Double Standards

It’s just a very biased view of different people doing the same things. For instance, it’s okay if someone you are familiar and comfortable with does a certain thing for you, example buying you flowers, it feels nice and you would be happy. On the other hand, someone that you are uncomfortable with does the same thing, you feel awkward instead, even though it is the same process and event. That is double standard, and honestly it’s unfair. Why there is a need to treat people differently based on who they are? Well, it’s simple. It is because you like them as a person. The term like is vague however, the prospect would be similar as respect. When someone is being respected, they would have the need to come up with a reason, be it true or false, for their actions. While the others whom this dislike or do not have much respect for, if an action was done, no matter how outstanding or impressive it is, it would just be written off as a negative trait.

It is similar to telling people about your stories. There would be a group of people you tell your stories to, 100% as how you can remember. On the other hand, there would be some where you wouldn’t tell at all. When someone asks “what happened? Are you okay?” there are some whom you can just spill all your bottled up feelings and rant/ complain to and there are those whom you would just reply with “nothing, I’m just tired”.

Another factor would be due to how comfortable you feel with the significant person. If they would always be there if you ever fall or get into a situation of mistrust. Or would they conform to the majority and laugh while everything in your life breaks away. All these are the considerations of double standards, are why one person would differ in terms of treatment towards one person from the other.

For myself, there are little people I write off people I don’t like in an instant. One chance and the second, then no more. I feel there isn’t a need to give people chances when they don’t deserve it and life is too short to spend time on worthless things or events that you know you wouldn’t enjoy. It is a pain to have a friend whom you have to spend a lot of time and effort in, to know that in the end you are treated as the dispensable one. It is unfair and hurtful. To know that someone would give their all to be by your side when you need them, but once you are the one in need, they turn a blind eye and just give you a pat on your back telling you, ‘good luck, you’re on your own’. Honestly, what kind of bullshit is that? It is a waste of time and effort.

It’s a little off topic about what I wanted to convey initially, but that’s just all that I wanted to say.

*

Goodnight midnight bunnies:3

I'm Sorry

I’m sorry.

It’ll probably take a while or maybe even longer. I just suddenly lost it. The feeling of typing just doesn’t reach me like how it used to anymore. When I used to type I could see the pictures forming in my head. The colours and enjoyment, but now there’s nothing. I can’t find it anymore. Whenever I stare at the word document hoping that I could type something; even a short sentence, I can’t. I wish I could go back to who I was, the times where I could type anything I want and it will still turn out fine. Like it’s actually a real story, not one that sounds and feels like it had been made up, not forced. But every single story I type now seemed so forced and fake. It’s like I don’t even know what I am typing for anymore. I’m sorry. Till I feel better, parallel universe will stop here for a bit.

*

For other short stories, visit boundlessdreamers.blogspot.com

*

Goodnight midnight bunnies:3

the parallel universe, the eight sight

She assumed that the man first saw that disappeared to be Bryan. As she saw his life bled out of him she felt the pang of sadness in her heart. A scream of agony that was trapped inside; that she couldn’t get out of her system. A scream that had imprinted her soul of eternal sadness. She had to at least see his face. This person that so-called saved her life and gave her happiness, even though she couldn’t remember. The flame still in her hand, she spoke to it.

Bring me to Bryan.

It flickered then she lifted as she was teleported to another place. It was the hut with the little blue rabbit house. There was a white rabbit inside, munching on its carrot, unbothered by her presence. She walked towards the hut and attempted to open the door. Her hand lifted and rested on the door knob, but instead of pushing it downwards, her hand slipped right through it. She retrieved her hand and held it close to her heart.

What in the world?

Slowly she stretched her hand towards the door and gently pushed. Her hand went through the door, just as it had slipped through the knob. It was like she was a ghost. Astonishment filled her mind but the voices from within disrupted her line of thoughts. She was curious. Who are talking behind the wooden door? One step at a time she advanced towards the door once again and ran through it. She was inside the hut. In front of her, was a couple next to each other on the sofa cuddling. With each touch they gave the other, each move they made, it made her more uncomfortable. She didn’t belong in this scene. That moment should only be shared between those two.

When she was about to leave something caught her attention. As the guy stood up and left to get something she spotted the lady opening the palm of her hands showing the blue flame. Immediately she turned back and walked towards her. It was a face she didn’t recognized. Who was she? The lady stared at the flame and played with it. Just as the man returned she extinguished the flame. She started walking towards the lady and tried to make a connection. Before her hands reached her, it was as though her head split opened. It was like a gush of memories flooding into her head as she lost her footing and fell into the darkness abyss.

*

It's been too long but here goes nothing

goodnight midnight bunnies:3

the parallel universe, the seventh sight

He took out a necklace. The pendant was made of metal in a weird cursive design. At the centre of it there was a hole. The chain was made up of wood fibre. It was beautiful. Cautiously she reached out and grabbed it.  She ran her hands through the wood fibre then slowly down to the pendant. The pendant was first cool against her skin, then gradually getting warmer and warmer till it burned her. On first instinct she dropped the pendant. It stings. It doesn’t hurt or anything but it bit her skin. She squat down and attempt to touch the metal pendant again. She poked it once, twice and slowly reached out for it. It doesn’t burn this time.  It made whatever happened just now felt like a dream. She wore the necklace around her neck, as the world spun out of control. She knew the time she had in this period was over. Having the same feelings, she was being transported back to where she originally came from.

On the top of the 32 storey building she sat at the edge with her legs dangling freely once again. The scenes and words she heard from the previous scenes echoed through her head. A parallel universe beyond the portal, a place no one knows what lies within.

At least she had some answers. She finally knew who Bryan is. She knew that she have the ability to control the will to live. She opened her hand and stared at the blue flame.

Such a little thing but it could cause an earthquake, take away or give someone the willpower to stay alive. To travel to places before and after the actual time zone. What else could this little thing do?

She thought to herself, and then spoke to the flame.

Show me Bryan.

At first nothing happened. The view from the where she sat was still the same. The bright lights, the hustling and bustling of the streets from below. Then she saw a shadow in front of her. It was a silhouette of a man. He was walking towards a figure. The other figure had a hood over his head. He greeted the man in the hood. Then the man in the hood took out a black blade and hand it to the other. He took it and drew the tip across his forearm, followed by the thick red substance the ooze out of the wound and to the floor. The silhouette of the man cringed and vanished into thin air.

*

A little late but still,

Hope you bunnies like it.

Goodnight midnight bunnies:3 

The parallel universe, the sixth sight

She followed him deeper inside the forest. She felt comfortable with the old man, his presence brought warmth, which felts nice. He took a couple of turns and up a rope ladder which brought us to a treehouse about 2 storeys high. Inside it was small, but the size was just right for one person staying there.

Sit anywhere you want. I need to get something to show you.

He spoke with his back facing her. She looked around the house and settle on the couch filled with dry leaves. Everything in there, the furniture, the chairs, the cups, the utensils were all made up of branches or leaves. That made the house look even more beautiful. Unlike the city that was lit up by the lifespan of the people around, this is the beauty of nature, natural beauty. Then he returned.

Let me introduce myself first. I am Damon.

Nice to meet you, I would tell you my name, it’s just that I am not really sure that’s mine to begin with.

What’s the name?

Lya

That’s definitely your name.

How do you know?

From behind him, he pulled out a photograph. In the photo there was a boy and a girl. His arms were around her shoulder. Both of their miles were bright. Then she look closer. The girl. She resembled her. Or rather she resembled the girl in the photo.

Who is she?

That’s Lya, and beside her that’s Bryan.

What happened?

That’s something only you will know. Only you can find out yourself. I was just a good friends of theirs. What I know of is only the past but not the future.

Then what is the past? And how do you know I was her when you saw me hold the flame in in my hands?

He sighed, then their eyes connected. His eyes showed despair. It was as though he had unspeakable sorrow within him. It was filled with regret. At that point she knew it was a hard topic for him to touch on.

It’s alright if you don’t want to share it. If it’s too painful, it’s fine.

No. you have to at least know about your past. It’s the only way I can help you.

He took a deep breath with his eyes closed. When he opened them, the candle light shone on them. His eyes were green. The kind of rare green that people see. Emerald green. It was a rare eye colour like hers. Hers were grey. Greyish blue. Then he spoke.

Bryan and I were childhood friends. We grew up together in the woods away from civilization. We only visited town when we need to get supplies. Every inch of this forest is like our home, every inch of it is imprinted to the back of our heads. Then one day, when we were about 20, while searching for branches to make our furniture, we spotted you, laying on the floor with blistered feet and cuts all over your arms and legs. The only thing that was keeping you warmth was a piece of ragged cloth. Bryan immediately picked you up and brought you to our house. Treated you like you were one of our own. Even then, we were shocked, because no one had dared to enter the forest before, as it was unknown territory. You only woke up a few days later. The first thing you did was to open your palm and look at your flames. Then you blew a sigh of relief. It shocked us was your ability to control the blue flame, the will to live. That was something no one we knew could do. We tried asking you but you didn’t say, you just said you were born that way. Soon after you got really attached to Bryan and you guys decided to move out and find a place of your own. That place is where the empty place stood now. The hut with a small rabbit house. After you guys had moved out, we didn’t keep in much contact just once in a while we would discover new things and share them with each other. One of our greatest discovery is the portal. The portal comes with a cunning reaper called Grim. He doesn’t takes people life for fun. He takes it away in exchange of deals with the portal itself. It was said that if someone passes through the portal, they would reach a parallel universe. Are you sure you have no recollection of this at all?

She shook her head. Then he continued.

After that conversation, we didn’t put much thought into it too. As it was partly your decision to make, to find out what exists in the parallel universe. Every single time we shared information about the portal or Grim your eyes would waver and you would stand up and leave abruptly, saying you aren’t feeling well or something you got to do at home. Bryan would always run after you. A few weeks later Bryan came looking for me, saying he was going to make a deal with Grim. No matter how I asked him why, he wouldn’t tell me. He just told me to take care of you. Shortly after he left, it began to rain so I decided to head over to your place but you were already gone. 

She looked at him expecting him to continue, but he was done with whatever he wanted to say. She was looking for the right words to say, but nothing came. Where is this Bryan that she got attached to? Whose memories was she looking back into? She had got some questions answered but there were still a few that weren’t answered. Suddenly, she stood up.

I’ve got to go. There’s somewhere I have to be.

Sure, you do. But I want you to have this.

*

There you go. Goodnight midnight bunnies

The parallel universe, the fifth sight

She doesn’t even know who she was anymore. It was like she is looking back at herself from afar and couldn’t recognise that presence. But the irony is that she never did anyways. She just woke up with the memories of no one, or rather someone else which she thought was hers. Someone’s broken memories. A girl that cries with the weather and smiles with the sun. She lit up the world with her mouth and brings down the rain with her eyes. Bring in the storm when she is stressed or frustrated. She was so powerfully intimidating yet magical. Who was she? Someone that holds so much power. Maybe she would know all the answers to her questions; the portal, the memories, the flames and finally who she really was.

She woke up feeling the ache in her head from all those thinking. She had to find that girl. But how is she going to find her? The blue flame in her palm still engulfed the air surrounding it. It had caused the whole street to be in a mess. Out ahead, the debris and whatnot had been cleared, but it could still be seen that they had suffered from what seemed like an earthquake. She stares at the flame intently. What else could it do? She thought to herself, then the idea hit her. Take me there. At first nothing happened. Slowly, her surroundings tilted and shifted. She was lifted above and fell down with a bang. She was back in the forest. The only difference is that there isn’t a fog making the forest look mysterious. There were lamp posts around igniting the area. It felt like a normal park. There were people on the benches at the side. The environment felt oddly refreshing, as compared to the times when she went back in time. She walked down the muddy path to the hut in the forest from what she could remember. Straight ahead then turn left. Her walk turned into a brisk walk and broke into a jog. Turn left here. Her subconscious echoed. She turned, anxiety building with every step she took. Then, nothing. In front of her was just an empty space. No hut, no little blue rabbit house. Just nothing. She moved closer and stared, unable to believe what she is seeing. She opened her blue flame and investigated the surroundings, there were black marks on the ground, like burnt marks. Was the house burned downed? From the corner of her eyes she spotted an old man. He was holding a stick and a backpack. She approached him.

Do you know anything about the small hut over there?

His eyes widened as though in shock, and avoided her gaze. No. I don’t

At that moment she knows he is lying. Tell me the truth. There is someone I am looking for.

No. I don’t know anything about the hut you are talking about.

She hated being lied to, clearly frustrated, she yelled at him. What are you hiding? Can’t you just tell me about the hut with that small rabbit house?

This time he met her gaze. His eyes determined. How do you know about that rabbit house? No. how do you even know the existence of the hut? Then he squinted his eyes at her.

She pondered over the question. It was like a game, both of them taking turns to avoid gazes and stare at each other. She felt like she needed to show him in order to get answers from him. She look straight back at him. Then she slowly lifted her hand to show that she meant no harm and ignited the blue flame in her palm. The old man took a step back in disbelieve and started sobbing.

It still lives. You’re still alive. I thought you had died. Thank god.

She was confused by his reaction. What did he meant by that? Still alive? She was never even close to death other than having frequent black outs. What was that even supposed to mean? Suddenly he grabbed her hand, extinguishing her flame.

It’s not safe here. Follow me.

*

That's all for now. goodnight midnight bunnies(:

The parallel universe, the fourth sight

She walked towards the letter on the floor. The paper had dust on it, but not old enough to turn brown. Slowly she unfolded the paper. It was all scribbles in there. She squinted her eyes and tried to make out the words on them.

*

Lya, by the time you read this I would be already gone. I do not want to risk having you taken away by the master, becoming his puppet. It is just a matter of time. I saw it, his recent visits and probing of your powers. I couldn’t risk it all. You are too precious to me. I am heading towards the portal. I know we haven’t done research deep enough to see if it is really safe but to me, that is the only way we could be together as one being. Together, me and you as one blue flame. I love you Lya, I can’t bear to see you being taken away from my side and not being able to do anything about it. I rather lose my life than to see that.

Love, Bryan.

*

When she read the letter she could feel a man’s voice echoing after her like as though the man was right behind her. Bryan. Then she blackout.

She woke up to the bright light illuminating the sky. Bryan. Who is Bryan? How is he related to me? How does he know my name? Or was it another person with the same name? Was it that girl that’s always crying? But when she smiles, the whole world light up together with her. Who was this master they talked about? She wanted to go back into the forest but she can’t, just not yet. She could only go back after she spent the equal amount of time or longer here. She opened her blue flame and see them burn like how fire engulfs the forests and turns them to ashes; she could see them burning the air. Are those memories even mine to begin with? It was a simple question, but it hit her hard. She had never thought of it this way. If it isn’t hers then whose was it? Guess it will always be questions but no answers for her.

She looked down at the people below. They resemble ants, moving through the crowd, hustling and bustling away with whatever they are doing. Then she felt the sudden need to look at her blue flames. She lifts her hand from the edge and opened them. The little blue flame was strong but small. So she just stared. It felt like she was trying to transfer energy to her flames so it will become bigger. At first nothing happened, then her surroundings began to blur and shake. Immediately she tried to stop it by shaking and avoiding the sight of the flames. Then the world slowly and gradually stopped shaking. She put her hand down on the edge again. But this time when she look down, the stalls along the pavements and the buildings were all in a mess. They were all disturbed in a way or another. Her heart was in her mouth now. What had she done? She almost destroyed the town. To her, she didn’t even know if she was the one that caused all these mess that she was looking at right now. She opened her flame again. This time it had grew bigger and stronger. It was as though she sucked out the people’s life. Then she felt dizzy and the strength slipped out of her as she entered the dark abyss of sleep.

*

That’s all for today. Goodnight midnight bunnies:3