LOOKING TROUGH YOUR EYES

CHAPTER 1

It was Sunday morning, Sheryl got up early, very excited because her father would come to pick her up. That day was special, it was her birthday, she would turn 13.

Things had been like this for the last ten years, since she was a sweet little three-year-old, her parents had divorced and she had ended up living with her mother; she loved her very much, and enjoyed spending time with her, but missed her father too, since she only saw him once every fifteen days. She would always get ready early in the morning so that as soon as her father arrived they’d go out and take advantage of every second of the day to have fun and talk about everything that had happened since the last time they saw each other. Sheryl always waited for him with a huge smile; although, lately, there was something that bothered her: her father had met Melany, a very young widow known for always appearing in scandal magazines, she did not have children, but people spoke badly of her because, although nobody knew the truth with certainty, they commented that she had already had 10 marriages and all the men she had been with had apparently died of "natural causes" or had disappeared without leaving the slightest trace; no one knew about Melany's past, everyone remembered her as that sexy young lady who one day came to town with a pink briefcase and a face so tender that it’d melt their hearts, she told them that her father had thrown her out of her house because she had defended her mother, since he always came drunk and beat her. When they asked her what her last name was or who her father was, to put him in his place, she’d always answer “no, it is better to leave it that way. My father kicked me out of the house because I saw the moment he murdered my mother and he will do the same with anyone who knows the truth. " Nobody asked more, either because of the pain they felt when they saw how her eyes were filled with tears or because, many of them, were enraptured admiring the beauty of the young woman. Everyone seemed to blindly trust the girl's words, and there was no person in town who did not know who the pretty Melany was; or well, that's how it was at the beginning ...

At the wake after her first marriage, while everyone gave their condolences for her late husband, there was a very strange event that made their hair stand on end: children, as usual, played and ran around while parents talked saddened by the death of Louis, who had been mayor of the town for 3 years.

-          it’s very sad, he was barely in his late twenties, who would have imagined that his liver was so damaged – someone said

-          Well, I heard that when he was young, he’d organize a party at his house every week, and he always drank until he couldn't stand on his feet, that must be the reason, he must not have taken care of his health - commented others

But the truth is that none of them seemed to remember Louis's past well. They all had blurred memories of their encounters in town, but no one seemed to remember it well. Suddenly, a scream was heard from the sky, it was already midnight, but a white flash was born in the sky, it blinded everyone, well almost everyone. Adults got desperate because they couldn't see anything, but they heard that children kept running around as if nothing was happening, they kept playing and laughing. It lasted almost 10 minutes, people began to be alarmed, they looked for their children and shouted, they feared for their lives, they felt that "something" in the environment that terrified them. When this was all over, everyone ran to find their children:

-          are you ok? - parents asked their children worriedly

-          Yes, I was playing with my friends - answered the vast majority

Parents repeatedly asked their children whether they had seen anything or felt something strange, receiving a negative response over and over again; oh the exception of Ethan, a 1-year-old boy who couldn't even speak properly, his parents hugged him and try to feed him, but he wouldn't stop crying, he felt uneasy and you could see fear in his eyes.

At that time, Sheryl's parents were already married, but she was not yet born; Lindsey, her mother, had already been pregnant for 9 months, but for some reason her daughter refused to leave the womb.

Lindsey and Paul, her husband, were there too, as terrified and shocked as the rest. And even greater was their surprise when Ethan's parents approached them with the child in their arms, since he did not stop pointing at them and crying.

-          I don't know what he wants - said Alice, his mother - he just points at you and cries, he didn't even want to drink his milk.

-          Let me hold him, maybe it will calm him down a bit – said Lindsey

Alice gave her the baby, and he immediately stopped crying. He started laughing and he looked very calm, but suddenly, he seemed uncomfortable again. He hugged Lindsey very tightly, then began to cry again. Alice took him in her arms, the little one calmed down and fell asleep.

It was something very strange for both mothers, but they only managed to say goodbye politely and walked away.

Due to all the shock of the event, people had forgotten Louis's corpse, they were confused and it was as if they were not themselves, nobody said anything and everyone went back home as if some strange force was forcing them to walk, their gaze was lost and their steps seemed to be heading into the eternal void. Children did not claim to be kept away from their games. There was a gray sensation throughout the town.

The next morning, Lindsey woke up with severe pain. Her water had broken, she and her husband rushed to the hospital, where she gave birth to the cute Sheryl. She was a beautiful girl, with little blue eyes and golden hair. The doctor gave her a pat and she only emitted a soft moan, she began to breathe, but she did not cry. Already in her mother's arms, something seemed to bother her, she began to despair and her little eyes filled with tears, nurses did not know how to calm her down; suddenly, Paul's phone started ringing, he wanted to ignore it, but it rang and rang, it didn't seem like it was going to ever stop. He took the call:

-          Hello, who is it? – at the other end of the line a woman could be heard crying in the background, she seemed to regret something

-          Hello, this is Noah, Ethan's dad. We met yesterday in ... - said a thick voice that seemed to lose itself in a failed memory

-          Yes, I remember you, what do you want? - replied Paul, who was not very clear about his memory neither

-          Well, I wanted to inform you that my son passed away today, just a few minutes ago. But the strange thing was that… well, he was just learning to speak and this morning, when we went to wake him up, he was already awake and was looking at the ceiling. When we entered his room, he looked at my wife and said “Sheryl, take care of her. We need her”. My wife and I didn't understand anything, we asked him who Sheryl was and he told us it was the girl in Lindsey's womb. We were surprised, we left the room to talk and see if it was convenient to take him to the psychologist or something like that. When we went back inside, we found him with his eyes closed, my wife wanted to wake him up again for breakfast, but… when she touched him, his little body was cold and he had a wound on his right little finger. So far we don't know why that is. I thought it would be appropriate to warn you. Have a nice day.

Paul wanted to answer, but the call had already been ended.

-        who was that? - Asked Lindsey

-        Do you remember the baby you carried yesterday? Her father called, he says he passed away a few minutes ago.

-        What baby are you talking about? - asked the confused mother

-        I don't really remember him very well, but I think his name was Ethan

At that moment, the newborn calmed down and fell asleep suddenly in her mother's arms. The nurses and the little girl's parents were perplexed; no one could explain what had just happened. But nobody said anything.

A few minutes later, the nurse asked:

-           What's the girl's name? – she wanted to put it on her bracelet

-          Sheryl- the mother answered almost instantly. Paul looked at her somewhat strangely

-          but we never talked about her name - he protested.

-          Don’t you like it? - Asked Lindsey

-          It's not that, it's just… well, it's fine. It's a nice name - he finally said

The days passed and Lindsey was feeling better, the doctor told her it was time to go home. And so she did.

No one in the entire town seemed to have noticed the recent events. All adults carried out their normal lives, they hardly smiled and only got up to work. Children didn't even play anymore, many sat down to look at the wall, but parents didn't even notice. At schools the happy uproars of the little ones were no longer heard, everything looked gray and sad, birds did not sing in the trees and the animals did not come out of their burrows. Almost a month passed in this way, without anyone noticing anything.

One day everything began to return to normal, children laughed again, birds began to delight with their beautiful songs, and people seemed to come to themselves. But nobody remembered anything from Louis's wake, every time they tried to find some vague memory on their minds, they felt a strong headache and something around them happened, so they preferred to stop trying to remember. Many of them; however, were looking for Melany to ask her if she remembered anything. She did not seem to be anywhere, no one had seen her leave her house in days, some children looked in from the windows, but they could not see inside, it was as if there was a mirror in each window.

After a week of trying to communicate with her, they saw her at the store. She was wearing a miniskirt and her hair was disheveled, she seemed to have spent the night in the forest, her skin was pale and almost blue from the cold; her knees stained with mud and her little hands were full of dirt. But there was a smile on her face. It was no longer the innocent and tender smile that everyone remembered; looking into her eyes, they no longer saw the purity they remembered in her gaze; this time there was something different. If you asked anyone "what changed in Melany?" no one would know how to answer, but everyone knew something was wrong.

-          Where have you been, Melany? - Asked Liam, the owner of the store - we have all been looking for you at your house for a week. We were very worried - he added

-          Good morning, Liam - she said looking for a way not to answer the question. But seeing that her greeting received no response, she added - I was at home. I was very affected by Louis's departure.

There was a strange silence, everyone made an effort to remember something from "Louis". Many had already forgotten him, but some remembered that he was Melany's former husband; they tried to search for something else in their memory, but could not remember anything.

-          I understand - said Liam - but ...the children were looking in your windows, it seemed that no one was there. Also, it looks like you slept in the woods. By the way, do you want a hot cup of coffee? It seems like you are freezing

-          Yes, please. A cup of coffee would be very good for me - she sat down on a bench that was there and, with the cup of coffee in her hand, she began to say - I was at home, it’s just that I preferred to keep quiet and not talk to anyone for a while. That's why I covered the windows. As I told you a moment ago, Louis's departure was something very difficult for me ...

-          Speaking of which - interrupted a young man behind the counter, do you remember how the wake was? We all try to remember, but no one can explain how we got to our homes. We all remember being at your house at midnight and sunrise the next day at ours. And, to be honest with you, according to my calendar it's been over a month now, but I don't remember anything I did in that long. Also, I don't remember the funeral and….

Liam shut him up with a pat on the back. Everyone noticed Melany's discomfort, it seemed that at any moment she would start crying.

-          Leave the interrogation for another day, son - Liam said addressing the young man - don't you see that you make her uncomfortable?

-          Excuse me, miss - said the boy looking at Melany

-          Don’t worry. And excuse me, but I can't answer so many questions. I'm really trying to forget all of that

-          I understand - said the young man

People continued their shopping and Liam returned to the counter. Melany had her eyes lost in the coffee cup, she seemed to be thinking of something. Suddenly, Paul and his wife entered the little store, carrying their cute little girl in their arms.

-          Good morning Mr. Liam - said Lindsey

-          Good morning Melany - greeted Paul

-          Good Morning! - answered Melany and Liam in chorus.

Lindsey looked somewhat annoyed at her husband, but he didn't even notice, as he was so focused on Melany. Suddenly Sheryl, who was sleeping peacefully in her mother's arms, began to cry.

At that moment, Melany jumped to her feet, put the half-finished mug on the counter and ran out of the store saying:

-          Thank you very much for the coffee. I'll be back later for the shopping

-          Okay. Take care - Liam replied somewhat confused by the girl's sudden reaction

Lindsey tried to calm her little girl, but she kept crying for a long time. Paul did the shopping and they returned home.

When Sheryl was left in her crib, she calmed down and fell asleep.

-          It was very strange; you know ... how Melany reacted when the baby started crying - Lindsey said

-          You're right, she was very scared ...

-          Yes. And by the way. You must stop looking at her like a fool every time you two meet

-          Hahaha. I'll do it don’t worry. You know I only have eyes for you.

And he approached his wife to hug her.

Days continued to pass, and within a month Melany announced that she was going on a trip. Everyone in town went to see her off.

-          But, with what money will you travel? Where will you go? - Asked a lady somewhat concerned about the well-being of the young girl

-          Don't worry about that, I'll go to my cousin’s house - she answered drawing a smile on her lips

-          We wish you the best of luck! - shouted a group of young people in chorus - we will miss you very much

-          Thank you, me too. I will miss everyone in this beautiful town. I hope to come back soon

The bus Melany was leaving on departed, sped away, and everyone returned to their activities.