Prologue
There it was, a flash of her crying face as she collapsed by the pond. No sound could be heard from the calm surface but the reflection in the water showed that she was distraught. Those were the only times I ever saw her, when she was upset or in tears. Although I couldn’t understand how the pond worked, I assumed that it was a real pond in a different world and it would only show me exactly what was going on on the other side. So if she wasn’t near the pond, I wouldn’t see her reflection.
After observing the pond for quite some time, I came to the conclusion that she only came to the pond when she needed a sense of comfort, for I had never seen her reflection smile. Perhaps she could see my reflection from the other side?
“No,” I whispered to myself. If she could see my reflection then she would have reacted somehow but she never showed any sign of such a thing. Her blue eyes became like oceans as hot tears streamed down her face. Although I couldn’t hear them, I could tell she was sobbing because her shoulders shook violently in the reflection.
“Please don’t cry,” I whispered in pain, my heart reaching out to her. Who could have upset her so? She was at the pond almost everyday, crying silent tears as I stood by and watched. “Tell me, who hurt you?” I asked her reflection, crouching on the shore of the pond.
Of course she didn’t answer me. “Don’t cry anymore okay? There will soon be a day where I will comfort you with my own hands,” I murmured gently and brushed my fingertips against the still surface of the pond. Almost as if she could respond to my touch, she slowly closed her eyes and let out a deep breath, her tensed shoulders relaxing as she dipped her toes into the water.
I couldn’t help the satisfied smile that stretched across my lips as her tears stopped falling. But just as quickly, my smile wilted away. Time was running out. I put my head in my hands and tightly squeezed my eyes shut as I tried to force down the rising sense of panic. Part of me was temped to leap into the pond as if doing so would somehow bring her into my world, but I knew it would change nothing.
Raising my head again, I stared hard at her reflection. How I longed to finally see her. To be able to run my fingers through her hair and stare deeply into her ocean blue eyes. I wouldn’t even let myself think about what I would do to her soft pink lips if given the chance. Wello be more precise, I couldn’t. If she didn’t come into my world in the next three sunrises than she would disappear forever.
“No! She will get here somehow!” I growled to myself as despair threatened to overtake me. But time was almost out! Every second that went by was slowly counting down the moments that my world would be thrown into utter chaos. “Please,” I barely whispered as I felt tears sting my eyes as well, “I need you.”
