Tell Me I'm Different (Finished!)

(11) Understand Me

“I’m sorry, I was just. I don’t know,” Dolly said, shaking her head.

She tried to smile, but Skye saw her glassy blue eyes. They reminded Skye of Cam’s porcelain doll collection. Beautiful, but unreal. It was like she wasn’t even there anymore.

“Yeah, let’s just go back to bed. We’re both just really tired,” Skye said nodding her head.

Skye’s hand tightened around Dolly’s. She pulled her down the flight of stairs and didn’t let go of her until they were safely tucked inside their beds. Still, she held on to her hand afraid that Dolly would jump off her bed, run to the roof, fall down the unstable edge, and be forever lost if Skye didn’t hold on. Dolly yanked her hand away and put it under her pillow. She turned away from Skye and faced the door.

Skye turned around and watched Dolly drift off to sleep. Her breathing was heavy and even though Skye couldn’t see her, she could tell she was frowning. Skye wondered if she dreamt about ending her life.

Skye pushed those thoughts out of her mind and convinced herself Dolly was just being silly. Before she knew it, she too had fallen asleep. 

Skye saw herself in that park. She was back there on the bench with Ace. For some reason, she couldn’t look at him. No matter how hard she tried to move her head, it wouldn’t budge. It was like a fifty pound weight was attached to her head and she was too weak to move it.

“How are you doing today, Lilly?” he asked in his naturally seductive tone.

“Not so good. But I’m doing better, knowing that you are here.” Skye responded without even moving her lips.

“What happened?” he asked curiously.

“I don’t know how I’ll escape, Ace. I feel like there is no way out,” she replied staring at the hem of her white dress. It was blinding now, instead of beautiful. Skye could hardly look at it, but everything to the luscious green grass and tall, sturdy trees all seemed so blurry. It was like a picture out of focus.

Ace laid a hand on her shoulder, but it was heavy and too forceful. It didn’t feel like him. Skye couldn’t stop staring at her dress even though it hurt her eyes so much. She tried to close her eyes but they too felt so heavy. Nothing felt right.

“Skye, dear..” he purred. That voice was definitely not Ace’s. She finally turned her head to the side. She screamed in horror as the face morphed from Matt’s plain, unforgiving face to Elvis’ devilish face then back again.

He grabbed her hand and stared into her eyes. She tried to look away but she was mesmerized by his eyes. They were dark and had hazel flecks around the pupil. They looked like the deepest pits of hell.

“There is no way out,” Matt/Elvis declared firmly.

The face changed. A sharp, freckled face with small features now stared back at her.

“There’s only one way out, Skye!” Dolly shouted.   

“No, Dolly. No!” Skye shouted back.

Skye shot up from her bed drenched in sweat. Did she just dream it, or did a loud thud really wake her up? Skye looked around the room, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Dozens of sleeping girls lay in their beds, arms and legs huddled around their bodies for warmth. But something wasn’t right. She turned to ask Dolly if she had heard anything but the bed next to her was empty.

Skye’s breath got caught in her throat. She ran to the window, not caring how much noise she made or if she woke anyone up. She pushed it up and slid through the gap. Skye gripped the metal railing of the fire escape, not caring that cold was going through her skin and chilling her bones. She threw herself up the steps three at a time. It seemed like years until she was finally on the rooftop. Skye barely noticed the rays of the sun peeking out over the horizon as she approached the edge of the building.

“Dolly!” she cried as she looked around the rooftop. When she saw nothing, she looked down at the concrete and for a second she could not comprehend what she saw.

Elvis’ henchmen bent over a twisted and bleeding Dolly on the sidewalk. Dark red blood pooled all around her, clashing with her bluish pale skin. She looked just like that porcelain doll Camilla had. It didn’t look real.

No, it wasn’t real.

No, this wasn’t happening.

Skye fell on her knees and gripped the edge of the building. She dug her fingernails into the rough brick.

“Dolly!” she screamed again. Skye barely even noticed she was crying. She screamed Dolly’s name again, louder. And she kept screaming her name, louder every time, hoping that she would somehow, by some miracle wake up.