he was floating, her steps filled with grace and ease. Each step she took was steady and strong, as if the place she treaded on was made of solid ground. It was only when she stopped to look down at him that he realized he had stopped sinking.
He was still underwater, but he could breathe now. Feeling quite daring, he tried to sit up. I sting shot through his shoulder and he groaned in pain.

“I wouldn’t try that if I were you,” she advised. “You are in my ethereal space, not a dream. This is still part of reality.”

“You…” he gasped. “What are you?” His voice was accusing, but she didn’t seem to mind.

“If you must know—I am a witch. My name is Estrella.

“What do you want? Eat my heart? Gouge out my eyes? I’m dead now anyway”

She chuckled at this and raised a slender finger to her lips. “Funny how you humans seem to assume that witches are cannibalistic creatures.”

He frowned at her. “You don’t look like a witch to me,” he resumed, as if he had not heard her. “Do you want to take my soul?”

“Again, witches aren’t all unsightly,” she said with much patient. “You better not speak at all in the presence of another witch. You are quite fortunate it is me.”

“What I want to know,” she began, her tone taking on a serious note, “is your desire. I will fulfill one of your wish.”

“What wish?” he said mockingly. “Can’t you see that I am dead?”

“No. No, you’re not,” she confirmed. “Not yet. But if you continue to be stubborn, in a matter of minutes, you will reduce to nothing.”

She bent down and placed her hand on his forehead. Reid thrashed about to avoid her, but the moment he stared into those lilac irises, his core melted, his determination crumbled away.

“Someone you love wants you to live,” she said. “Do not waste her sacrifice for you.”

His eyes widened in realization. A single name appeared in his mind. Jeanne. The name rang like a painful memory.

“Jeanne,” he muttered. “Jeanne. What happened to her?”

She smiled in satisfaction and released her grip on him. “Do you want to find out?’

“Yes, I want to know,” his voice came out without him knowing how. “Let me see her just one more time.”

“If that is what you wish for,” she echoed. “But first, let’s have some tea.”