OVERSHADOWING DARKNESS
1138 Words
Her Wound, His Heart
Chapter Four
A Shadow in the Dark
Rose’s POV
Rose’s nights had grown heavier. Sleep no longer brought her peace—it dragged her into darkness where faceless figures whispered her name. Each morning she woke with damp hair, shivering as if the nightmare had followed her into daylight.
Her aunt noticed.
“Are you sick again, Rose?” she asked one morning, sliding a bowl of hot porridge toward her.
Rose only nodded faintly, forcing herself to swallow even as her stomach churned. She thought she saw her aunt’s lips curl into the faintest smile, but when she looked again, her face was calm, almost kind.
At school, her weakness did not go unnoticed.
“She looks like a ghost,” one girl whispered loudly.
“Cursed child,” another added, stifling laughter.
The words cut sharper than blades. Rose lowered her gaze and hugged her books tighter.
But this time, before the mockery could spread, a voice sliced through the noise.
“Enough.”
The crowd parted, startled. Rachel stood there, calm but unyielding. Her eyes—dark, steady—locked on the group of bullies.
“If you have nothing better to do than spit poison, find someone else to waste it on.”
Her tone carried a quiet authority that needed no shouting. One by one, the whispers faded, and the bullies slipped away.
Rose kept her head down, but her heart beat strangely in her chest. No one had ever spoken for her like that—no one except her best friend, Rachel.
The rest of the day dragged, each tick of the clock pulling her closer to nightfall—the time she dreaded most. By the final bell, her body was heavy with exhaustion. She avoided Rachel’s concerned eyes and slipped out early, her legs carrying her to the quiet edge of the school grounds where shadows stretched long.
There, beneath an old tree, she sat. The world dimmed as evening fell, the air thick with the silence that always came before her nightmares. She wrapped her arms around herself, whispering,
“Don’t sleep. Don’t close your eyes.”
Tears slid down her cheeks as she shivered.
Unseen by her, Rachel and Linda leaned against a wall a short distance away. They did not move closer, did not speak. They only watched—steady as sentinels in the growing dark.
Rose shivered again, her eyes darting around as though sensing something. But instead of fear, a strange calm brushed her heart. She did not know why, but the shadows felt less heavy tonight.
And though she never turned to see them, her friends stayed until it was quite dark.
Finally, Linda whispered, breaking the silence.
“Are we just going to stand here and keep watching?”
“Her story seems true,” Rachel replied, ignoring the question.
“I can see that… let’s go closer. She’s shivering.”
“Did you hear what she said earlier?” Rachel asked.
They walked forward slowly. Rose noticed the shadows behind her and turned, startled, to see her friends standing there.
“What are you both doing here?” Rose asked, quickly wiping her tears. Strangely, her trembling stopped the moment she saw them. Hope returned to her face.
“How long have you been here?” she asked with a faint smile.
“For as long as you’ve been telling yourself not to sleep,” Rachel answered.
Rose’s face fell. “So… you heard everything.”
“It was loud enough,” Linda said gently.
“Now tell us, Rose,” Rachel asked firmly. “How can we help?”
“I don’t know.” Rose shook her head, breaking down again. “I’m confused. I don’t even know what to do—or who to run to. I’m so tired.”
“This is serious,” Linda whispered.
Rose let out a broken laugh through her tears. “I literally can’t sleep anymore. Because once I do—it’s the same story, the same nightmare. I’m dying, Rachel. Linda—I’m dying! Please, if you can help me, help me.”
“Then tell us how,” Rachel pressed.
Linda frowned, half in disbelief. “I’m still trying to understand how a human can live without sleep. If I miss even one night, I’d go mad.”
“That will not be Rose’s portion,” Linda added quickly, as if in prayer. “So, what’s the way forward? Where do we start?”
“Let’s start from somewhere,” Rachel said. “What about your aunt? Did you tell her?”
“She promised to look into it. But she hasn’t said anything since,” Rose whispered.
Linda shook her head. “This isn’t just a normal problem. We’re talking about something spiritual here. What can she really do?”
“If it were my mom, she would have acted already,” Rachel muttered.
“Acted how?” Linda asked curiously.
“Maybe asked people about it—or taken me to the temple,” Rachel said. Then she turned to Rose. “I suggest we meet a monk. What do you think?”
Rose blinked, waiting for Linda’s opinion.
“Here,” Rachel said softly, handing her a white handkerchief. “You’ve dirtied your face.”
Rose took it but barely wiped herself. “Forget my face. What’s the plan?”
“I think we should visit the temple first,” Linda said at last.
“Alright, but which temple? Our local one is closed,” Rachel asked.
“That won’t be a problem,” Linda replied. “My mom said the Huo Temple will be open this weekend. It’s the perfect chance.”
“Really? That’s good news.” Rachel nodded. “So, when do we go?”
“Let’s go on Friday, please,” Rose pleaded.
“Friday works,” Linda agreed. She gave a small laugh. “Besides, I wouldn’t want to bump into my mom there.”
“So Friday it is,” Rachel confirmed.
“Yes,” the three girls chorused, their voices carrying a fragile but determined hope into the night.
For a brief moment, the weight on Rose’s chest lifted. She managed a small, genuine smile—the first in weeks. Her friends’ presence was a light in her darkness.
When they finally rose to leave, the Rose remained still.
Rachel turned and noticed Rose wasn't moving. "Afraid to leave?"
Rose nodded in affirmation. "I'm afraid of sleep."
"But, you still need it," Linda said.
"You're right, I can't fight nature," Rose breath down. "let's go."
As they left their footsteps faded into the distance, a low whisper from Linda curled into the air—words only them could hear:
“Friday… i hope the temple will help us.”
- Writer
