Fighting Sleep

“Please let me go!” , the voice in Yume's head screamed.

"Just give me my life back, MY SOUL BACK! "-the panicked voice suddenly went silent.

Yume ignored the voice and kept climbing up to the surface from under the abyss where the opposing voice was trying to stop her exit. Yume finally reached the ledge, took a second to catch her breath, dusted herself off, and headed back "home". At her feet was the package she left behind before entering the darkness below. Yume looked at the box and kicked it down the hole and muttered, "Good riddance."

After searching the maze and coming to reality with her new world her sprint turned into a slow walk. She looked around at the trees, took a deep inhale through her nose, and said, "It's been so long since I've smelled the air. Has it been years since I forgot the aroma? I feel like it has only been a fortnight."

While she continued to take in the vistas and overcast sky, someone called out her name.

"Yume, Yume!", yelled the spooked voice.

Yume forgot who she was for a moment. She stared at the figure running her way with an object in her hands. Before she could make out the figure and what she had in her possession, her surroundings went pitch black.

"Hey ! Wake Up!"- yelled the woman.

Yume awoke from the greenhouse dream she was experiencing. Through her blurry vision, she made eye contact with a woman in a physician lab coat.

"Welcome back. Thought we lost you for a second."

Yume's vision started to clear up enough to realize she was back in the office and made out the woman's name tag.

"Dr. Kai?", Yume said tiredly.

"Yes, my dear you were in a deep sleep for almost an hour. Glad you didn't suffer from any memory loss. Stretch your muscles out I know mentally you just experienced a lot.

Yume began to sit up but dropped back down due to the dizziness from temporary sleep paralysis.

"Don't rush! Take your time getting up honey.", said the doctor.

Yume slowly arose to see two other people she didn't recognize sitting in the room

"Do you think she'll ever remember ?", asked the other person in the room.

"We hope we can get Alita back to her normal self. Ever since she found the mysterious package that night she hasn't been the same."

In her peripheral vision, Yume noticed the box she left behind in her dream.

Dr. Kai continued to speak to the couple identified to be Alita's mother and father.

" Now we can continue to keep her under observation over the weekend but ultimately the choice is up to you two.", said the doctor.

After they deliberated with each other they both agreed to Alita staying overnight for further observation.

"Alita is that okay with you ?", asked her parents.

Yume thoughts began to get flooded with memories of old times, friends and family. Dr. Kai looked at her with a piercing glaze waiting for an answer. Yume realized that the testing her and Dr. Kai had been using was successful.

"Alita, is that okay with you?", the doctor repeated.

Yumi responded, "Yeah that's fine."

"Wait what about that package?", asked Alita's mother.

"It would be best to leave it here. Seeing the object that caused the memory loss may help Alita put some pieces of the puzzle together.", Dr. Kai responded.

"Can we at least see what is in it? She wouldn't let us open it.", the mother asked.

"Honey, just let the doctor help her. We can't keep pestering her to open up if she doesn't even remember what happened.", the father responded.

Unsettled, the mother agreed to leave the package alone. Dr. Kai walked the parents out of the room after they kissed and hugged Alita goodbye.

"So how does it feel Ayumu ?", asked the doctor.

"It's Yume."

"Okay YUME, how does it feel?"

"It feels weird I see she wasn't much of a flexible one."

" Just give it some time. Soon all of her will be a part of you. Think of it like a second chance at life.", Dr. Kai responded.

"It isn't about that, I just want to make an example of her parents allowing their beloved daughter to be a tyrant. She wasn't an angel and I will make sure they understand that before I go back."

"That little wench was rotten to the core. I don't know why her parents gave her that name. She was a bruja and doesn't deserve any chances. If we're lucky they'll take her before you have the opportunity to go back.", Dr. Kai responded spitefully.

"Did they open the package? We had a deal.", asked Yume.

"No, they think there is some sacred information in there that can help save her. I'll make sure to keep it that way. You just make sure to play your part.", Dr. Kai responded.

Yume rolled her eyes and stood up to look at herself in the mirror. She fluffed out her hair and caressed the skin on her face. With a grin she muttered, "Goodbye Alita. You'll come out when I expose the truth about what you did to me. Until then, your "gift" will stay in the box."

To be continued....