C3 SEPARATION

I woke up after the worst nightmare. I looked around and found myself inside my room. I rushed outside immediately to see my mum, but everywhere was quiet.

"Mum!, Mum!!" There was no response. I walked up to her room and knocked, but no one answered the door.

Touching the doorknob, I opened an empty room. Fear creeped into me. I ran upstairs to find Michael, but his room was empty too.

Everyone was gone; I was alone.

"Mum!, Dad!, Michael!!" I was already in tears when I heard footsteps approaching me.

I turned and found the lady in a red dress standing right in front of me, laughing like a psycho. She was laughing so loudly that I couldn't hear anything but her laugh.

Lilly's voice woke me up from my sleep. She was turning and wiping in her sleep. I think she is having a nightmare.

"Lilly, Lilly, wake up."

When I finally managed to wake her up, she was trembling in fear. I hugged her, trying to calm her down.

"It's okay; it's just a dream, so stay with me." I waited until her sobbing died out.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" I asked her, waiting for a reply.

"In my dreams, I couldn't find mum, dad, or you. I was all alone and scared," she said before she started crying again.

"It's okay; I'm not planning on leaving you. You are stuck with me forever."

I hugged him, refusing to let him go. We both left and started looking for our way out of the city. Michael stopped at a convenience store and stocked up our bag with snacks, soft drinks, and water.

I grabbed his hands very tightly so I wouldn't lose him too. We walked for a while before taking a taxi.

Tragedy as the family house of Mr. Anthony was set ablaze. According to the investigation by the police, the fire wasn't an accident.

So far, two corpses have been found by the police, but they weren't easily recognised, given that...

I took my headphones and covered Lilly's ear. I didn't want her to hear what the news had to say.

She looked at me with questioning eyes, but I just smiled down at her. She was still wearing her dress; I need to change her out of that so we won't draw unnecessary attention to ourselves.

When we got to the store, I couldn't pick anything. Michael helped me pick a few clothes. After changing my clothes, I couldn't leave the dress behind.

But Michael insisted we leave it behind and come back for it later. I felt like I was leaving a part of Mum behind.

Wiping the tears off my face, I followed Michael as we exited the store.

Walking down the street, I made sure I was holding his hand very tightly. Even after dressing casually, we were still getting stared at by people.

Mostly men in black suits. That didn't sit right with me, but I knew immediately that something was up.

Michael also sensed it because he dragged me as we started running. I didn't really get the reason why we were running until I saw those men after us.

Why didn't I notice them on time? They are probably after us because everything inside that backpack I gave Lilly contained everything our parents wanted us to keep safe.

Knowing fully well that they would catch up to us in no time since we were outnumbered, I had to hide Lilly and then draw them away from her.

Looking to my left, I saw a school bus packed with children. Lilly can hide in there without being spotted.

"Lilly, I need you to listen to me. I will need you to go on that school bus over there and blend in with the students.

Don't come out of that car no matter what until I come for you, okay?"

"Michael, what are you talking about? We are supposed to stick together, remember?"

"I'm sorry, Lilly, but you have to go."

"I don't want to; I'm not going to leave you behind like we did to mum and dad," she said, crying and shaking her head continuously.

As much as I couldn't stand seeing her in tears, I had no option at the moment. Staying together means both of us being caught.

But keeping her safe is my number-one priority. I pushed her into the bus and watched as she sat between the students with tears in her eyes.

I looked at her the very last time before I ran off to distract the men away from her.

I don't mind getting hurt or killed, but I can't stand any harm coming to her.

I watched as Michael ran away, and those men went after him. I was scared and shaking in fear.

After a while of sitting and waiting for the school bus to move, I decided that I wasn't going to lose my brother like I did with my parents.

I got up immediately and walked towards the exit, but the door was locked as the driver informed us to all sit down.

I stood there, wishing and hoping that Michael would come for me. I walked back to my seat as I wiped the tears off my face.

I looked out the window as I wished that my life would be a little better. I was still considering what my next step would be if Michael didn't come for me when I saw a black car obviously following the school bus.

"Who is that idiot, and why is he following my bus?" The driver lamented before he packed on the other side of the road.

I knew immediately I was in trouble. I hid under the seat as I was thinking of an escape plan.

"I am sorry, but we are looking for a child that is not supposed to be on this bus," I heard them say to the driver.

"I am only doing my job, and that is getting the children to school, so kindly come to the school and lay your compliance if you have one," the driver replied.

"Either you let us search the bus or we do it the hard way."

"If I were you guys, I would be on my way since I already called the police. Do you really think you can come here and take any of these kids away?"

I peeped my head out to know what was happening, only to see them backing away. I took a deep breath before I relaxed.

When the bus drove into the school compound, all the students exited as they ran into the school.

I was confused and scared. I didn't know what to do. I know Michael told me to wait for him, but what if those scary men came back?

I walked around for a while, looking around the school patiently, waiting for Michael, until I saw the same black car again.

It was driving towards me. I panicked and ran out of the school compound. I couldn't lose or out-run a car with my little legs.

I knew I was going to get caught if I continued running along the road, so I decided to run into the woods.

I ran as fast as my leg could go. I was getting tired in every minute and second. I didn't know where I was heading until I ended up on top of a cliff.

Down the cliff lies an ocean. It was a dead end. I was breathing so fast that I could hear the beating of my heart ringing in my ears.

I turned around to run back into the woods, but those men in black suits were standing just right there in front of me.

"Hey little girl, we don't want to hurt you. We are here to help. Your brother told us to come get you, so please step away from the cliff."

The one that looked more scary than the rest said. I knew he was lying; tears ran down my face at the thought of what they had done to Michael.

Looking down the cliff, I felt dizzy at the height, but I would rather jump into the ocean than be in the hands of strangers.

Making sure my backpack was tightly locked around me, I jumped. I didn't think of the fact that I hate heights or the fact that I don't swim.

I just thought of my mum's voice when she told me that she loved me. I thought of the things they wanted me to keep safe and made it all that mattered.

I just hoped that somehow I would survive this. All I needed was a second chance.