#umbraia

I'm dreaming. She knew she was. She knew this dream. But even with the knowledge that she was asleep, she felt her pulse quicken, the pounding of her heart a deafening drum in her ears as she stumbled over her own feet, turning quick, sloppy circles as she tried to decide which was to run. It doesn't matter her mind supplied. She knew how this dream would end. How it always ended. And yet she was still in a panic over it. The Dragon's hands trembled, even in the oppressive summer heat that threatened to make even her sweat. 

Without her knowledge she'd picked a direction, and uncoordinated feet snapped into action as Shinhye used her hands to push through the thick brush, the back of the trees catching on her skin as she sprinted blindly through the dark breath coming in pants that were too loud, everything was too loud for the current situation. It doesn't matter, her mind repeated again, and yet she was still trying, sucking in a deep heavy breath that didn't feel it it contained any oxygen at all. Twice, three times she tried to catch a breath, as she stumbled, still running, each branch she shoved away taking its payment for the abuse in flesh. 

As the scenery became more and more recognizable, she felt the panic shoot up her spine. Just stop. She wanted to. She willed her feet to stop running but they didn't listen. She fought against the events until she was sobbing from the effort, already ineffective breaths coming in broken gasps as she tumbled through the brush and into a clearing, foot catching on some unseen assailant as she spilled out of the woods face first. Don't look up. Just don't look up. 

Shinhye felt the oppressive weight of what she knew she was going to see hit her shoulders, Everything in her body told her to keep her eyes on the dirt. Her hands ached from all of the abuse, a shooting pain radiated up from her knee thanks to a rock she'd fallen on, as she burst through the trees. But none of it could compare to the pain she felt deep in her chest. The ache in her heart that increased with every beat, as she felt her head tilt up. And then there was silence, the whole world seeming to stop as her gaze met a pair of warm chocolate brown eyes.