ROUTINE

Sitting on a small bench next to her tent, Evangeline was trying to process what had happened a few days earlier. She wondered, 'how would three simple freaks manage to kill Lucifer? It was crazy, and she was sure they would fail. However, she wanted to try. She always wanted to have an adventure with a group of friends. Now that she was dead, she had the opportunity. It was not as she had imagined it, but it was an adventure.

She was constantly thinking about her husband. During the time they were together, he made her feel happy, loved, and joyful. She missed him madly and feared that the day would come when she would forget him. The worm man had forgotten his whole family. She did not want the same thing to happen to her. She wished she could always take refuge in the memories of her husband.

As expected, she felt dirty from the day she was raped. She no longer wanted to win the contest to be reunited with her beloved because she did not believe she deserved to be loved. How could she present herself to him if she was already tainted?

It had been a couple of days since they had arrived in a new town. All the freaks would come out in the mornings to the town to announce the strange show. However, Evangeline never went. When she had the opportunity to choose, she always preferred to stay while the others went out. Although the odds were almost zero, Evangeline believed that someone would recognize her on the street. Her death was recent, anything could happen.

While the phenomena were in the village, Evangeline did several activities so as not to go crazy. She liked to keep her mind occupied so that she would think less about her misery.

She would pick flowers in the surroundings. She would catch little animals to keep her company. Although she always let them go when the circus changed places, she did not want to get attached to anything or anyone. Of all the activities she did, the most rewarding for her was poetry. Only in this way could she unload all the pain she carried in her not-beating heart.

Traces in the sand, fleetingly erased by the weak waves of the sea.

Bitter tears, swallowed by the sand.

Desperate moans were lost amidst the sound of the waves.

A body that with each step sinks in the salty waters.

No more footprints.

The tears are over.

Goodbye suffering.

Evangeline said that writing is the most important art because only through it, a soul can find relief.

The show of freaks started just when the sun finished setting. At that time, monsters came out of their hiding places, ready to terrify and disgust all those present. Before every show, Evangeline would dress up with zeal, use great dresses, and wear her face of white powder. However, that day she did nothing of the sort. She decided that she would not do it that day. She would go out and give the show completely naturally.

Why dress up so much? It wouldn't change anything about who she was. The way that she is seen by others. She was a four-legged monster and nothing more.

The show began, and her companions went out to do their act. That night the audience was very energetic, applauding, and shouting non-stop. It was a town in the middle of nowhere. They were not used to seeing that kind of thing. In fact, they were not used to seeing anything. Everything seemed new and incredible to them.

Evangeline's act was nothing out of the ordinary. It consisted of going out, smiling, and walking around the stage with the fault upwards, so that people could see her extra legs. There were no complications. However, that night Evangeline had difficulty performing her act.

As soon as she went on stage, her gaze went to the background. There sat a beautiful girl with reddish hair and snow-white skin. She was not the problem, but her companion who was holding her hand. An unattractive young man, but elegant. Although in his eyes, there was a great sadness, his presence inspired well-being and joy.

Evangeline began to tremble, feeling as if a dagger were piercing her heart. As if her neck had been cut in two. As if someone had torn her soul. That man was Brendan, her husband.