When she wakes

A Story by Starley

An attempt at writing a magical realistic story.

It’s quiet when Aliya wakes, the sea is still and the sky has turned into hues of red and orange as the sun sets on the horizon. She sits up and watches the scenery before her, the sun looks like it’s submerging in the sea now. The wind blows through her hair, Aliya shields her eyes. If she listens carefully, she can hear the wind says “take care of this life I gave to you.” Her heart drops as the sudden feeling that something’s missing overcomes her. Slowly, she closes her eyes and let her mind wander to where it all begins.

It’s the afternoon during the lunch hour rush when Aliya leaves her house, leaving behind her wallet and cellphone. When her parents ask where she’s heading to, she tells them that she’s going to the soccer game at her school. She says this with the most convincing smile on her face. It’s not a total lie but it’s not the truth either. Her school does have a soccer game against their formidable rival at two o’clock, but she does not care for events like that, where people are laughing and having the time of their lives as though there’s no worry in the world, as though everything has been well in their lives. Aliya wants no part of that; she wants to be at a place where she can be to herself, where she can lay these feelings to rest. Even amongst the crowds of people going about their daily lives; some are heading back to work, carrying huge bags of foods for their co-workers while others are looking for cafes to sit down and eat, this urge to be by herself does not waver instead it increases tenfold as she feels more lonely. She crosses her arms and maneuvers her way through the crowds.

A red sedan pulls over at the curb near the light Aliya is currently crossing, a girl about her age pokes her head of the window and calls out her name. Aliya looks up at the girl and gives her a smile and for once it does not feel so fake and Aliya can’t possibly explain it, but yet it’s not enough to stop the ripples of sadness inside. It’s Raina, the girl who sits next to her in class, wearing the biggest smile on her face as she exits her car, bouncing up and down as Aliya approaches her. Raina asks her if she’s going to soccer match, explaining that if their school wins, they will go to the championship. Raina even suggests that she can give her a ride. To which Aliya refuses politely and just in case Raina asks, Aliya tells her that she’s going for a walk before saying goodbye and heading on her way. She doesn’t see the pained expression on Raina’s face as she watches her walk away. Aliya doesn’t hear the “how can you be so dense” comment that slips from Raina’s lips.

Aliya stops in front of a tall black gate that surrounds the Mt. Pleasant hilltop. There are stories about this hilltop where teens and adults come here with heavy hearts to in order to put their feelings to an end. The hilltop is by a sea that is never calm yet in those stories people find serenity in it. The sea welcomes them with open arms and embraces them when they fall asleep. It’s because of these stories that the town has closed off the hilltop to the public. She slips off her sneakers and socks and sets them to the side. She grips on the black bars and pulls herself up and climbs over the gate. Landing on her feet, she hikes up to the top of the hill, the grass soft and moist on her feet. At the top, she extends her arms out, feeling the wind blowing past her, the sea is roaring just like it does in the stories. But, the roaring sea does not look scary at all to her, the waves in the sea look as though it’s singing, opening it’s arms out for her to come in. She closes her eyes and takes a step forward. Perhaps, this is how the people in those stories feel when they are going to put an end to their feeling. She takes another step forward. Soon, these feelings that build up so strongly over the past years will finally be laid to rest. Soon there will be no more feeling inadequate, no more feeling lonely or sad, no more conflicting feelings, there will just be peace as she sleeps amongst the sea’s embrace. She takes another step forward and open her eyes and looks down at the roaring sea, waves crashing against the rocky walls of the hilltop. Aliya freezes for a moment and looks up at the sky for some kind of confirmation before she closes eyes and takes a step forward and falls. The velocity of her fall increases by the second, the smell of the sea filling her nostrils, and in a moment, it will all be over, at last, she will be free.

Her freedom never comes.

Just as Aliya is about to hit the sea, about to go to sleep, about to be free, she is saved by blur of red and orange. She is then carried back to the top of the hill, the blur sets Aliya down on her feet. It takes a moment for her to realize she didn’t die and she looks up at the blur that saves her from dying. The blur turns out to be a large bird that looks like the sun itself with wings that resemble the flames. ‘It’s beautiful’ Aliya thinks as she looks up at her savior, her fists clench and her eyes start to water. ‘But, it stopped me from letting it all end. Why?!’ As soon as she opens her mouth to speak, a bright immaculate light engulfed the bird almost blinding Aliya as she turns away from the light. Once she turns around as soon as the immaculate light fades, the large bird is no longer there instead there is a woman, who look no more than four years older then her. She is beautiful with her almond colour skin and oval shaped face, her hair is the richest shade of red and is long and curls at the ends. Her garments hang loose on her body yet it clings on her curves like any goddess has it. It’s breathtaking. Aliya stares at the woman’s beauty, her body relaxes ever so slightly as she mutters out “Who are you? You’re so beautiful.”

The woman chuckles and walks over to her. “In legends, I am known as the bird of the sun, who obtains new life from my ashes; the phoenix. But, now, I’m Soleila.”

Aliya reaches over to touch her hair, twirling the locks around her fingers, testing to see if she’s really real and this is not all a dream that sea has given her. Her eyes are never off Soleila. Soleila holds on to Aliya’s hands and pulls it away from her hair.

“This is no dream, Aliya. This is reality; I saved you from dying.” She says, her voice is careful like holding glass.

Her mouth open as she stares at Soleila before snatching her hand away from her. Her breathing increases and her hands clenches and unclenches. “Why?!” She questions, grabbing Soleila’s shoulders and shaking her. “Why would you do that?! I was supposed to die here and be at peace. I was going to be free.” Then, she stops shaking her, her hands slip down from her shoulders to her arms. Aliya rests her head on her chest. “Why?” She cries, her tears fall on her clothes, wetting it.

There is a hand petting Aliya’s hair and another hand brings Aliya closer to her. “I saved you because of what I sensed in your heart.” Her hand that is on Aliya’s hair slips underneath her chin and lifts Aliya’s face up so that she is looking at her. The wind blows past them, making Soleila look more like a goddess in Aliya’s eyes. “Just before you fell, you hesitated for a moment and in that moment, I knew that I had to save you.”

“But, why?!”

“It’s because I care about you and I want to help you.” That’s all Soleila says. Her eyes are softer now and she wears on a small smile. It’s all it takes for Aliya to break down in front of her. For even as simple as the words sound, it’s words that Aliya wanted to hear for the longest but never heard since nobody ever paid attention to her. They always see the plastered smile on her face and left her alone to her own thoughts, never truly noticing the fakeness of her smile. But, hearing a stranger, a person she barely knew, says this to her makes her happy. Soleila remains silent, rubbing her hand in a circular motion on her upper back. After a while, Aliya calms down, hiccupping once in awhile. Soleila hums. “How do you feel now, Aliya?”

Aliya bows her head, refusing to look at the woman. She is unsure of how she feels since on one hand, she’s embarrassed that she cried in front of a stranger, a beautiful one at that, and the other hand, she’s happy to have someone here with her. “I’m not sure?” She tells her after a while, looking down at her feet, which curl up on the grass. The sounds of the roaring sea quiet down and all they can hear is the sounds of the leaves rustling in the wind.

“You don’t know?” Soleila giggles. “You’re a strange one.” Gently, she moves her hands to Aliya’s face and wipes her tears away with her thumbs then she lifts her head up. She bites on her bottom lip as she notices the sun’s rays draw closer to her. Her time here is waning; she doesn’t have so much time left. The sun is over her head now, illuminating her with its rays, showing Aliya how much of goddess Soleila is. Soft, angelic light hands move down to hold her hands, but Aliya no longer pays attention to movement of those gentle hands as she stares at the person that gave her so much with so little actions. They stare at each other for what seems like forever. “I’m sorry.” Soleila says as she closes the distance between them. Her hands are on Aliya’s face now. And before Aliya can ask ‘what for?’, Soleila leans down and captures Aliya’s lips with hers. Their lips overlap each other and move in a feverish pleasure. Her lips are soft as Aliya’s imagines it to be, it feels like the smoothest silk on her chapped lips. When Soleila breathe in, it is divine and she feels powerless before her. Hesitantly, she moves her slender, delicate fingers in her Soleila’s hair, running them through hair as she keeps up with the tempo that Soleila is moving in. It entices Soleila even more as she brushes over her bottom lip, deepening the kiss, letting her know that she is loved. Just as quickly as it begins, the kiss ends as Soleila pulls away. Aliya pouts as she did. Still close to each other, they catch their breaths before they start to speak to each other. Soleila is the first to speak. “I don’t want to say goodbye just yet, but I’m afraid that I’m running out of time. I-”

“But, you can’t go. I need you here with me; nobody has ever cared so much for me.” Aliya cuts her off, desperately.

She caresses her cheeks, Aliya leans into her touches. “Sadly, in order for me to live, I have to go and be reborn. It’s the life I live as a phoenix. You must continue to live your life as human, Aliya. You’re not alone in this world, someone cares about you just like how I care about you.”

“But, will I ever see you again?” Aliya stammers.

She pauses and searches for the right words to say since the answer is not easy to say. Their brief encounter is once in a lifetime just like every single life she has lived thus far. It can’t be repeated again. But, it can’t stop her from being with Aliya. Soleila guides Aliya’s hands to Aliya’s chest, letting her feel the beating of her heart. “Do you feel it, the beating of your heart?”

Aliya nods her head.

“That’s me. I gave up this precious life for you so you can live. When you think it’s too much and you want to give up, always remember I’m right here. That way, we’ll never be apart.”

“I understand, thank you.” Aliya looks down and smiles as she feels a fuzzy warmth building up from within. “Soleila, may I ask you one more favor?”

“Yes, anything.”

“I feel so tired. Can you stay with me until I fall asleep?”

“Yes.”

They lie down on soft grass, facing each other as they hold each other hands. Slowly, Aliya closes her eyes and falls fast asleep. As soon as she falls asleep, Soleila turns into the very ashes that she was born in and is carried off by the wind. The wind caresses her cheek as though it’s kissing her goodnight. Faintly, she hears the wind says “take care of this life I gave you.”

It’s a pleasant memory that is short lived as Aliya is snapped back to reality when she hears the quickening footfalls on the moist grass. She is then embraced from behind. “Don’t be so hasty, Aliya!” The person says, tightening their grip on her. It’s Raina and Aliya can’t help but smile.

“I wasn’t planning to.” Aliya says. It’s far from the truth but she decides that it’s good enough.

Raina rests her head on shoulders. “So, why have you been here for so long then?” She hums. “Your parents were so worried about you, you know? They called me on your phone, asking where were you. You’re lucky to have a friend like me because I told them you went to my house after the game. If you want to know our school is going to the championship!”

“Thanks, Raina. I came here to see it for myself.”

“What?”

“If the stories are true that if you come here,a beautiful bird of the sun will come to you and stay with you until you wake.”