As Bee lay motionless in the street, the selection box and its fairy lights started to disperse. The red light no longer lingered, having reached its goal, but everything was still dyed in crimson. 

Blood was pooling heavily underneath her body. Her previously pale skin was now devoid of any color, making her white as a sheet of paper. The soft pastel of her dress was no longer visible, fully dyed red in blood. Every inch of her and her was torn up and she resembled a lifeless ghost.

[DING!]

She hadn’t fully lost consciousness yet, and the faint noise was heard.  It was hard to tell with the constant ringing in her ears from the impact, but she was at least pretty sure she heard the SELECTION ‘ding.’

Another SELECTION had in fact appeared before her. Unable to make out the red box through the red flowing down her face she paid it no mind. Everything was a blur, and her vision was fading out from the blood loss.

As if it knew she needed help, the hovering pop-up lowered itself down. Floating gently beside her mangled form it hovered at the edge of her lifeless fingers. Her eyes had closed, and without noticing her wrist was lifted up.

With her last breath she unknowingly tapped the box.

She had chosen REBIRTH.

⬡⬡⬡

Bee’s eyes slowly opened, and instead of the bloody scene she expected she saw her clean reflection in the glass before her.

There was no red, no injury, no pain to speak of. She continued to stare deeply at herself in the window, wondering what was going on, until she noticed a familiar brightness shining beside her. 

Maddi… It was Maddi. She was okay.

The corners of her eyes began to turn pink as the water pooled at the edges. Her nose stung, and her eyes burned, but she didn’t care. She was focused on the girl before her, wanting to inspect every inch to see if she was injured. 

After subtly darting her eyes back and forth a small sigh left Bee’s lips as she realized they were both unharmed. Maddi was still here. She wasn’t alone now.

Even though she was happy that things were fine, she questioned if everything she had experienced was real or not. 

Stop.

She forced herself to not think about it, pushing the thought away the moment it surfaced. Bee had faith it truly did happen. The pain she had felt was too realistic, and the feeling of warmth leaving her body bit by bit was something she would never forget.

No matter how much she would like to pretend it didn’t happen, she knew it did. Bee clearly understood the fact that Maddi had died, and that she herself had followed her into the darkness.

These thoughts came and went quickly. With ease she had adjusted her emotions in order to properly face Maddi this time. The silver haired girl was not going to let them follow the same path again.

This time would be different, and if she was lucky maybe it would lead to her forgotten memories.

The sun looked down at her palms, white nails reached out and gingerly took Bee’s cold hands into her own. Maddi gently stroked the long marble-like fingers before hesitantly intertwining their hands and clasping down tightly. 

“You know I love you so much. We’ve talked about this before, and I think we’re ready for the next step if you agree.” Maddi looked head-on towards Bee, staring deeply into her eyes as she continued. “Everything is ready now, and I can call the movers to bring your things over tonight. We can start our future today.” 

“So let’s be together now… and in the future ‘kay?”

Gold met silver and silver met gold as four eyes stared at one another in the silence that followed. Bee blinked as her golden eyes regained focus, she realized that she did in fact miss a lot previously. There was slight pain in her chest as she understood just what she had rejected.

While she was incapable of reciprocating the deep feelings expressed by Maddi, she understood her desire and how important she was to the other girl. Listening to the words she had missed in her last life she came to the conclusion that the two of them should have been a couple prior to the memory loss.

Without knowing it she had accidentally rejected her own lover.

[DING!]

A replica of the previous blue box made its appearance at this time. It calmly hovered between the two girls, waiting for Bee’s decision. 

Confirming the options were in fact the same as before, there was no hesitation in her choice. She knew what would happen if she rejected Maddi, her face paling as she thought of the outcome to her former selections. 

She wouldn’t lead Maddi down that path again.

[ACCEPT] 

The butterflies of light again ate up the glowing box, the blue hue slowly faded away until the last wing fluttered and disappeared into thin air. 

Through a pinched throat, Bee’s body finally replied, “I love you too, Maddi.” The uncomfortable feeling of losing control over herself was something she couldn’t adjust to, and as if on auto-pilot she continued to speak lovingly to the other girl. Sweet words, seemingly filled with emotion continued to flow out of her due to her acceptance, yet all she felt was fear and confusion towards the SELECTION treating her as a puppet.

It wasn’t as though she held any rejection in her heart towards Maddi, she was oddly comfortable with the other girl and was glad to have this once beacon of light nearby. Bee had at this point understood through their conversation that they must already be an established couple, but even if she hadn’t known, her intuition told her that Maddi was important to her. Something told her that they were meant to be together.

This feeling held true to Bee. While the SELECTION may be able to string her up, speaking and walking for her, she believed it didn’t have the power to control her inner thoughts as well. So it must mean that this impression of safety towards the golden girl with her doe-like silver eyes must truly be her own.

The two girls having expressed themselves to one another leaned forward inch by inch, their lips firmly meeting, sealing their promise with a kiss. Maddi’s larger, plush lips were like a cloud that softly brought comfort to Bee. She felt at home in this moment, and although it was due to the SELECTION that their lips met, she greedily took in the other girl’s sweet breath wanting to drink in every drop of her warmth.

Bee promised herself at this moment that regardless of the SELECTION she would continue to follow her sun. This moment, this life, was now her truth. 

⬡⬡⬡

Sunlight drenched the bedroom in warmth. Another day of clear skies, another day of the bright light pouring over Bee’s face as she awoke. Quietly, she began stretching out her arms and legs, untangling them from the person beside her. The two had begun living together, and it was as though they had always been one within the shared space. 

As Bee gently moved out of their bed she thought that this morning was just like all the others. Sweet, quiet, and uneventful.

[DING!]

Well… uneventful as long as you don’t talk about the SELECTION boxes that pop up multiple times a day. 

[WAKE UP] // [SLEEP IN]

The days were each similar in her options, generally starting first thing in the morning, and it looked like today would be the same. Sure, there had been slight variances here in there in the selections, but thankfully nothing had led to the red box reappearing. So long as she was safe, Bee would continue to play along with the boxes.

Fully awake, Bee mechanically tapped the glowing blue [WAKE UP] prompt. As usual the boxes and butterflies faded into nothingness as though they had never existed in the first place, and an unknown force spread within her. Inch by inch, limb by limb, it slowly took over her motions yet again.

No longer surprised, nor wary of this feeling of her body moving involuntarily, Bee simply gave in and acted like a proper puppet for the invisible puppeteer behind the scenes. With small and quick motions she left their shared room and headed to the restroom to once again get ready for a typical day of choices.

It wasn’t that Bee had fully succumbed to the SELECTION though, she had been learning little by little each day, testing the limits of what she could control. Sometimes the SELECTION would strictly force her to speak, and other times, like this morning, it would take full control of her range of motion. 

The only thing she couldn’t seem to pinpoint was the duration of control once a choice was made. One could garner a single word response forced out from her throat, but another could drag her around for half a day as though it was playing with her like a doll. Bee had no way of predicting the outcome of the choices it forced her to make, all she could do was follow along and hope to not see the red glow.

She soon realized today’s version of ‘waking up’ seemed to mean it would be fully preparing her for the day ahead. First, they bathed, then it meticulously untangled her unruly wavy strands, gently managing the long mess of silver. Her hair was then pulled up into a high ponytail adorned with a long black satin ribbon tied into a bow. It seemed as though it wanted to try something new today, and Bee could already feel the headache setting in from the unfamiliar weight atop her head.

The shadow hands weren’t done in preparing her for whatever plans they had today. With great precision light makeup was applied, and when it seemed to feel satisfied with her appearance it led her to the spacious walk-in closet Bee shared with Maddi. 

A bit more than half of the space had generously been given to Bee upon moving in, and it had already been filled with pastels and frills that she didn’t recognize. 

It wasn’t that she didn’t think the clothing was suited to her, nor could she say that she didn’t objectively like them, but there was a lingering thought in the back of her head each time she entered the closet.

Are those really my things? 

The remaining portion of the closet was drastically different from Bee’s items. Her soft blues and pinks were offset by the neutral color palette in Maddi’s clothing. It seemed as though Maddi didn’t like to wear anything too loud, and often went for comfort and practicality in her outfit choices. Upon seeing Maddi’s wardrobe for the first time Bee fully agreed that her clothing was perfect for the golden girl as she didn’t need anything to stand out. Maddi shined brightly on her own. 

Robotically going through her section of the wardrobe, today’s outfit choice was pulled together. A black satin high-waisted midi skirt was chosen, clearly intended to match the bow in her hair. Her top was a simple cream colored tank, which was then overlaid with a warm yellow chunky cardigan. Not forgetting to fully dress her from head to toe, thin socks with small black bows were added as a final touch, and as they were pulled up her calves she felt the oppressive force leave her body. 

The morning selection had completed its task, and she could move on her own again.

Now in control of her own body she wondered if it would be alright to change her clothing from what the SELECTION had picked out. So far Bee had been playing things safe, fearful of going against the SELECTION and it leading her to her death as it had done before.

But maybe, something small would be okay? 

Pale hands shakily reached towards slender ankles, and slowly the sheer socks were rolled down one by one until they were both cleanly removed. 

A large breath was released as Bee exhaled, unaware that she had been holding her breath in fear while removing the small bit of cloth. Hands still trembling, and heart painfully throbbing in her chest, her golden eyes darted around the closet in anticipation of a red glow.

Silence.

Nothing popped up. She was… safe?

Bee stared at her now freed foot, and a fleeting smile crept across her face at the small freedom from the SELECTION. Her moment of happiness was short, and within a blink of an eye her slightly upturned lips were back to the straight line of her typical appearance, but not before the camera in the doorway was able to snap a shot in secret. 

Maddi had been watching Bee from behind, and had happened to catch her as she was removing her socks. The full-length mirror in front of the silver haired girl perfectly reflected all of Bee’s movements, including the soft smile of joy. Without hesitation, Maddi had quickly lifted up her phone, taken a photo, and then opened up her live streaming app.

While Bee continued to silently stare at the sock in hand, strangers through the phone screen were watching her.

//Finally my queen is back! 

//Wdym URRRR queen? She is the queen of MY hive not yours you worker bug!!!!

//*licks screen* sweet honey~

//Did our queen just smile? Today must be full of luck!

//Wait I just got the notif for the stream - what smile?!!!! Praying for the live to be saved!! (+5 blessings)

//Does this mean she is back after the social media break?

⬡⬡⬡

Comments from random users scrolled by quickly on the screen as Maddi recorded the livestream to the Halo Network. Her familiar soft smile graced her lips as she watched these lowly bugs donate their ‘blessings’ just from having a glimpse of her Bee.

Maddi enjoyed showing Bee off to others, she found great purpose in these streams, in making sure that Bee was known and loved. Everyone needed to worship her, but she always made sure that they understood that Bee was unattainable. 

The eyes through the screen could never have Bee, and all they could ever hope for were these short glimpses into her life. But they would never catch her eye as she didn’t even know they existed.

Silver eyes gleamed in satisfaction as Maddi ended the livestream. She had given them more than enough this morning, and they didn’t have the right to any more of Bee at this moment. 

Afterall, she was hers.

“Mine.” The single word quietly left her lips as the phone screen went dark. At this moment Bee had finally come out of her daze and noticed Maddi standing behind her. 

How long had she been there? Bee wasn’t sure, and she cautiously looked over Maddi’s gaze in the mirror before she turned around to face her, catching sight of the golden girl swiftly tucking her phone into her shorts pocket.