Fond Memories

The realization settled in her mind slowly, like dust blinking golden in shafts of sunlight streaming in through half-open/half-closed curtains before gently finding their place on wooden table tops and untouched books. They settled there, and like dust the thoughts itched and scratched at her, bringing with it a feeling of discomfort and dread that spread all the way through her, right to her very core. It became a tangible thing, a physical weight which pressed on her chest till she was left gasping and panting for air.

Her phone vibrated in her hand, and with one look at the display screen she flung it across the room. She didn't want to answer it, she didn't want that voice in her ear again, even though it might be the last time she ever got to hear it…

Silently she picked up the phone. The screen showed one missed call and one text message. 

"Rooftop. 5 mins."

She stared at it for a few seconds before another message appeared.
"Don't keep me waiting."

***

The night breeze blew her hair wildly about. She stood in the middle of the roof, heart beating wildly, phone clutched tightly in one hand, a small piece of paper in the other. She heard footsteps near the door, and slid the paper into her pocket, where it settled beside her pocket knife.

He burst through the door, panting heavily -- clearly he had not taken the elevator. He saw her standing and grinned widely, and took a deep calming breath before advancing towards her. His eyes shone and he knew his voice would be unsteady when he would speak. He went over the speech he had rehearsed in his head for the past two days, taking comfort in the fact that he would only have to say it once, and be done with it. He stood before her, hardly believing that she was about to become his. Her hair was a mess from the wind, and he eagerly moved forward to smooth it down, tuck strands behind her ears, and let his palms rest on her cheeks.

"You know what I'm about to say, don't you?"

She only looked at him, and he felt an unnatural chill run down his spine. There was no warmth in her eyes, and he withdrew his hands from her face.

"Is everything okay?"

With one swift move she had him pinned to the ground, facedown. He writhed in pain while she held him, fishing in her pocket for the piece of paper.

"Look at her."

She held a picture of a small girl in front of his eyes. She was chubby, had freckles, and wore her hair in two frizzy pigtails. A large gap between her front teeth was also evident from the goofy smile on the girl's face. He only sputtered in the dirt, unable to say anything with his face on the ground.

"You don't recognise her?"

She smiled at him, a crazy, dangerous smile. He was scared now, and his chin was bleeding from the contact with the ground. She turned him on his back and looked him in the eyes. She held the picture to his face again.

"I— I don't know who she is."

She smiled wider, tapping her front tooth and let out a burst of laughter. 

"My dentists did a good job, didn't they? Fixed the gap."

He only looked at her in horror, his eyes registering a fear he could not understand. He looked from the photo to her face, and back again. 

"Yes, that's me. So clever of you to notice."

She laughed her crazy laugh again, stopping abruptly. A crease materialised between her eyebrows, as she remembered something. 

"People weren't very nice to me back then. Your sister, she once put gum in my hair. I had to shave my whole head for that. The whole school laughed at me the next day, and the day after too."

She looked at him, as he finally remembered what she wanted him to remember. 

"You laughed at me too. You could have scolded your sister, or defended me, but you laughed at me, just like everyone else."

"I was wrong— I didn't know— I'm sorry," he pleaded, his voice breaking as he saw her pull something out of her pocket.

"I'm glad I met your family today. Meeting your sister brought back a lot of fond memories for me. It's a pity she didn't recognise me though, but who can blame her."

The air was still and the night eerily quiet. She looked at him, and stroked his hair while he flinched at her touch. 

"It's bad luck to make little girls cry."

The knife gleamed silently in the moonlight before the night was filled with screams.