Another night. Another night spent by herself, alone in her own home. Another night curled up on her bed clinging to a pillow. Another night with her mind scattered, lost among the muck and tumultuous voices dragging her own consciousness further into the void.
Lumine got away. He’ll be back to finish the job.
Or Blackout will gladly take care of that. He’s still out to make you suffer, make your friend suffer, just imagine what he has in store for you.
And you’re so weak. You couldn’t keep yourself safe from them both. Your time is going to run out. And by the looks of it, it could be very soon.
Jayden buried her face more into the pillow nearly suffocating herself to silence those demons taunting her. No matter how far she pushed, how many pillows she held to, or brighter memories she mustered they’d be squelched before their embers burned.
Don’t forget that weight you now carry. The little coin, the letter, they’re coming back...and will make your life even more miserable.
“That’s enough!” She shouted aloud in a darkened, silent room. If nothing else would work then Jayden resorted to one last treatment. Legs threw her from the bed to the closet, and from it the human pulled a sleek, dark blue electric guitar along with a small speaker. Volume up all the way, a quick tuning, then Jayden blasted away those teasing voices and broke away their thoughts with ones of her own.
“It used to feel like a fairy tale
Now it seems we were just pretending
We'd fix our world
And on our way to a happy ending”
“Then it turns out life
Is far less like a bedtime story
Then a tragedy with no big reveal
Of the hero's glory”
“And it seems we weren't prepared
For a game that wasn't fair
Do we just go home?
Can we follow through?
When all hope is gone
There is one thing we can do”
“Let's just live
Day by day
And not be conquered by our sorrows
The past can't hold us down
We must break free
Inside we're torn apart
But time will mend our hearts
Move onward, not there yet
So let's just live”
Her hands rocked out to the melody, fingers gliding across those strings not even caring about how much her own body shook. Jayden moved across from her room to the living area, stepping down hard on the coffee table and leaning down while bleeding the chords out from her instrument. Teeth gritted hard, hands clenched on the neck, and eyes shut tight. Her whole body slowly melded into one with this sorrowful song.
“Can we get back to a happy place?
We've suffered so much pain and sorrow
After yesterday, is there any way
We can trust tomorrow?”
“Will we go through life filled with strife
Like it's torn and tattered?
Can we keep this up
When we know that every hope has shattered?
And the lesson isn't new
That some dreams just can't come true”
“When it finally falls
And the battle's through
When our faith is gone
And there's nothing left to lose”
“Let's just live
Day by day
And not be conquered by our sorrows
The past can't hold us down
We must break free
Inside we're torn apart
But time will mend our hearts
Move onward, not there yet
So let's just live”
Now, a calm. A quiet but one that didn’t last for long. Her shaking hands gently strummed the chords for this bridge and Jayden straightened out. She noticed how aggressively her body moved during that verse. A few pictures got knocked but not broken, some books on the floor, and her feet were tangled in the cord. Carefully Jayden moved out of the coils towards the open window area near the door leading to the balcony.
The stars glittered up above, some moving because of aircraft while others shined bright down on their city.
“When it feels like there's nothing
Worth living for
Everything is broken
The light's not there anymore”
All still, as the reporter mustered her strength to pronounce the rest of the song with a clear voice. Despite those tears clogging and obstructing her vision, her voice would not deter now.
“And the story
Takes an unexpected turn
A friend is suddenly gone
We can cry our lives away
But if they were here
They'd say
"Go forward
You must keep moving on"’
What followed next...were wails. Wails of pain, wails of sorrow, wails of guilt, wails of anger. So many emotions, too many to handle all at once mixed together in a violent, boiling kettle about to burst. They grew louder, more strenuous, even more choking for the human. Jayden couldn’t stop it, nor would she stop it. She had enough.
Enough of this pain, enough of this suffering, enough of fear, enough of having to live in fear. Fear of her own life, fear for the lives she encountered every day, the lives of her new friends, those who truly did care for her. Enough of it all!
Her mind didn’t even register how her body flew out the doors and onto the balcony, or how her fingers stretched so far to strike those strings. But there she stood, the melody of her song echoing across the rooftops and bouncing off the steel sidings of the buildings. She didn’t care who or what heard her. Tears stung, dripped down her reddened cheeks and just splashing on those strings.
All of this had to be free.
“Let's just live
Just one day
Let's forget about our problems
Let's fall in love with life
And just be free”
“The sun will never fade
The night won't steal our day
“Let's dance and laugh and love
And let's just live”