CHAPTERTWO
The auditorium buzzed with laughter and murmurs, students clustered in anticipation of their results—but Yennefer was nowhere to be seen.
Davis's stomach tightened.
"Where is she? I hope she's alright… I can't lose her. How would she survive?"
He cared for Yennefer more than anyone. The secret knowledge of her illness made the thought of losing her unbearable. Nine months, the doctor had said. She was far too young to die.
He remembered the doctor's warning to Mrs. Greg: medical treatment alone wouldn't be enough. Something spiritual. Something unimaginable.
She won't do it. She doesn't believe.
Davis scanned the crowd, desperate. Then he spotted a familiar classmate.
"Hey, Bryan!" he called.
Bryan turned. "Yeah?"
"Have you seen Yennefer since the audition ended?"
"She's in the infirmary," Bryan said. "She fainted near her dorm entrance. The nurses have her now."
Relief and worry collided in Davis's chest. "I'll go check on her," he muttered, already moving.
Tsk, Bryan thought. Too proud to say thanks. Why won't they just date if they care this much?
---
INFIRMARY
Davis didn't knock.
Yennefer's back was to him, her body curled slightly, as if shielding herself. His chest tightened.
"Y… Yen," he whispered. "I've been worried… I've been looking for you since the audition. Please… talk to me."
She cut him off with a soft, sad smile. "Shhh… My mom is coming. I don't know what I'll tell her."
"You know her. She'll ask everything, but I don't want her to worry."
"Promise me you won't tell her. Just say I felt dizzy and fainted."
Davis's lips curved. "Don't worry, small head. Friends keep promises."
"Pinky swear."
A knock at the door startled them.
"My baby!" Mrs. Greg exclaimed, rushing in. She checked Yennefer's forehead.
"Thank God you're okay. Are you taking your medication?"
"Mom… ask him," Yennefer whispered.
Mrs. Greg turned to Davis, worry easing. "Oh… I didn't even know you were here. Come here."
He hugged her gently. "She's okay now. She's been dizzy since yesterday but didn't want to worry you."
Mrs. Greg sighed. "Hmm… alright."
With the nurse's permission, they walked back toward the dorm, quiet relief settling in.
---
NEXT MORNING
Yennefer woke early, bathed in warm water, and stepped out for a long walk. She wandered further than she realized—until a boy, her age, appeared, snapping a picture of her.
Snap.
Anger surged. She stepped forward. He stumbled—but she moved faster, catching him before he fell.
The tension between them crackled.
"Uhm—" the boy started.
"I know you," Yennefer interrupted. "You're the one the old man said I'd meet."
The boy blinked. A faint smile curved his lips. "Oh… I think you're mistaken. My name's Clement—"
"My doom."
The words escaped her before she could stop them.
Clement froze. The breeze stilled. Even the leaves seemed to hold their breath.
"I'm… sorry?" he said slowly.
Yennefer's heartbeat thudded in her ears. Why did I say that?
"I didn't mean it," she added quickly. "I… I don't know why I said it."
Clement's eyes studied her, calm and piercing. "You looked like you saw a ghost… or something you weren't meant to remember."
Her throat tightened. "Do you always speak in riddles?"
"Only when the truth is dangerous," he replied, faint smile lingering.
Something about him pulled her in—a quiet gravity, impossible to ignore.
"You almost fell," Yennefer said, trying to regain normalcy.
"I know," he said. "But you caught me. That's what matters."
Their eyes met, unspoken tension thickening the air.
"You movefast," he added.
"I… don't know how I did that."
"I do," he said, almost too softly.
Her breath caught. "What?"
"You don't belong where you think you do," he murmured, stepping closer.
Her chest tightened. "Who… are you?"
"Someone who's been waiting. Someone who can help you forget."
The word struck her like a blow.
"Forget… what?"
"Everything that's trying to break you."
---
THE UNRAVELING
They sat beneath a gnarled tree, branches twisting like grasping fingers. Yennefer didn't recall agreeing—but she felt strangely safe near him, as if the world couldn't reach her.
"You faint often," Clement observed.
"They say it's my sickness," she admitted.
"That's not all," he said, certainty in his tone.
"You've met me before?" she laughed weakly.
"More than once," he whispered.
Her smile faltered. "Not like this?"
"Not like this," he confirmed. "Not in this version of things."
Fear crawled up her spine. "I don't like that."
"I know," he said gently. "But what comes next… you'll like even less."
"Ishould go," she stood abruptly.
"You're running out of time," he said quietly.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
"Because it's true."
Anger collided with desperation. "Then tell me! Tell me what's happening!"
Clement exhaled. "Before I make you forget… you deserve to remember."
---
THE MAN WITH THE VISION
Yennefer's voice trembled. "Idon't remember much… but before the darkness, before the hospital… I met a man."
Clement's expression sharpened. "What kind of man?"
"He didn't look real. Halfway here, halfway somewhere else. He said he sees endings before beginnings. That I wouldn't survive as I am."
Clement's breath caught. "And?"
"He said… I must die before I can live. But death… doesn't always mean dying."
The wind whispered, and visions flickered: darkness, echoing footsteps, the voice that sounded like hers—We are you.—the hospital light, her mother's face, and finally, Clement, waiting quietly.
---
THE MYSTERIOUS CLEMENT
Clement took her hand. Warmth surged, followed by pain. Memories collided behind her eyes.
"Make it stop!" she cried.
"Ican take it away," he said firmly.
"If you do… will I lose you?"
"Yes," he admitted. "But you'll survive."
"And if I don't forget?"
"Then you'll remember too much. And it will kill you."
She trembled. "Do it. Please."
---
FORGETTING
"Look at me," Clement murmured.
She obeyed.
"Forget the darkness. Forget the voice. Forget me."
Light flooded her vision. Pain dissolved. The world softened. Then—nothing.
---
AFTER
Sunlight warmed her skin. She blinked, dazed. Dream?
A shadow shifted nearby. Clement turned quietly, leaving her unaware.
Something stirred behind him. You cannot forget forever, a voice whispered.
And deep within Yennefer, where memory slept, something answered.
We are not finished.
---
THE UNFINISHED PROPHECY
The wind whispered again, faint and insistent. Shadows seemed alive. The prophecy pulsed:
She must die before she can truly live. She must face the darkness to claim herself.
The man with visions had shown her the chain of events—and Clement was the link between ending and beginning.
Somewhere deep inside, Yennefer knew the story was far from over.
---
To be continued…