I definitely regret cheating on my beautiful wife. But then again I don’t. Neither of us were happy. I feel I did it to make myself happy and maybe for her too. I also created a queen who--I hope--fights for good, and a princess to rule by her side. Oh, and Amanda. The halfling. I wonder how she and her mother are. I can’t know yet. Not yet… but soon. Oh and I also can't wait to see how's she's keeping my necklace. The princess better still have it.

I was an ordinary girl, nothing was wrong with me or the world. I was living a somewhat regular life. My mom and I were fine; Until one day, my and many other citizens lives were changed for the...you know, I’m not sure how to end that sentence. My name is Amanda and I just turned 14 years old. I was born on June 17th: the hottest day of the year. This is always a fun and happy time; at least while everything was still… normal. I’d get a birthday check of fifty dollars from my nana, and blow it all on juice and makeup. I’d hang out all day with my best friend Casey. I’d pray that my dad would come back. Just like every year. But no, nothing was normal this day, and nothing would ever be normal again.

I wake up and I feel all giddy inside. I check the calendar on my wall. It’s my birthday. Soon after I wake up, my best friend Casey calls me on my cell.
“Hey birthday girl! Want some juice? I’ll pay!” She speaks in that sweet, caring voice of hers. It makes me smile, and makes me feel… loved in a way.
“Of course! I’ll meet you there at,” I check the clock, it’s 8:20 “,8:30?” 
“Sure! See you soon!” I get out of bed and get ready. Check my long brown hair in the mirror so I don’t look like a complete mess.
Ah, my eyes. My nice and calm brown eyes.
I walk into the kitchen to find my mom sitting by some ice cream covered waffles.
“Hey there! Happy birthday!” She hands me the waffles and I smile.
“Thanks ma!” Soon after start to feast on the delicious breakfast. “I’m going to go see Casey at Bunny’s, the juice place. Ok?” She smiles at me.
“Of course! I’ll see you later honey.” I walk out of my apartment and it's--breezy.
What the heck? It’s supposed to be 85 degrees! No way this is happening. Dreams do come true! I think of this as a blessing just for me, so I decide to ignore it and I keep walking.
Idiot.
I reach Bunny’s, and of course, I see Casey immediately because of her always rather loud clothing, bright pink hair, and purple contacts. She’s a little weird, but I love her for being so confident.
“Hey! Let’s get some juice and keep walking to my house!” she speaks. Then we are up  to the register.   
                                    ***
As we are walking it just keeps getting colder, and colder.
“Hey is it… cold to you?”
“Yea, definitely. Let's get home quick.” Just as she said that we were walking past Street Storm Forest. Filled with the only trees that aren’t palm trees. It has dark grass and other vibrant flowers growing all over. Trees fill the forest in, yet you can still see the bright blue sky. The pass for bikers catches my eye.
“Hey, let’s cut through here. It seems safer.” I point at the clearing.
“Right now, I don’t mind.” We walk and it seems to get colder, quicker.
“You-” My speech is interrupted because of the incredible flash of a blue light behind me. I say “me” because I can’t find Casey. Eventually, I can’t take the incredible power of the light, and I fall on my back. I feel like I've had everything knocked out of me.
I blackout.   
                                                           ***
I wake up in a daze with Casey by my side. Shaking me hysterically .
“Amanda!” she squeals when she realizes I am up.
“What happened? Why am I on the floor?!” I ask, still dazed.
“I don’t know I turned around and you weren’t there, and then there was light, so I ran, and I found you on the floor, an-”
“OK! Calm down! You’re going to give yourself a heart attack!” I feel at my neck for my blue crystal snowflake necklace. It isn’t there. I start looking around, desperate to find it.
“Oh here,” she hands me my necklace. Now cracked down the middle. “I found it like that. She frowns, and so do I.
“It’s not gone, that’s what's important.”
Why do I even like this necklace? It’s not that nice, but I need it.
Casey and I decide to just walk back to her house. Quickly. But as we are walking I can’t help but notice a few white specks fall from the sky.
Snow.
                              ***
We enter Casey’s house, and she immediately slams the door behind her.
“Amanda what the heck is going on!” She screams. Casey is obviously freaked out, and I don’t know what is happening either. I’m scared for our lives, but deep down inside of me, I love it. I love the cold, the snow, the ice, and the breeze. But now was not the time to mention this. Not the time to look on the brighter side. Brrrr. My cell is ringing and I look at the caller ID. It’s just my mom, so I pick up the cell.
“Hey mom what's up?”
“What’s up?” She yells through the cell. “What’s up is that you better be at Casey’s house because I'm coming to pick you up now! It’s snowing in the middle of summer!” My mom is freaked out too. She’s usually so chill.
“Ok, see you soon.” I hang up the cell. “Casey, my mom's coming to pick me up.”
“Yea, I heard her screaming.” I smirk then look out the window. Casey soon joins me. The snow is only getting more intense. I hear the sound that of which is of my mom honking the car horn furiously.
“I’ll see you later Casey,” I don’t want to leave her alone in the middle of this ”, please stay safe.”
“I will. Don’t worry.” She smiles, then I leave. I regret this.
                       ***
   I wake up the next day...cold. Not just in temperature, but in spirit. I feel depressed. I hadn’t enjoyed my birthday in the slightest. I had gotten everything I wanted, but I spent most of the day worried for my life and Casey’s.
    “Sweetie! You’re up already?” I wonder why she is so surprised. I look at my clock, and I see it is only 5:30. “You need to go back to sleep.”
    “Why?” She is acting suspicious. Last time she acted like this, my dad wasn’t here the next day. “Mom what’s wrong?”
    “Nothing sweetie!” Sweetie? Yup, she’s hiding something.“Mom. What is wrong?” now I’m praying nobody’s hurt.
    “I’m--so-- sorry.” she sobs as she falls to her knees and places her head in her hands. I immediately jump out of bed to make sure she isn’t hurt. She’s sobbing with such intensity, I know someone else is.
    “Mom. Please tell me what’s wrong.” I ask, choking back tears. She looks up at me and lets a string of words I never wanted to hear tremble out. “Casey is missing.”
    “Missing! What do you mean?!” I already feel tears streaming down my face as I am struggling not to fall as well.
    “Amanda. Casey’s parents called my cell asking if Casey came over here. When I said no, they hung up. Two hours later, Casey’s mom called crying, saying that Casey can’t be found anywhere.” I don’t want to hear these words, and neither does my mother. She tried to protect me from the truth that she was exposed to.
    “This is because of me!” I scream in agony. “If I hadn’t left she’d be ok! I would’ve been there to protect her!” I fall to the floor and hug my mom. “What if they don’t find her, mama?”
    “I believe they will mi amor. We just need to pray.” and we do. I can’t understand this, but I pray.
We pray.
Casey, please.
                            ***
    For the rest of that day, I didn’t want to even go outside. Eventually, my mom convinces me to head to Casey’s house. We walk into her house two days after she was claimed missing; I'm still crying into my sleeve like a wimp. My mom rings the doorbell.
“Sweetie I -- I hope that Casey’s fine.” She hesitated. She doubts she’s ok. So do I. I see-- the usual so bright and happy- the face of Casey’s mom overtaken with gloom. Her blonde hair is a mess, she has huge bags under her eyes, and mascara is stained on her cheeks.
    “Why me Maria?!” she screams as she falls on my mom hugging her. While on her shoulder she turns to her left and sees me standing. Crying. “Oh my-- Amanda, I am so sorry.” She pulls away slowly from my mom and hugs me.
    “I ho-- I know that Casey’s going to be fine,” I look at my mother, but she looks away “,but it’s hard knowing she’s not definitely safe.”
    “Honey, you’re so brave. Please come in!” We enter her house, and millions of memories pile on top of me. The railing where I slid down --like an idiot-- and broke my arm.
  Dummy.
The door frame where we were both measured. I was always taller than her. She’d always get so angry. I smile. All these memories flooding back are like a medicine to make me forget.. But it fails.
“Here honey have some hot chocolate.” Casey’s mom’s voice snapped me out of that torturous limbo, and I took the hot chocolate in my hands.
    “Huh? Oh thank you.” I slowly sip my hot chocolate as I walk around Casey’s room. I fix everything. She’ll hate coming back to a messy room. I smile to myself as I straightened out her favorite fluffy pillow. She’s coming back. I sit down and look at the picture of us on her desk.
Want some of my ice cream?
SPLASH.
Hey, you got it on my shirt!
Sorry! Haha!
Hey, come back!
Please come back, Casey.
I shake myself clean of the shivers I got from that mini flashback. Eventually, I wipe away my tears as I finish walking around the room. I stop at her desk. We drew on this desk. We carved our names on this desk. We recorded silly videos at this desk. There’s a note on this desk. There’s a note on this desk! How did nobody see this?! I reach over and grab the blue note.
Hello Amanda, If you want your friend alive, come to Sunmore hotel. Before it’s too late.
Casey.
I drop the note as I zoom towards my bag. Soon I feel its leather strap in my grasp and I run towards the window.  I hear as it creaks open and I turn to look back.
Casey.
I step out of the window and I run.
        ***
Only an inch of snow has fallen, but it’s coming fast. Sunmore hotel is only a few minutes away. I feel my legs start to drag as I begin to feel myself drop. 
Keep running for Casey. 
Keep running.
As I run I look around me and I saw the snow start to melt. I hope this is a good sign. I keep running, and I see the hotel. The snow comes back.
Oh god. This isn’t right. Mother nature is being taken over by some kind of outside force.
I keep running.
         ***
I reach the hotel, pull open the door, rush upstairs, ignore the front desk worker screaming “Come back!”, and try to find room 617.
617… my birthday.
I finally reach the room and a great light shines as I enter. I don't fall back. I don't shield my eyes. I run forward and see a run down room with a note on the only dresser there.    
I’m sorry.
The note is stained with tears and so are my cheeks. No Casey to be seen. Just--blood. Not much, only on the corner of the note. I turn around. There is a great white line leading out of the room to the left.
That wasn’t there before.
I follow it, now I don’t care. My cell is ringing like crazy and I know it’s my mom. I keep walking with the line and it leads me outside. I keep following it down the street, up the forest, through the ice cream shop, then to the beach. No one else can see the line. This line is for me. It leads me to a gloomy cave-- like my soul-- filled with muck. I walk in.
     The line stops.
So does my heart.
I breathe in a shaky breath in surprise. No. No please. “God why! Why her sweet soul!?” I hit the rocks lined along the sides as if they were attacking me. “NO NO WHY?!” I hear my voice echo as I drop to my knees in pain. “Casey, please.”
    My vision fades away, but not before I see the cold, dead body of Casey Malani.
         ***
     Sirens. Sirens. Someone called the police. I can’t see. I’m too much in shock to even do a simple human task like that.
She’s gone.
People are screaming like wild animals.
“What the hell is that?!”
“Dude its a body!”
“Please back away. Hey no cameras!” The policemen are screaming at the idiot beach dwellers who have no idea what respect is. I'm picked up from the cold floor of the cave.
“Amanda!” My and Casey’s moms are screaming my name. I feel my head pounding as the sirens screams get louder and louder. “Let me see my daughter!” My mom cries. I can’t get up. I can’t breathe anymore. It hurts. My body completely turned off, I try my best to see what’s happening with my ears.
“Maria! That's Casey! Oh my god!” Casey’s mother screams.
I can practically feel her intense pain within me.
I don’t know how, but I was hoping keep Casey’s mom from finding out. Yet leaving her with the hope of finding Casey… I wouldn’t be able to live myself.
I can’t live with myself.
She’s gone.
I open my eyes.
“Thank God we didn’t lose her!” A blonde haired woman speaks along with a breath of relief.
Am I on a bed? No--a stretcher.
“Honey, you’ll be fine.” I ignore her because of one of the most inexplicable sights I've seen. A young woman, with slick black hair and a large blue sparkly robe, appears in front of me. I don’t know how she’s not noticed by anyone.
“It’s not my fault, sister.”
She’s wearing my necklace, uncracked.
I blackout again.
                     ***
“Why her?!” I scream. I don’t know how I got into an argument with this mystery woman but here I am.
“It’s not my fault.” She speaks with complete calm. We are both being slowly engulfed by ice.
“Why! You sick witch!”
“It’s Snow’s fault!” She pauses staring at me with pity. “All her.” The ice has reached our necks, and it is hard to breathe. She’s losing her cool. I can tell
“You’ll pay for this!” I scream as my attempt to reach out for her fails.
“I already did.” She melts into a puddle before my eyes as I am eaten by the ice.
         ***
I wake up and I feel depressed inside. I check the calendar from my hospital bed. It’s my birthday. Soon after I wake up, no one calls me on my cell. “Hey, birthday girl,” I whisper to myself “, want some… revenge? She’ll pay!” She made me feel… angry.
Revenge