Sadie collapsed to her knees.

The sound of water rippled outward from where she landed, the cold seeping instantly through her tights. She didn’t feel it at first. Her body was shaking too hard.

“Akari…”

The name came out broken.

Her fingers clawed at her face as if she could erase what she’d seen. Bone cracking. Eyes staring. The sound replayed, over and over.

“It’s my fault.”

She screamed out. She let it all out. A few moments pass, sceonds, minutes— she doesn’t know. 

She tries to stand up but feels a sharp pain in her knee.

"Ah—"

She grabs on a tree branch grown from the cave wall.

 She finally looked up and spun her head around. There was no way back, just one way forward, which led to a void. Sadie was scared, but there was no other way.

"What is this place?"

She took one step, one deep breath, one step again, the water softly splashing.

"I didn’t see where i was running..."

She then fully started walking forward. She walked for a few minutes and the surroundings were the same—a dark cave with little rays of light coming from the small holes on the roof. The walls were covered with little tree branches and leaves

After walking for another few minutes, there was a turn and a bit of light coming from there. Sadie got curious, but she was also scared.

She put her hand over her heart, trying to calm herself down. She was taking deep breaths, her chest falling and rising.

Sadie stepped forward and, to her surprise, there was a door... the door to her apartment.

"There's no way..."

Sadie's hand touched the handle before she could think of anything else.

The handle was warm and the light under it was flickering

She opens the door... It actually was her apartment. Sadie's eyes widened as her body started to tremble.

"Sadie, bitch, is that you??"

Sadie's eyes widened even more, if that was possible.

"That's... that's Sage's voice..."

The apartment was still messy and unlivable, but that voice—it made Sadie's heart make one warm and one cold beat 

"Bitch, talk to me!"

That sound came again from the other room.

"Y-yes," Sadie said. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears

She walks into the apartment. She feels her throat dry up as she sees a woman in her 30s lying on the couch, wearing a dirty jumpsuit, a lazy ponytail, and sipping on alcohol while watching TV.

Sadie steps back, looks around trying to leave

"No—no"

The door wasn’t there

"T—This is indeed all i ever wanted...but I didn't even find the f—flower yet"

She bangs her fist on the wall, as if It'd make a door appear there

"Should i just..."