Page 13 of Fear the Fall
Redemption
My feet shufflethrough the square, with no real plan of where to go next. People mill about, chatting and enjoying their time, if their laughter is any indication. All I feel is hollow.
Every shred of hope I’ve held on to was vanquished in an instant. Two words sealed my fate.You don’t.
My mind screams at me not to believe a word the heretic said, but my heart knows better. The woman wasn’t lying. She’s seen my future and it’s here on Earth. A place I don’t want to be. But I don’t have a choice. Free will isn’t something the fallen are given.
I did this.
A tear drips from my eye, but I don’t wipe it away. My feet continue their monotonous pounding of the pavement, with no real direction. My shoulder bumps into someone, but I don’t react as they yell, “Hey, watch where you’re going!” I’m on autopilot, just barely hanging on by a thread.
Someone walks by, leaning toward my ear. “I know who you are.” My head jerks up, but I only see the man’s retreating back. Another person bumps into my right shoulder and I turn to see a woman glaring down at me. Her face is distorted as my eyes blink. My vision is going in and out as though I’m looking through a kaleidoscope. “You’re not getting out of here,” the woman cackles.
“What?” I whisper, dazed and utterly confused by the warped imagery in front of me.
“Wh-who are you?”
The woman throws her head back and cackles louder. My hands fly to shield my ears from the piercing sound, just as someone else runs into my back, shouting for me to move the hell out of their way.
My body begins to shake as I rock back and forth on my heels. My head pivots from one side to the other, watching the crazed woman laughing while a man leers at me. My vision tunnels and I feel the world sway. I’m going down, being pulled under by a current that can’t truly exist on solid ground.
Before I hit, a strong pair of arms sweep me up and cradle me into a firm chest. I don’t care who this savior is, only that they deemed me worthy of being rescued in this moment. Tears run like a river down my face and into the shirt of that solid chest I cling to. The familiar scent of sandalwood should’ve tipped me off to the person I cling to.
Zeke.
“Shhh. I’ve got you, Tori.”
Of course it’s him. He’s always there when I need to be picked up off the ground. It’s been that way since day one. My instincts say it’s due to the ethereal pull we share, but something deep within questions that theory. I’m too fragile in this moment to examine any other possible reasons.
His strong legs carry us quickly to some unknown location. I don’t ask, because I don’t care. There isn’t a thing in this world I care about. Getting out has been the one sliver of hope I’ve held on to, and in a matter of moments, that hope’s been dashed to shreds.
“Put me down,” I whimper.
I’m grateful that he saved me from having an epic meltdown in the middle of Jackson Square for everyone to see, but now, I just want to be left alone.
“No. I’m making sure you’re okay.” He continues walking at a clipped pace.
“Leave me be, Zeke. I need space.”
“No.” It’s all he says in response, continuing to carry me like a child. His refusal to do the one thing I’ve asked has that last string of sanity snapping in half.
My fists begin to beat on his chest. “Let me down. Now!”
Zeke finally stops, lowering me to my feet. His firm hands grasp mine, which are balled into fists, holding me still.
“Please calm down. I’m trying to help.”
“I don’t want your help,” I snap. “Can’t you see that?”
He takes a deep breath, allowing my hands to drop to my side. “When I stumbled across you in the square, you looked two seconds away from a full-blown panic attack.” His hand runs back through his dark hair in frustration. “So forgive me if I misread the situation. I’ll leave you to handle things yourself.”
He stalks past me, heading God only knows where. He’s angry, and I can’t say I blame him. For whatever reason, he found me in my moment of weakness. If he hadn’t helped me, who knows where I’d be or what would’ve happened. It was out of pure embarrassment that I pushed him away, and the shame I feel for how I treated him hits me hard in the chest.
“Zeke,” I yell to his retreating back. “I’m sorry.” My shoulders sag in defeat. All the energy is drained from my body, the fight gone.
With my head lowered, I don’t see Zeke stop and head back in my direction.
“You can’t keep pushing me away like this, Tori. Friends don’t allow friends to break down in public. I only did what I thought you’d want.”