half of my soul

Plus one—I glance at the wedding invitation on my desk one last time before hearing Vanessa buzz at the door. My girlfriend had invited me to one of her distant cousin’s big white wedding at a grand estate or whatnot tucked away in the picturesque Kent.

“I’m coming,” I call out, locking the door behind me.  

“There’s no rush, we still have some time before it starts,” Vanessa reassures me with a smile. “You look great by the way, lovely dress.”

We slide into the back of the cab. The drive to the venue takes about 40 minutes, but it flies by a lot quicker. The landscape of lush, green fields and  forests takes my breath away with the sunlight casting a golden tint over everything.

Vanessa sits beside me, close enough that our knees touch. She taps a rhythmic pattern on her thigh, a habit she has when she’s nervous. I can’t help but smile and take her hands in my lap. “You look beautiful,” I whisper, though the hum of the engine seems to suck away my words.

She glances at me and smiles, her eyes glistening in the warm sunlight. “Thanks,” she replies, her voice light, almost teasing. “But you’re the one turning heads in that dress.” I feel a warmth spread through me, a blush creeping up my neck, but I turn my head to hide it, focusing on the passing trees.

The cab eventually turns down a long driveway, flanked by towering oaks that seem to whisper secrets from the past. At the end of the drive, Rosewood Hall appears like a dream—a majestic estate draped in ivy, with turrets and tall windows that sparkle in the afternoon light.

As we step out of the cab, I straighten my dress and take a deep breath, trying to calm the flutter of excitement and anxiety in my chest. Vanessa’s hand finds mine, her fingers interlocking with mine in a comforting gesture.

“Here we are,” Vanessa says, her eyes sparkling with a mix of excitement and relief.

We walk towards the grand entrance where guests are mingling, the air filled with the sounds of laughter and clinking glasses. Vanessa leads me to a group near the entrance, where Meli, her cousin, stands waiting with a warm smile.

“Lea, this is Meli,” Vanessa introduces, her voice carrying a note of pride. “Meli, this is Lea, my plus one.”

Meli steps forward, her eyes bright with a welcoming charm. “It’s so lovely to finally meet you, Lea,” she says, her tone genuine and warm. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

“It’s wonderful to meet you too, Meli,” I reply, offering a smile that I hope conveys my eagerness. Vanessa gives me a reassuring glance before Meli gently takes my hand, leading us into the heart of the celebration.

The inside of Rosewood Hall is just as enchanting as the outside, with elegant decor and the soft hum of conversation filling the air. Vanessa and I follow Meli into the main hall, where we are greeted with friendly faces and glasses of champagne, the perfect start to an evening of celebration.

The romance of the evening enveloped me, a warm cloak against the cool breeze of Kent. Vanessa and I moved through the crowd, laughter and conversation swirling around us like confetti. The grandeur of Rosewood Hall, with its twinkling lights and elegant decor, seemed to dance in time with the music. Vanessa's hand brushed against mine occasionally, a subtle but electrifying touch that made me feel connected to her in a way that words couldn’t express.

As the night deepened, I felt a gentle tug of curiosity pull me away from the bustling main event. Vanessa noticed my distracted gaze and leaned closer, her lips near my ear. “You okay?” she asked, her voice soft and concerned.

I nodded, smiling up at her. “Just exploring a bit,” I replied. “I’ll be back soon.”

With a playful wink, she squeezed my hand. “Don’t get lost. I’ll be waiting for you.”

I made my way through the maze of hallways, my footsteps echoing softly on the polished marble floors. The mansion’s vastness was both enchanting and overwhelming, and I was drawn to the quieter corners of the estate. After a few twists and turns, I discovered a slightly ajar door leading to a library.

The room inside was a serene contrast to the festivities. The scent of aged paper and leather filled the air, and a single lamp cast a muted glow over the room’s dark wooden shelves. My eyes were immediately drawn to an oak desk in the center, where an ancient book lay open.

Curiosity beckoned me closer. The book’s pages were filled with elaborate illustrations and dense, archaic text. The illustrations depicted ritualistic symbols and ceremonies, their significance unclear but undeniably intriguing. My heart quickened as I skimmed through descriptions of ceremonial rites and offerings—strange customs that felt oddly out of place in the mansion’s elegant surroundings.

Despite the eerie feel of the book’s contents, I shook off the unsettling sensation. It was likely just a relic of the mansion’s storied history, I reassured myself. With one last glance at the mysterious text, I closed the book and slipped it back into place.

Rejoining the party, I let the warmth of the evening wash over me again. Vanessa spotted me from across the room and made her way over with a radiant smile. She slipped her arm through mine, and together we swirled back into the vibrant celebration. The guests danced beneath the canopy of stars, their joy infectious.

Vanessa leaned in, her breath warm against my ear. “I missed you,” she whispered, her eyes dancing with affection. I smiled, feeling the earlier unease melt away as we lost ourselves in the music and laughter. The night was alive, and in that moment, surrounded by the celebration and Vanessa’s presence, I felt completely at ease. As midnight approached, a subtle transformation enveloped Rosewood Hall. The music, once vibrant with carefree joy, softened into a muted melody, and an eerie hush descended upon the guests. They moved with an almost ritualistic precision, their earlier mirth replaced by a synchronized calm. Meli, who had once shimmered with radiant charm, withdrew from the celebration, drawing a following towards a secluded part of the estate.

My heart raced as I trailed the procession through the winding corridors of the mansion. The festive lights and laughter faded behind me, replaced by a growing sense of foreboding. Each step felt heavier, as if the mansion itself was conspiring to keep me from discovering its secrets.

We arrived at a large, dimly lit room that seemed to pulse with an unsettling energy. Candles were meticulously arranged in intricate, arcane patterns on the floor. Their flames flickered in a disjointed, almost sentient dance, casting ghostly shadows that leaped and twisted across the walls. The dim light revealed symbols etched into the floor—ancient runes that seemed to writhe and shift, their glow eerily reflecting the flicker of the candles.

The guests, now cloaked in ceremonial robes of deep, shadowy hues, formed a somber circle around a central altar. Their robes, made of heavy, dark fabric, moved with an unsettling fluidity. The hoods obscured their faces, rendering them faceless specters in the gloom. They moved with a hypnotic precision, their every gesture and step synchronized in a chilling display of ritualistic choreography.

Meli stood at the heart of the gathering, her presence commanding and almost otherworldly. She held a ceremonial dagger aloft, its blade catching the dim light and reflecting an ominous sheen. Her eyes, previously detached and aloof, were now fixed with an intense, trance-like focus on the altar. The altar itself was a crude slab, adorned with dark, intricate carvings that seemed to pulse with the room’s sinister energy.

The guests chanted in a deep, guttural rhythm, their voices merging into a low, resonant drone that seemed to vibrate through the very fabric of the room. The chant was both primal and alien, a haunting, hypnotic melody that rose and fell in waves of dark power. Each chant wove seamlessly into the next, creating a growing intensity that seemed to thrum with an ancient, malevolent force.

The symbols on the floor began to glow with an eerie, unnatural light, casting long, shifting shadows that danced and twisted with a malevolent grace. The air grew colder, and the oppressive atmosphere thickened as the ritual reached its ominous climax. The ceremonial gestures of the participants were deliberate and precise, each movement a crucial component of the grim rite.

In that moment, as my eyes swept over the disturbing scene, a horrifying realization struck me. The ritual before me was a chilling mirror of the imagery I had seen in the library. The symbols etched into the floor, the dark robes, the ceremonial dagger, and the rhythmic chants—they all matched the grotesque illustrations and archaic text I had encountered earlier. The realization was a shuddering jolt; the very rite I had dismissed as a relic was unfolding before me in its full, terrifying reality.

Despair tightened in my chest as I watched the ritual unfold. The mansion, once a symbol of grandeur, now felt like a mausoleum of ancient darkness. Each detail of the ceremony pressed down on me with an almost physical weight, trapping me in this nightmarish tableau. The flickering candlelight seemed to mock the safety I had once taken for granted.

In the midst of this encroaching dread, the thought of Vanessa became my beacon of hope. Desperation drove me to retrace my steps through the twisting corridors, my heart pounding with the urgency of finding her. The shadows seemed to close in, whispering with a sentient malice that threatened to overwhelm me.

Then, amidst the crushing darkness, Vanessa’s voice cut through the silence like a lifeline. “Lea!” Her cry was filled with anguish that mirrored my own. “I was calling for you. Even if I were mute and you deaf, I knew you’d hear me.” Her words were a soothing balm to my frayed nerves.

I reached out and grasped her hand, our fingers intertwining with a profound sense of relief. “Vanessa,” I whispered, my voice trembling with emotion, “even in this darkness, I would recognize you. Across lifetimes, in different forms and eras, I would always find you.”

Her eyes, wide with a mixture of fear and relief, met mine. “We need to get out of here,” she said firmly, her voice carrying the weight of our shared ordeal. “We’ve escaped the worst of it. Let’s find our way back to the light.”

With renewed determination, we navigated the maze-like corridors of the mansion together. The oppressive shadows and eerie whispers began to recede as we moved. Each step away from the ritual felt like a victory, the suffocating atmosphere of the mansion lifting with every stride.

Emerging into the cool night air, the mansion’s dark silhouette loomed behind us, a sinister reminder of the horrors we had left behind. The stars above were a brilliant tapestry of light, each one a silent witness to our harrowing journey and our escape from the clutches of ancient malevolence.

Vanessa turned to me, her face illuminated by the starlight. “We’re free,” she said softly, her voice carrying the weight of our shared ordeal. “We’ve left it behind.”

I nodded, the relief in my heart mingling with a profound sense of love and gratitude. “Yes,” I replied, “we are free. My love for you is eternal, enduring until the very last star in the sky burns out into oblivion.”

Hand in hand, we walked away from Rosewood Hall. The night air was cool against our skin, a soothing contrast to the oppressive atmosphere we had left behind. The stars above, now a shimmering backdrop to our escape, seemed to burn with a renewed brilliance. In the quiet of the night, amidst the serene beauty of the cosmos, we found solace in each other’s presence, a promise of endless love beyond the darkness.