WEINI - "Are You There" - Part 2

First time reading this story? CLICK HERE FOR PART 1

Hey people! This post isn't planned, but since it was requested. Here it is!

Nigel can't seems to focus on anything. How can Natalie be in two places at the same time? This is really weird. Maybe this is some kinda joke? Does that mean, she went all the way to set up this prank with Lisa?

"BOO!!!" someone hit Nigel's shoulders from the back. Nigel jumped.

"Wha.... what?" Nigel turned around. "Li-saaaa..." Nigel said, feigning irritation.

"What?" Lisa asked, pretending to be confused.

"You got me there..." Nigel admitted.

"Oh yea!" Lisa pumped her fist into the air. "So, what's up?" she asked.

"Uh, the ceiling?" Nigel answered.

"Ahh... that's an outdated come back," Lisa waved him off.

"Then what?" Nigel asked.

Lisa shrugged, "Dunno..."

The school bell rang. Someone tapped him on his shoulder, he turned around and said, "Lis-" there was no one behind him but a pillar. He quickly turned the other way round, hoping to catch someone who's trying to scare him. But the closest person was about 5 feet away and he didn't even know who is that girl.

Nigel shrugged off the matter and walked to his class.

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In the class, Lisa hissed across the class, about 3 seats away. Nigel turned towards Lisa. Lisa held up a piece of A4 paper. It wrote:

NATALIE WANTS TO TALK TO YOU!!! 9 P.M! SKYPE!

Nigel nodded. He's so excited! He can't wait to go home!
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When Nigel reached home, he ran to his room and turned on the computer immediately. He connected to the Internet and logged in to Skype. 6 hours and eleven more minutes to 9... he logged in to Facebook and check some updates. After that, he left his computer on and went and had his lunch and took a shower. He was too excited but decided to take a nap to pass time.

About 7.58 pm, he woke up. Took his dinner and sat his computer. Lisa was online. So he chatted with Lisa to pass time first.

At 8.54 pm, there was a notification saying that Natalie just came online. He told Lisa that Natalie has just come online. However, Lisa said that she didn't see Natalie's name online. Lisa said, maybe it was her connection problem and that she'd restart her connection and log in again. Nigel said, okay and opened the Skype's window and clicked on Natalie's name to call her. The line was connected and Natalie's face appeared on the screen.

Nigel smiled. After a few seconds, he noticed something amiss...

Natalie was wearing the shirt she wore about one week ago. Maybe she liked this shirt... Nigel thought to himself. Natalie smiled back at Nigel. And he dismissed the thought completely. But something inside was telling him that something is not right. Not normal. Yet, Nigel kept telling himself that it was nothing.

Lisa came online again. Nigel asked Lisa again, but Lisa said she didn't see Natalie online at all. Nigel was beginning to sweat. What is wrong? Natalie is there, as usual, sitting at her computer and smiling back at him while talking. How can Lisa not see Natalie?

Suddenly, the screen went blank again. Natalie's line was disconnected. Nigel was surprised. Did Natalie hang up on him again? Nigel told Lisa what happened. Lisa said that this was creeping her out and she was going offline. Natalie was online again. This time, she called him. He connected his line and Natalie's face appeared on the screen again.

This time, her face looked a bit hollow. Her eyes had dark circles. Were his eyes playing trick on him or was it really that suddenly, Natalie was in another attire altogether? It was only a few seconds ago that the screen went blank. Natalie apologised, saying that her connection was really bad there.

She said, "Sorry, they don't let me come online for too long..."

Nigel nodded, "I see..."

They chatted about music, about school and about random stuff. Natalie said she had to go. So they say their 'goodbyes' and went offline. Nigel prepared himself for bed. When he's cleaned, he went and lie down on his bed, feeling really happy that he's finally chatted with Natalie like they used to.

He closed his eyes and suddenly, Natalie's face came into his mind. Something was not right... He replayed their conversation just now. Wait... who was the 'they' she talked about?

Nigel suddenly opened his eyes. At his bedroom's window, he swear he saw a something that was not part of the night. He has been staring at the window for years, but something was not right. Today, the night seemed darker... quieter than usual... He sat up on his bed and put his leg on the floor. His feet touched the cold floor and he shivered. He walked tentatively to the window.

Suddenly, his feet brushed again something furry. He stood up straighter. He squinted at the floor, it was only his cat. He continued walking to the window. He willed himself to be brave and looked out the window. On the tree by his window, was a blurr figure. Must be my imagination... he thought to himself. When he was going to head back to his bed, something flew past his window.

His heart skipped a beat. He slowly looked out the window. Sitting beside his window, on the flat roof, was Natalie... sitting with her knees pulled up to her chest and arms wrapped around her knees. She was crying.

Nigel felt his knees turning weak. But it was only Natalie... right? He opened his window, climbed out of it carefully and moved towards Natalie. When he was close enough, he gasped...

Natalie...

It was Natalie...

Nigel can see through Natalie...

Natalie looked up. Her face was sunken and sickly. Dark circles formed under her eyes. There was a long, deep gash, from her hairline on the right side cutting down to below her right ear. Blood was dripping down slowly her chin, mixing with her salty tears. Her shirt, the one she wore when they were Skype-ing, was bloodstained and smelt of hot iron and burnt petrol.

Drip... drip... drip...

"Oh my God..." Nigel whispered. "What is happening?"

Natalie sobbed softly, looking Nigel with her pair of sorrowful eyes. She shook her head, "I... I... don't... don't know..."

Nigel squated down beside her. He tried to put his arm around her but it went through her. Of course I can't touch her! She's not even here! It's just a dream! My figment of imagination... he thought.

"It's not..." Natalie said.

"Huh? What is not?" Nigel asked.

"It's not your imagination... this is not a dream... it's real..." Natalie explained and continued sobbing. Nigel so wanted to embrace her and comfort her.

"What happened?" Nigel asked carefully.

"It was too fast... I was in the car... then the truck came, and I was floating in the air... looking down at myself, bleeding... I was crushed in the car. I felt so helpless... I shouted for help. But no one heard me. I was so scared. So alone. I was so scared..." Natalie tightened her arms around her knees and started rocking, back and forth... back and forth.

It pained Nigel to see Natalie feeling alone and scared. Yet, he felt angry because he was helpless and there was nothing he can do to help.

"I don't want to go... I want my life back... it feels so weird to not breathe... I'm not ready to go, Nigel... I'm not ready to leave... not ready to let go... not ready to let go..." and sudenly, Natalie was gone..

Nigel closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. When he opened his eyes again, he realised, Natalie was really gone. He climbed back into his bedroom and walked to his bed and lied down. He couldn't sleep. Natalie's voice kept echoing in his mind like a haunted melody... not ready to let go... I'm scared... I want my life back... I don't want to go... I'm not ready to leave... not ready to let go... not ready to let go... not ready to let go... suddenly, there was a scream and Nigel sat up, wide awake and sweating on his bed. It was his alarm clock. It's morning already! And Nigel felt like he haven't slept.

He went to school, Lisa greeted him. She asked him what was wrong. He hesitated before telling Lisa what happened.

"Maybe it was a dream?" Lisa suggested.

"But Natalie told me it wasn't!" Nigel protested.

"Yea, well. Anything can happen in a dream..." Lisa shrugged.

"Good point..." Nigel agreed lifelessly.

"Did you pinch yourself?" Lisa asked.

"No..." Nigel shook his head.

"Well, too bad!" Lisa said.
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That night, Nigel went home and turned on his computer, hoping to see Natalie online. He didn't care if it was Natalie or not. He just want to see her again. Instead, Natalie's sister, Nicole, called him on Skype.

"Nigel..." Nicole started.

"Where's Natalie?" Nigel asked.

"She's in the hospital..." Nicole sighed. "Still in coma.."

"Coma??" Nigel asked, bewildered.

"Yes, didn't Lisa told you? She met an accident few weeks ago and now she's still unconscious. The doctor said that she had a concussion and she might not wake up," Nicole explained sadly.

"She will wake up..."

"We are praying really hard, Nigel... but there's nothing the doctors can do..." Nicole said.

"SHE WILL WAKE UP!" Nigel said loudly.

"Yes, I hope so too..." Nicole said with a sigh.

"She's not ready to go yet... She told me..." Nigel said, regretting immediately what he had just let out.

"She told you? Who told you what?" Nicole asked curiously.

"Natalie, she told me she's not ready to let go..." Nigel said.

"When? When did you see her? She's in coma!" Nicole said frantically.

"I know... but... she... her spirit came to me last night... she said she is really scared..." Nigel told Nicole.

"Oh my God!" Nicole gasped.

"I know... that was what I said too..." Nigel whispered.
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At about 2 am, Nigel's phone rang. He reached out for his phone blindly and answered the call.

"Hello?" Nigel said sleepily. Which idiot calls at this ungodly hour???

"Nigel!?!?" Nicole's voice asked. She sounded like she was having a panic attack. Nigel was wide awake now.

"What???" Nigel asked worriedly.

"It's Natalie... her heart stopped beating..." Nicole said, her voice broke and she started sobbing.

"Wha..." Nigel said helplessly as his phone slipped from his hand and crashed noisily onto the floor. He can't feel anything. It felt like... like his heart stopped beating too..
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Seven years later...

Nigel has lost contact with Nicole after the night she told her the news.

It's the day, seven years after the news. Nigel didn't get any news after that. Nicole didn't contact Lisa either. Nigel was walking in the street where Natalie and him used to hang out. He sat at the bench. Suddenly, he saw Natalie... then she was gone. Was it Natalie? He knew it was. Because he saw the scar. The scar that starts from her hairline and ends just right under her right ear. He stood up quickly and headed towards the direction where he saw Natalie just now.

But Natalie was nowhere in sight. He sighed. Suddenly, someone was beside him. He turned around to see Natalie. Natalie's smile. Natalie said, "I can't let you go..." she smiled. Nigel smiled back.

Suddenly, Natalie stabbed Nigel at his heart. Nigel gasped. He looks down and saw a piece of broken glass sticking out from his chest on the left. The last thing he saw, was Natalie's beautiful smile. The smile he thought, he's lost forever...
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On the newspaper the next day, Lisa read about a young man committing suicide on the street... she looked at the photo... the guy who committed suicide... it was Nigel... witnesses claimed that he was casually sitting at the bench. Suddenly, he stood up in a rushed manner and seemed to be looking for something... he took out a piece of broken glass from his pocket and stabbed it at his heart and fell down, dead...

Nigel... how long since she last met him... Lisa shook her head mournfully, folded the newspaper and went to work. It's another kill... since 104 years ago...

A few thousand years ago... in another lifetime... Lisa loved Nigel... but Nigel loved Natalie... Lisa committed suicide and vowed to never let them both together... now... it's their turn. No happy endings for them... she can't just let them go! She loved Nigel a lot. But she's not ready to give him away...

It's time, to find where they are both reborn to this time... again...

Lisa smiled evilly... it's time... again...

But she didn't know... true love... can overcome anything. Because somewhere... Nigel and Natalie was finally together... this time, they won't reincarnate...

THE END

WEINI