Chapter Text
Sunbeams filtered through the slats of the closed blinds, casting a striped pattern on the bedroom floor. Under the sheets, Grace's chest rose and fell in a slow and steady rhythm. In the adjoining room, Faith was fast asleep, too.
When both hands of Grace's alarm clock met above the number 6, Faith's phone started ringing loudly.
It took Grace only two seconds to wake up. Groaning, she rolled onto her stomach and buried her face in the pillow. "Faith," she called, her voice muffled.
Grace squeezed her eyes tighter. Every morning for the past two weeks, Faith had somehow managed to sleep through her alarms, even though they were loud enough to wake half the building. With an exasperated sigh, Grace returned on her back and shouted, "FAITH! THE ALARM!!!"
The ringing continued for a few more seconds, then it finally stopped.
"Sorry, sorry!" Faith yelled back from her bedroom.
Letting out an annoyed sigh, Grace closed her eyes and tugged the sheets up to her chin. She remained in that position for a few minutes, but the noises of Faith getting ready for class made it impossible for her to fall back asleep.
With her eyes still closed, Grace stuck out an arm and felt for the sleeping pills she kept on her nightstand. Her fingers swept across the surface, first grazing the alarm clock, then bumping against the prescription bottle, causing it to tip over. Before she could catch it, it rolled off the edge of the nightstand.
"For fuck's sake," Grace groaned, tossing the sheets aside. Then, she scooted to the side of the bed and leaned over the edge to retrieve the bottle.
Sitting up in bed, she twisted off the cap and tipped the bottle over her palm. As she tilted the bottle back upright to screw the cap back on, Grace saw something reflected in the clear orange plastic.
It was a tiny and slightly distorted face. Grace recognized it instantly: the soft arch of the eyebrows, the dark eyes, the cut of the nose, and the smirking mouth. It was, undoubtedly, his face.
Grace jerked, and her grip on the prescription bottle loosened. It fell on the mattress and burst open, scattering the pills on the sheets. Feeling her heart beating faster in her chest, Grace tentatively picked up the bottle, but this time, she didn't see anything.
Trying to calm herself, she began collecting the pills, but her hands were shaking. Grace set the bottle back down on the mattress and got off the bed.
Keeping her eyes fixed on the bottle, she quickly backed away toward the door, nearly tripping over her own feet. When her hand closed around the knob, she opened the door and bolted outside.
Faith was slouching over a bowl of milk, munching on still crunchy cereal. Blinking blearily, she watched as Grace nearly ran toward the bathroom.
"Are you okay?" Faith asked, puzzled. "What's going on?"
"Nothing," the other replied, unconvincingly.
"You sure? Grace?" Faith called after her.
The only answer she got was the loud bang of the bathroom door after Grace slammed it shut.
Panting, Grace flicked on the lights and looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. With her mouth agape from the frantic breathing, her skin pasty and sweaty, and her messy hair plastered to her neck and forehead, she looked completely out of her mind.
Grace turned on the faucet and splashed her face with freezing cold water.
Feeling what seemed like a tap on her shoulder, Grace suddenly lifted her head and scanned the room, but there was no one else in the bathroom. Am I losing my fucking mind? she thought as she wiped her face with a hand, water trickling onto her pajamas. When she turned around again, she nearly screamed.
He was reflected in the mirror now, and this time, it wasn't just his face, but his upper body as well. He was wearing his wedding suit, and blood was gushing from a deep wound in his neck.
Hello, Grace, darling.
The voice was his, but it came from inside her head, and it was so clear that it sounded as if he were standing right next to her, saying those words in her ear.
Grace stumbled backward until her back hit the wall, and Titus Danforth gave a half smile at her reaction.
Did you miss me?