"The melodious chirping of birds greeted the morning, which was shrouded in a light mist. This mist had been constantly surrounding Briana's head since the previous night. Through the wooden windows, bright sunlight streamed into the room, while the lantern hanging from the pillar still burned despite its shortened wick."
Briana stared at the door, hoping neither Sean nor Nancy would show up for the next fifteen hours because Briana needed time to clear her tangled mind.
Carefully, Briana got out of bed, approached the lantern, and blew out the flame. After the flames died out, suddenly, a massive fire flared up inside her head, along with black clouds that came to engulf Briana's body. Briana moved backward and looked terrified. She screamed at the top of her lungs to avoid the horrible black clouds until her fragile back touched the wooden wall, and Briana felt cornered entirely.
"Bri! Briana!”
Briana faintly heard the voice of someone shouting her name.
"Briana, open your eyes?" The voice became more apparent—a man's heavy voice.
The horrible black clouds suddenly vanished. Briana felt her body back on the bed with large palms patting her cheeks lightly. The hands occasionally shook Briana's body because the young woman did not open her eyes.
"Briana!"
Sean. It was his voice.
Briana's breath caught. Her whole body felt wrapped around a big rope, and it wasn't easy to untie. Briana panicked; she wanted to scream and ask for help, but her lips felt numb and tightly closed so that she couldn't say anything.
God help me!
"Don't panic; calm your mind; you're safe with us. Now, open your eyes slowly."
Briaba tried to get some fresh air. The wooden window must have been open because a gust of wind hit Briana's skin. She tried to calm down and followed Sean's command by opening her eyes slowly. Although heavy and sticky, Briana was finally able to open her eyes. Her vision was blurred by the bright sunlight from the window and Sean's face. The stiff face looked friendly.
"Briana ...." Sean's voice was soft but relieved.
Sean looked away from the edge of the bed. Slowly, Briana's blurred eyes became clear. Briana saw him; the man was talking to someone on his cell phone. Briana assumed there was no cell phone, seeing as Nancy had contacted Sean yesterday via a transmitter phone. The strange man turned out to have a modern object.
The man was still with one hand pouring water into a glass and then approached Briana again, handing her a glass filled with water. Briana drank greedily as her throat felt parched. Perhaps the effect of the fear had made her thirsty. Briana almost choked if Sean hadn't patted her gently on the back and said, "Be careful!"
Briana wiped her wet lips. Her eyes flickered around the room. Sean took the glass from Briana's hand and placed it on the wooden table.
"I thought I was awake earlier. It was just a dream," Briana said softly.
She thought she was awake, but it turned out that what happened to her was just a dream. The window was wide open, and the lantern hanging from the wooden pillar was gone. It was there because the generator was broken. Life in this log cabin wasn't as miserable as Briana had expected.
"Did you have another strange dream?" Sean asked.
"Yes. Nancy told you?"
Oh, why did the dream feel so real? The fire raged inside her head, and the black clouds were about to engulf her. Briana began to babble inwardly. She was still shaking with what was burning inside her head.
"How are you feeling?" Sean's question brought Briana back to her senses. She looked anxious, although not as bad as a few minutes ago.
"I'm scared," Briana stammered.
Sean exhaled softly. "It's going to be okay. You're safe here," Sean said.
Sean had said the same thing dozens of times. About Briana being okay when she was in this place. The lakeside forest. Or was it because Sean was looking after her? Isn't Sean always at the cottage?
A tear fell on Briana's cheek. She wasn't playing drama. "I saw a fire. Black clouds like monsters trying to swallow me. They were chasing me," Briana said, looking distraught.
Sean's forehead furrowed deeply, but a second later, his large hand wiped away the tears rolling down Briana's cheeks. "It was just a dream. You were so anxious that something bad came into your dream."
Maybe Sean was right. The anxiety was like a poison that intoxicated Briana to sleep paralysis.
The fear in Briana slowly subsided. Briana felt even better when she managed to take a deep breath and drive away the panic. Briana looked at Sean and then turned away as embarrassment overtook her.
Briana remembered that she had hugged the man with shoulder-length hair tightly around the neck. The situation that had improved now felt awkward again. Briana shouldn't be embarrassed or feel guilty. She should also start speaking softly to Sean because he wasn't evil despite the horrible look in his eyes. He was threatening her sanity. After all, Sean was a good person for helping Briana.
"Does your head still spin?" Sean asked.
Briana straightened up and shook her head.
"Good," Sean said. "We'll go to the hospital today to check on you. Briana's waiting there."
"What exactly happened to me? Will I be able to remember my past?" asked Briana, her voice hoarse from crying.
Sean was silent as he looked at Briana with a flat face. He seemed reluctant to tell her about the accident that had happened to her and destroyed her memories.
Briana felt she had a right to know the truth. Slowly, Briana's delicate fingers touched the back of Sean's hand that was gripping the edge of the bed. The man gasped, looking a little surprised by Briana's action. She quickly withdrew her hand.
"Please! Tell me what happened," Briana pleaded.
Sean sighed and shook his head. "Anna told me not to. She said it's not a good time for you to know. You need time until you're better."