Stranger Things...Or People

{Lily's life has officially taken a stab for the exceedingly worst. Is there a way around it?}

_

As she sprinted towards nowhere in particular, her legs felt heavy, her heart even heavier. Tears fell continuously from her red puffy eyes. Her vision was blurry and the pouring rain made it a whole lot worse. Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed throughout the boiling sky.

It was as though the sky itself was mourning for her that night.

Her legs finally gave way under her after an unknown amount of running. She fell against the harsh, wet, and cold ground with an indistinct thud. The events she had witnessed a few minutes ago, however, made her numb to the pain her scrapped and bleeding knees were displaying.

Tears persisted to pour seemingly more than the rain itself. She glanced behind her, expecting to find the killer who had just taken her parents' lives, holding a big knife or a gun, formulating to take her out as well.

To her utter disbelief though, there was no one there...

'Wouldn't he or... they, want to get rid of any witnesses?' She speculated to herself. If he had wanted to run after her, she was sure he would've. After all, there was almost no one in the streets, primarily with the storm. No one would be there to witness her untimely demise. Besides, she was most definitely not the fastest runner she, or anyone else for that matter, knew.

Somehow, she wished all of this would turn out to be a dreadful dream. She couldn't fathom how a happy dinner get-together with her's and her husband's family, had turned into a massacre in just a few minutes.

But most of all, she couldn't bring herself to understand why of all people, it had to be her husband who had committed that horrendous crime.

The harsh raindrops fell harder on her delicate fair skin, the unforgivingly cold night breeze, snapping her back to reality. Her now drenched red curls flowed gracefully down to her back, clasped to the skin on her back and neck.

Lily's eyes dazedly and randomly wandered to the blood that oozed from her wounded knees and seeped away with the rainwater.

She wished she could turn back the clock, back to that unfortunate day that ruined her life. That unfortunate day is now the cause of her forever-lasting scars. That day she walked to the alter, her parents by her side.

That day she married a devil without even knowing it... Her wedding day.

"Miss?" She heard a voice call from a distance. Only, the person was only a few centimeters from her, but her hearing also seemed to have been failing her at the moment.

"Lily, are you okay?" The voice was male and did not sound as concerned as one would expect. Rather, it sounded almost robotic and... inhuman.

Lily tilted her head to take a look at this person, who apparently knew her name.

The dimly lit street lights and the continuous downpour made it impossible for her to see the person. Moreover, his head was covered with a cloak that seemed to stretch out ao the ground.

She couldn't catch sight of any other form of clothing on his body, as the cloak covered him completely.

Suddenly, the man squatted down to her level. She couldn't see his face through the cloak, but she could undoubtedly feel his burning gaze on her.

"Two years." He spoke. Chills run along her arms as she somehow felt colder. She wasn't sure how she could hear him ever so clearly, even with the sky still brewing.

His words didn't make sense, yet...

"Two years, Lily." He repeated, drawing himself closer to her face, causing her to instinctively but slowly back away.

"That's all you get." He concluded, rising to his feet.

Why was he speaking to her like he somehow knew her...?

Lily followed his gaze, partially because she couldn't look away for some reason, and also because she had no clue what he was talking about.

The mysterious stranger began to walk away, although he seemed to be floating rather than walking...

His cloak trailed the ground making it inconceivable to see his feet— if he had any that is.

Lily, however, was more focused on what he had said. On top of all that had happened tonight, this weird interaction should've been the least of her worries. But her gut was practically screaming at her that this stranger, was going to have a huge impact on her life.

Lily followed him with her eyes until ultimately, she lost sight of him. She looked down at where the stranger had been standing and saw something...strange.

It looked like a small watch, except it wasn't. Yes, it had three clock hands, but it also had a unique shape. It wasn't round or oval or even squared.

It was tennis ball sized, heart-shaped, and made of glass that seemed clearer than the clear waters of Laghi de Fusine she had seen on her visit to Italy. A long silver chain, that seemed to glimmer was attached to it.

The heart-shaped watch also had a LOT of numbers. Arrange circularly, like a consecutive loop. The numbers would increase with each loop, from one digit to about a dozen...? She wasn't quite sure. As far as her eyes could see, there were about eleven-digit numbers. She was almost sure there were more, but as of now, that was the least of her concerns.

Lily stretched out her hand, almost in slow motion, as if she was making the decision of a lifetime.

'It's funny I didn't hesitate this much marrying that—' Her thoughts took over for a second but she brushed them away.

Somehow, she felt like this decision would be more crucial than her marriage to him.

The moment she grabbed the oddly shaped watch, she instantly became sluggish. The world was slowly and surely slipping away. Her eyelids felt like they weighed ten tonnes, and her body swayed uncontrollably.

She landed with a small 'splash!' sound as her body gradually came down on the clammy earth.

Her consciousness was slipping away and her eyes were now almost closed, the heart-shaped clock still securely gripped in her left hand. Before completely blacking out though, she heard that familiar automated voice again.

"Beware, Lily. Time over there works differently, no one is to be trusted easily, and most of all, THEY will not let you succeed. You must find a way to get in the lead. See you soon."

❤️⏲️