"Hope"

Chapter One

"I miss you..."I heard a child's quiet whisper in my ear. My eyes snapped open and I sat up in bead, looking around my room. Who said it? Who was it directed to?! Wait... mabe it was all just a dream... yeah... A dream... With that thought, I slumped back onto my pillows and pulled my balnket over my self.

"You can hear me, can't you...?" The child's quiet whisper breathed into my ear once again, and, once again, my eyes snapped open. Looking around my room, I saw nothing unusual.

"Am I imagining things...? Or mabe I've finally lost it!" I muttered to myself as I got out of bed and walked around my room.

"I'm here..." The child's voice whispered, right next to me now, I quickly turned to see a little girl, she was small... she looked about 3 years old.

Withchin length blonde hair, and clear green eyes, I kind of recognised this child, but not as who she is shown as. Her baby-pink sun-dress flowed in a non-existent breeze. I stared at her. Who was she? Did I know her? Or was I really going mad?

"I missed you..." She said, her eyes tearing up as she wrapped her arms around my legs. Cold... She's so cold...

With her touch, I remembered something I have been trying to forget for 4 years... That night...

-flashback-

I was walking down the road, making my way along the empty streets. It was nearly sunset, and I had gone shopping after school. As I turned the curb, I felt an arm wrap around my waist, and someone covered my mouth with a chloroform-drenched cloth. I dropped my shopping and passed out.

I woke up in an old, run-down hotel room. I tried to roll off the lumpy, four-posterbed, only to find that my arms and legs were chained to the bedposts.

"Awake now?" A cold hiss sounded from beside me, a hand moving along my body. "Don't worry, I'll make sure you live afterwords. But I want to hear your screams, caused by me!" He growled, ripping off my tie and belt.

I was shaking. Shaking so much... I couldn't move. I screamed as he climbed on top of me.

He stripped off my clothing, except my underpants, groping my chest. I whimpered, willing him to stop. He didn't. Instead, he scratched my stomach and did as he wanted, he pulled out a knife, slowly engraving marks into my skin. My face, my arms, my stomach, my legs. I screamed with every drop of blood that left my body.

He didn't stop. He kept on going.

The worst night of my life had just begun...

When I wokeup the next morning, I was in a hospital room. I had fainted from the pain and wounds. My parents knew. They were police officers, the investigation corps. They had known the entire time that I was being stalked, and when he took me, they followed and waited until he was asleep before arresting him.

I had lost my virginity and nearly died. They cared more about work.

After I was released, I asked my parents to buy me a seperate home. I didn't want to stay with them. They who knew I was going to be hurt, and did nothing. I moved into my home a week later. In that same week, I found out that I was pregnant. I was only 15.

The stalker left me a pece of himself inside me. A piece I didn't want, yet didn't have the heart to lose. That piece of him, was also a piece of me.

I quit school that day. That day was supposed to be a new turning point in my life.

Months passed and I was planning out my future life with this child I was about to have. My new house was filled with baby things and a nursery had been made from one of the several spare bedrooms, my parents sent two maids, one for me and one for the baby, in order to not look like the type of parents who abandoned their child, and also to pay for letting this happen to me.

The 9th month. I was in the taxi, on my way to the hospital, about to give birth to the new life inside me. On the way, the taxi crashed.

I survived, so did the child. She was beautiful. I felt that a piece of my soul was with her. I now lived for her. She was my new hope. And so was her name, "Hope".

At home, I took care of Hope, she was often sick and fevers ran high. My mother refused to help. She was too "Busy" with work. My father was the same.

My newfound hope only lasted a few days. She died after 3 days of living. Her high fever was caused by a tumor which appeared due to the crash. It spread rapidly, and shut down her brain and heart.

My little happiness vanished just like that. And with it, a piece of my soul. Hope was now gone. I'd never see her sparkling green eyes ever again. Her hair didn't even grow yet...

She was my everything, and she was now gone.

-END FLASHBACK-

It's been three years since Hope died. Three years of sadness and solitude. The maids are still here, they still live with me. If they didn't, I would be dead by now too. I would be with hope.

I looked down at the little girl, her sparkling green eyes staring at me.

"Who are you?" I asked her, my voice empty

"Mama, I don't know. I don't remember. But you are Mama! You know! Who am I?" She spoke too well for a three year old.

"Mama...?" I whispered to myself. "Hope..." The name unconciously left my lips.

I looked down at her and saw her smile.

"Mama! You remember!" She chimed, "Hope will be in her room!" She added as she turned to mist.

Hope...

I fell to my knees, tears streaming from my eyes, sobs shook my shoulders.

I let out a wail and cried the most I had since Hope left. But now she's back. My Hope is back!