I Am Back

chapter 2

Natalie stood beside the bed, trembling.

She looked around the unfamiliar room.

Her breathing became faster.

“No.”

She shook her head.

“I need to go home.”

She looked toward the door.

“I need to find a way back home.”

She didn't know how.

She didn't even know where she was.

But standing there doing nothing wasn't going to help her.

Natalie quickly looked around the room.

There had to be something that could tell her who this woman was.

Her eyes landed on a handbag sitting on a small chair.

She grabbed it and began searching through it.

Receipts.

Coins.

A packet of tissues.

Lip gloss.

Nothing.

She searched the inner pocket and found a small plastic card.

Natalie pulled it out.

Her eyes fell on the name.

ANNA MILLER.

She stared at it.

“Anna Miller?”

She looked at the photograph.

It was the same face she was now wearing.

Natalie swallowed.

“So this is your name.”

She placed the ID on the bed and noticed a phone beside it.

She picked it up.

The screen was locked.

She almost groaned in frustration, but then she noticed the face recognition symbol.

She lifted the phone toward her face.

The screen unlocked immediately.

Natalie's eyes widened.

She opened the messages.

There were several missed calls.

Then she saw the messages.

Where is my money?

She scrolled.

You promised to pay.

Another message appeared.

This is your last warning.

Natalie's eyebrows pulled together.

She continued reading.

We know where you live. Don't make us come looking for you.

Her fingers stopped moving.

Someone was threatening Anna.

She scrolled through more messages.

The same thing appeared again and again.

Money, debt, warnings and threats.

Then she saw a message that made her sit down.

Your mother's hospital bills are not our problem. You borrowed the money. Pay it back.

Natalie stared at the screen.

Anna had borrowed money because of her mother's hospital bills.

Natalie slowly lowered the phone.

“Is this my life now?”

She looked around the small apartment.

Then something near the bed caught her attention.

A small packet lay on the floor.

She bent down and picked it up.

Medicine.

Her eyes moved across the floor.

There were more packets.

Some were empty.

Natalie's stomach tightened.

She looked toward the bed again.

Something white was sticking out from underneath it.

She crouched down and pulled it out.

It was a folded piece of paper.

Natalie opened it.

Her eyes moved across the first line.

"I'm sorry."

She continued reading.

"I don't know what else to do anymore. I'm tired of being afraid."

Natalie's face slowly changed.

The note continued.

"I borrowed the money because Mom needed treatment. I thought I could pay it back after I found work, but everything got worse after she died."

Natalie swallowed.

She read on.

"They keep threatening me. They said they will kill me if I don't pay. I'm scared. I don't want to die like this."

Her hands began shaking.

Then she reached the final lines.

"Mark, I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I couldn't wait anymore."

Natalie stared at the name.

Mark.

She looked at the phone again.

There were several messages from someone saved as Mark.

She didn't open them.

She couldn't.

The note had already told her enough.

Anna had taken the medicine.

Anna had killed herself.

Natalie slowly sat on the edge of the bed.

“She died.”

Her eyes moved toward the medicine scattered across the floor.

“She killed herself because they were going to kill her.”

A chill ran through her.

She looked around the apartment.

Then reality hit her.

She was inside Anna's body.

And those people didn't know Anna was dead.

They believed she was still here.

Natalie stood abruptly.

“I have to leave.”

She grabbed the phone.

“I need to find a way home.”

She didn't know how she would explain herself.

She didn't know how she could convince her parents that she was Natalie.

She didn't even know how she had gotten there.

But she couldn't stay in this apartment.

Someone could come looking for Anna at any moment.

Natalie moved toward the door.

Before she could reach it, she heard a key turning in the lock.

She froze.

The door opened.

A man walked inside.

He was wearing a dark shirt and jeans.

The strong smell of cigarettes followed him into the apartment.

He looked around.

“Anna?”

Natalie stood completely still.

The man saw her.

His face relaxed immediately.

He walked toward her without hesitation.

Natalie took a step back.

She didn't know him.

But the man clearly knew her.

Before she could ask who he was, he leaned forward and pressed a familiar kiss against her cheek.

Natalie froze.

He pulled back and looked at her.

“What was wrong with you?”

She stared at him.

The man frowned.

“You're acting strange.”

Natalie couldn't answer.

He looked at her for another moment, then casually asked,

“Did you get the money?”

At the Lancaster family cemetery, the rain had stopped, but the ground was still wet.

A crowd stood around the fresh grave.

Natalie's photograph stood beside the flowers.

Her smiling face looked completely wrong there.

She had always hated funerals.

She never imagined she would be the one inside the coffin.

Evelyn stood beside Richard, barely able to remain on her feet.

Her eyes were swollen from crying.

“My baby,” she whispered.

Richard held her tightly.

He looked at the coffin as if refusing to believe what was happening.

His daughter was inside it.

His only daughter.

The priest continued speaking, but Evelyn barely heard him.

She could only stare at the coffin.

Lucas stood a few feet away.

His head was lowered.

His face was pale.

Tears ran down his cheeks.

Anyone looking at him would know he was a broken husband who had lost the love of his life.

When the coffin was finally lowered, Evelyn broke down.

Richard caught her before she fell.

Lucas stepped forward.

He wiped his face and looked into the grave.

“Natalie,” he whispered.

His voice cracked.

“I love you.”

He lowered his head.

“I'll never forget you.”

The words sounded painful.

After the burial, the guests slowly began leaving.

Lucas stayed behind for a few more minutes.

He hugged Richard.

“I don't know how I'm going to live without her.”

Richard placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You were her husband. Take care of yourself.”

Lucas nodded.

“I will.”

He turned away.

The moment he was out of their sight, his expression changed.

He wiped the tears on his face.

He walked toward the parking area.

A black car was waiting farther from the crowd.

Lucas opened the passenger door and got inside.

Claire was sitting behind the wheel.

She looked at him for several seconds.

Then she reached for his hand.

“I've been waiting for you, my love.”

Lucas looked at her.

For the first time that day, he smiled.

Claire leaned closer.

“You're finally free.”

Lucas didn't answer.

He reached for her face and pulled her toward him.

Their lips met.

The kiss was slow and sweet nothing like the grief he had displayed only minutes earlier.

Claire wrapped her arms around his neck as Lucas kissed her again.

When they finally pulled apart, she rested her forehead against his.

“I'm sorry,” she whispered. “I know today was difficult.”

Lucas looked into her eyes.

“It was necessary.”

Claire's expression softened.

“And now?”

Lucas glanced through the windshield toward the cemetery.

Then he looked back at her.

“Now we move on.”

He kissed her again.