Heartache

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Chapter 1

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Adam woke up in a gasp, finding himself lying on the bed as sweat had formed on his body. Having to hold his chest while continuing to breathe heavily and feeling his heart beat loudly in his ears. He was having a hard time trying to calm himself down and only wished to go back to sleep and forget about the nightmare he just had.

The first thing on his mind was to look for Lilim, his remaining daughter, causing him to cautiously get out of bed and sit at the edge of it with worry and confusion. He then slowly rubbed his eyes while looking around this mysterious room, seeing wooden surfaces and furniture such as desks, chairs, cupboards, closet, drawers, table lamps, the bed itself, along with other basic items he had to take note of.

But that wasn't his main focus, as during the examination of scanning the entire bedroom with his perspective eyes, Adam finally caught her sleeping comfortably on another bed, safe and unharmed. It was a relief to see her like this, but the memory of being close to death was not something he could forget so easily.

Her screams of anguish during the heavy snowstorm, seeing the terrifying way she cried out in the middle of the blizzard, along with the feel of her fragile body as he clutched her, and feeling his strength slowly slipping away. It was all too much to bear and had made him relive a memory he had wanted to forget for a long time.

He strongly believes that he will always get his way and have victory through a certain sequence of choices that would lead to his goal while losing one or two from heading to his path of victory and goal altogether. However, while he strongly believes that self-preservation is the most important thing in this world, Adam does not believe in being heartless and cannot bring himself to the people he loves, especially when it comes to his daughter.

"I almost..." Adam cannot bring himself to say it as he stares at his daughter, even with the thought of believing that he will survive at any cost; he's not really sure if it is a guarantee, and Lilim isn't protected by whatever unseen powers control his story. He then decided to turn away from his daughter and gaze at the window, where he saw dark skies and a beautiful moon.

The weather had calmed down thanks to the heavy snowfall during the night having to stop while the wind had died down. It was still cold, but at least it wasn't as harsh as before. Then he began to contemplate what had happened to him after he was taken to this strange room, along with who had done it.

"Does it matter who saved us?" Shaking his head, the young man stood up and walked towards his daughter while softly speaking to her, "Lilim?" He stared at her, hoping to wake her up, but to no avail. She is a rather heavy sleeper, especially when she is having a good night's sleep after a long journey.

The young man looked up at the ceiling and closed his eyes, sighing tiredly from the ordeal they had been through during the past months as well as everything else that had happened to him in his entire life. He couldn't believe that they survived through a brutal snowstorm; they should have been dead.

It was a miracle, to say the least, and Adam felt guilty about this entire situation, thinking that he wasn't strong enough to protect his daughter and was weak in doing so. It was all his fault, he believed, even though Lilim knows that he wasn't to blame for it. The only reason she is alive is because of him, and he would do anything to keep her safe.

However, after seeing what had happened during the snowstorm and almost losing his daughter in the process, including his life, it was a rather traumatic experience to think about and made him wonder if he would be able to handle another situation like this again. But Adam doesn't really have much to do with himself right now. With his daughter asleep, there wasn't much he could do except wait for her to wake up and perhaps think this through.

"This is getting tiresome. "Adam opened his eyes and began to pace around the room, contemplating what to do next. "What should I do now?" The obvious answer is meeting their savior, but he isn't sure if that is a great idea; he doesn't know if the person who saved their lives has bad intentions unless, of course, he meets them.

As he continued his pacing, his eyes caught something very peculiar in this bedroom: a mirror on the wall. He then went up to it and saw his reflection on the glass, seeing himself with a new set of clothes, a black trench coat and turtleneck shirt, along with a new set of chains for his clock necklace. What is more, his face and hair look a tad bit different; he isn't sure how to describe it, but it is definitely noticeable.

What was more important than the looks he had were the bags under his eyes, suggesting that he didn't sleep well at all, which is understandable after experiencing so much crap in his life that one of these would be enough to make any man go crazy. He then pressed his hand against the mirror, seeing if everything was real.

And to no one's surprise, he is really in reality and not dreaming, which Adam finds relieving in knowing that they are not in some weird afterlife or anything of the sort. Refreshing really; he was tired of waking up every morning and enduring nightmares of his childhood to now, the end of everything. Adam then looked at the reflection of Lilim on the mirror and couldn't help but smile; being alive and not dead was a wonderful thing to see after all the things that had happened to them.

This is what really matters; she is safe, sound, and unharmed, and right now, being able to see her alive, he can't help but feel everything is going to be fine. That nothing should worry him for now. It's better to say that she was unharmed physically; emotionally, that's still another story, and I'll have to think about it later on. For now, Adam had to go out of the room to see if he could find their savior and learn more about this new place.

Before he went anywhere, Adam looked back at his daughter once more, wondering if he should simply wait for her to wake up and sit by her side in case anything bad happened when she was left alone. The very thought of someone or something harming her can't help but make her nervous for her safety.

She is, after all, his daughter, the only remaining family member he has left, and his humanity depends on her well-being. Without her, he would have become a soulless human, lacking any goals or meaning in this terrible life he had to endure. It was painful to think about, and I will do anything to prevent it from happening.

It is only right to keep her safe and out of harm's way, for she is his only light in this dark world. The young man just wishes that she would wake up soon so he can properly speak with the mysterious person who saved their lives, even though he is not sure if it was a good idea. Adam knows that it is rude to not simply thank someone for saving a life without knowing who the person might be.

Whatever the case, Adam has decided to sit at the edge of her bed and wait, guarding his sleeping daughter from whatever threats lurk in this unknown place. He will wait as long as he has to. He couldn't help but chuckle at having to do this when she was a child; he always read bedtime stories for her.

One of the pleasant memories he had with her and would do it again if he could, but life is not so simple. She is a teenager now, a capable and strong girl who can—what is he even saying at this point? Lilim isn't that girl anymore, he had to remind himself, no longer the innocent child she was once.

He stared down at the ground, his tearful eyes burning with pain and regret. His mind is spinning from this ordeal he has been through, wishing he could do it all again and make things right this time. However, with all the terrible things that have happened to him in his life, he is too tired to go through them again.

Her mind is broken, having regressed to a largely mute, infantile state with the only memory being her father. She can't properly take care of herself anymore; she is like a helpless baby that Adam has to care for and watch over. And because of this, Adam wonders if she is still his daughter, even with her being this way.

"Why..." His hoarse and low voice echoes in the room as he contemplates why things had to be this way. "Why is she like this?" Adam asked himself as he hung his head in shame and guilt for having to watch his daughter suffer this way. The very thought hurts, but it is not the worst thing that has happened to them.

She is alive, but... Adam didn't know what to think anymore, feeling at a loss with his mind barely functioning anymore. He only wants to see her smile again, even with the illusion of perfection, but it is all too much for him to handle. Even with her broken state, that is all he has left in this world—having to believe that she will be okay in the end.

Adam had to blink his tears away as he stared at the ground once more, trying to hold himself together while trying to ignore the pain and despair that had overwhelmed him. He can't lose her or anyone else anymore. He just can't do it—to simply give up and allow the darkness to take hold of them.

He couldn't let it happen. Not again; he will not allow it to happen, especially with Lilim. Adam knew that she wouldn't like it if he gave up and allowed himself to lose his way, even when things looked hopeless. As her father and her only remaining family member in this world, he must protect her, no matter what it takes.

Adam began to chuckle at his own thoughts while looking up at the ceiling and closed his eyes. "You sound like a man who has nothing to lose," he says to himself. "And I can't have that," he replies to his own words, "Not when I have someone to protect."

The young man looked at the sleeping form of his daughter and gave her a faint smile, saying, "I will protect you, Lilim." Adam spoke with strong perseverance while he slowly stood up, releasing a heavy sigh. "It is time to start another day." As he looks back at his reflection in the mirror, he says, "A new day for a new beginning."

Suddenly, a brash and grating voice with a jubilant tone came from somewhere in this very room: "Yo!" A disembodied question came with a quick reply: "I'm over here, pal!" Adam didn't know what to say, unsure if he was hearing things or if someone was speaking to him. It took a moment to realize that it was the voice of someone speaking to him, even though he didn't know who was talking.

He looks around in confusion, not knowing where this voice is coming from, and there is no one else but him and Lilim in this room. Adam thought that perhaps it was his mind playing tricks on him again; however, that wasn't the case anymore when the mysterious voice continued to pester him.

"Over here!" The voice spoke again, demanding, this time, "at the table!"

Adam narrowed his eyes and focused on his hearing, moving to where the only available table in this room is before stopping as his eyes widen from what he is looking at. Instead of fear or confusion, the only thing that came into his mind was curiosity.

"What the hell am I looking at?"

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by 3 Armored Kittens · Prodromos v.1.1 - World Anvil 0.9.15.043 © 2017-2024 [en] | Anvil Time: 16:15, Dec 20 2024