The sun had long sense set over London. The moon hung with the stars, gracing the world with its glow. But despite the beauty the moon and stars brought, Emily's mind was anything but calm. As she lay in the only bed in Matt's apartment, Emily found herself plagued with the memories of the day's events. Every attempt Emily made to sleep, she felt the world enclose around her, suffocating her, just as the tomb nearly had done only hours ago. Emily saw Ethan's face, twisted with grief and something more, entombing her.
Emily woke for the third time that night gasping for air. She sat up in the bed, taking deep breaths. Her body shook from the terror of her dreams. Emily pushed her curls from her face, dripping in sweaty. She slowed her breathing, hoping she hadn't woken Matt in the living room. Emily held her breath for a moment and listened. The lack of shifting or footsteps calmed Emily's fear of waking Matt, for the moment.
Emily exhaled slowly. She turned her head to the strange glowing clock by Matt's bed. The glowing numbers showed: 12:42. The last time Emily had looked at the clock was at least fifteen minutes ago. And with sunrise at least six hours, Emily realized she would never fully sleep tonight.
Silently slipped from the bed, Emily's shaking feet touched the cold floor. Emily quietly rose from the bed and slowly walked out of the bedroom. She glanced into the living room, finding Matt's outline on the couch. From the distance, Matt looked fast asleep. Silently thanking good fortune for that. Emily slowly walked toward the terrace door. She gently turned the handle and eased the door open. Emily took one glance back into the living room, checking on Matt, before she slipped out into the cold night.
The cold air was refreshing on Emily's warm face. Emily inhaled deeply, trying to calm her nerves. She slowly walked to the railing of the terrace. A gentle breeze caused Emily to shiver slightly. Matt's colleague, Jess possibly, had been gracious enough to allow Emily to borrow some of clothing. And though some of her clothes were a tad tight and more revealing than Emily would have preferred, Emily was glad she wasn't always resorting to Matt's clothing. Tonight, Emily had decided to swear a long gown. The fabric was smooth against her skin. The gown hung from her shoulders by thin straps and dipped down her chest, but Emily was rather fond of the feel, and the flower patterns down the left half of the gown.
Emily laid her arms along the metal railing. She bent over, laying her chin on her arms. Emily stared out at the sleeping city of London. Spots of lights decorated the building as far as Emily could see. Never in all her life had Emily ever seen something so beautiful, and so frightening. Somewhere out there, Ethan was still lurking about. And though he believed her dead, if Ethan ever knew Emily had escaped, he would no doubt come back for her, and the next encounter may not be one Emily could escape from. If it hadn't been for Matt, Emily would not have survived the last encounter with Ethan.
Emily sucked in a deep breath of the cold air. Warm tears blurred the vision of the city and spilled down her cheeks. Despite her attempts to withhold her tears, Emily couldn't find the strength to hold them back any longer. Never in all her life had Emily ever been so scared. Yes, she'd traveled through gateways and faced unimaginable creatures. Yes, those creatures had hunted her and tried to kill her, but today was different. Today it wasn't a creature trying to kill her for food, Ethan had tried to kill her out of grief and revenge. She had come within inches of death…and she was terrified. Emily slid her chin from her arm and leaned her forehead on her arm. She closed her eyes, allowing the tears to fall effortlessly from her face. For years she's held them back, but she could no longer do so. Tonight, Emily had reached her breaking point.
Emily cried, out on the terrace alone. She kept her gasps minimal and quiet. Explaining to Matt why she was crying was not a conversation Emily wished to endure. She could let him see her weak and broken.
Suddenly something warm fell over Emily's back. Emily jumped in surprise and spun around quickly. Her movements brought her hands up in defense, batting a nearby arm from her. It took only a moment for Emily to recognize Matt standing a meter from her. His hands were in the air, trying to show no hostility toward her.
"It's only me, Emily," Matt said.
"Matt." Emily gasped and lowered her arms. She lowered her head and saw the warm item that had touched her shoulder's was actually a blanket.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you." Matt explained. He bent down and picked up the blanket.
"No, no, it's alright." Emily replied. She moved quickly to dry her eyes before Matt had a chance to look at her again.
Matt straightened his back and held out the blanket. "I figured if you'd be out here long, you might want this. It's a little chilly tonight."
Emily forced a smile and took the blanket from Matt. "Thank you. I didn't mean to wake you."
Matt shook his head. "Don't worry, you didn't wake me."
"Trouble sleeping?" Emily asked. She leaned against the railing, still holding the blanket.
"Apparently there's a lot of that going around these days." Matt replied.
Emily forced a small laugh. Her eyes fell from his face. She tried to ignore that he was without a shirt as she stood in front of her. At least he had the decency to find some pants before he'd walked onto the terrace. Although she enjoyed conversing with Matt, she desperately wanted him to return to the apartment. Emily could feel Matt's eyes gazing her over. She forced herself not to look at him. The moment she looked at him, he would know something was troubling her.
"Is something troubling you?" Matt asked, as if he'd read her thoughts.
Emily lifted her head. She shook her head gently. "No."
Matt's head slightly titled to the right. Emily felt his gaze narrow on her. "You sure?"
Emily nodded again. "Yes. I'm sorry for disturbing you tonight. I thought I was being quiet."
"You were." Matt said. "And that's what puzzles me."
Emily frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You're not a prisoner here, Emily. You don't have to keep quiet because you think you'll be incarcerated." Matt said. "And after what happened today with Ethan, there's no shame in being a little shaken or anxious."
"It's nothing, Matt. I simply couldn't sleep." Emily replied.
Matt sighed. This woman never made anything easy. "Is that why you were crying?"
Emily quickly looked up at Matt. She held his gaze for only a few seconds, before turning her face from him. She felt another wave of tears grow within her. She took a deep breath, trying to hold them back.
"Tell me, Emily. Maybe I can help?" Matt suggested.
Emily chuckled lightly. "You can't."
Matt's hand gently grabbed Emily's arm. "Then tell me anyways. Sometimes talking helps."
Emily looked back at Matt. She opened her mouth, but she couldn't find the words.
"Is it Ethan?" Matt asked.
With his words Emily felt her composure nearly shattered. She took in a ragged breath and spoke. "It's Ethan. It's you. It's the gateways, the creature, London. It's everything." She turned from him and looked out at the city as her tears fell again.
Matt frowned. "I don't understand."
Emily shook her head. "These past few years, all I've been trying to do is go back to London. And here I am. But this isn't my London. This is completely different from when I last saw it. These building, these lights, the roads, it's all wrong. I came here in hopes of saving Charlotte, yet she dies, leaving Ethan and myself behind to grieve. Now Ethan has completely lost his mind and is somewhere out there plotting his revenge. In all my years of passing through the gateways, there hasn't been one creature that frightens me the way Ethan does. The look in the creatures eyes are that of hunger, but Ethan. In Ethan's eyes all I can see is rage and darkness. Everything Charlotte kept buried within him. Now Ethan won't think twice about killing people for revenge. And today…I thought I was going to die. When Ethan sealed me inside that tomb…I thought I'd never survive."
Matt moved beside her. "But you did. You're alive."
"Only because you saved me, Matt." Emily said. She turned and looked at him. "The only reason I'm not buried in that tomb in because of you Matt. But in some ways, I still feel trapped inside a tomb. If Ethan learns that I survived, he will come back for me. And you can't always be there to protect me. I cannot stay in this version of London and I'm not sure I can keep entering gateways for the rest of eternity on my own. I feel like my world is my own tomb, and its sealing itself without a way for me to stop it." Emily took a staggering breath. She wiped her eyes, but more tears fell. "I...I don't…" her sentence died as Emily finally broke into sobs. She held her face in her hands and she cried.
Matt gently pulled Emily into his arms. He wrapped and arm around her back and gently cradled her head against his shoulder. Emily wrapped her arms around his back and cried on Matt's shoulder. He held her in his arms, being the support she needed. Matt didn't know the pain Emily was feeling. He didn't know what it felt like to be lost in time, or losing a friend, or the betrayal of a friend. He couldn't imagine what Emily felt right now, but he could be there to support her. At the moment, that was all he could do for Emily.
okay, what did you think of this? after seeing Matt pull Emily from the tomb, i finda figured Emily might be a little shaken from the event. And tlet's face it, no one would be calm after going through everythign that Emily has gone through