The Dunce …

Just as she had requested, music was playing softly in the background. This time, Mike Shinoda was murdering those bars as he sang away;
“I fall to the floor like I did before,
Stop watching, I’m coughing I can’t be more,
What I want and what I need are at a constant war,
Like a well full of poison, a rotten core,
The blood goes thin and the fever stings,
And I shake from the hell that habit brings,
Let the sick ones down the bells will ring,
Put pennies on the eyes let the dead men sing …”
Blackbirds- Linkin Park

As that verse came to a wrap, the doctor walked into the room, pulled a seat next to her bed, sat down and looked at her. He then put his hand on her arm and said gently, ‘You or the baby will survive; not both. I’m sorry.’ Her eyes were fixated at the doctor who seemed to be disappearing into the horizons of empty space being further sucked in thanks to the power of the black hole.

Her immediate struggle was to keep insanity at bay while trying to tempt sanity to stay a little while longer. Soft shadows danced upon her walls like old friends. These shadows danced to romance her already dead soul as though to serenade her into the land of unknown darkness. These shadows spoke to her, close to her heart but far from the ears. She paid close attention, costly as it was.

So they spoke, ‘Baby girl, I know the feeling of being damned alone, I’ve got a storybook of my own. Take it from me, I am the agent of wealth and you, you my friend are the bearer of needs. Make your needs known.’

‘Take my life, let not light touch my face again. We can chase the dark together.’ She replied.

‘What led to all these?’ The Shadows enquired.

‘A while back, I danced with the devil. I gave him my heart and he gave me his word. He said forever, even when thrown into the bottomless pit, he will have his demons and evil angels guard me. All I had to do was to pay the price. The price was blood. The blood that comes from the five stars around me. That was: my mom, dad two brothers and most loved friend.’ She paused.

‘He told me, his number of perfection is less one that which a righteous man has to fall and get back up and the five stars hadn’t accomplished that. He said that my life will pay for the deficit. I agreed. For fear of loneliness, after my five stars had gone, I adapted this child and I have grown to love him. He is part of me. I have made enough sacrifices and now its my time; the devil says it is either me or the baby to survive. Take my life!’ She passionately explained.

‘We both know the devil is a liar.’ The Shadows replied. ‘About taking care of you, he didn’t lie. However, about your life paying for the deficit, he lied.’ The Shadows finished.

‘One more thing. the devil says he can’t promise you paradise, so there’s no need to serve on your knees. So when you’re lost in the darkest of hours, take a moment and tell me who you see, won’t tell you who not to be!’ Then they disappeared.

At that, the weakness that the sickness had caused, was no longer there. There was no more reason to hold her in a ward. She was back at full strength. And just at that moment, the doctor walked into the room and told her, ‘I’m sorry, the child you once called a baby is dead!’

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