by E E Ewer
Suddenly Jen reached over the sketchbook and grabbed the pencil out of Nire’s hand. She held the book on her knees, shielding it with her hand from Nire’s eyes. The two girls giggled as Jen drew something on the inside of the front cover that the brown haired girl craned her head to see. Nikki pointed to the drawing and whispered something.
“THERE!” exclaimed Jen as she held the sketch book out at arm’s length to admire her work. Nikki just laughed. Jen closed the book and handed it to Nire with a smug grin. “There ya go.”
Nire opened the book, and on the inside cover was a small message that read:
“Jen and Nikki,” followed by a drawing of a heart, and a crude drawing of a mouse. “Friends forever.” Nire smiled and laughed. Mainly, at how silly the mouse looked.
Later that evening Nire felt much better than she had the day before. She really did have wonderful friends, and she was happy to know them. As she sat in her window seat she opened the sketch book again and looked at the faces she’d drawn of her friends; Jen with her silly expression, and Nikki looking so serious. Flipping back to the front inside cover she read the message out loud to herself while tracing her fingers over the pencil lines.
“Jen and Nikki, ‘heart’, Mouse, friends forever.” A small smile crossed her lips and she watched the sky outside darken and stars begin to appear. For the first time, Nire felt excited about college. The three girls had planned to move in together and share an apartment. Now that she was feeling a little more secure about her future possibilities, she was eagerly looking forward to beginning the rest of her life.
It was Tuesday now. Three more days and Nire would be 19. Her friends had been planning a surprise for her, and her parents, she was sure, were also involved. As she hit the switch of the lamp on her night stand and lay down in bed, she watched the sky outside her window. Only the smallest sliver of moon hung in the sky, and Nire watched it slowly glide across the night until sleep finally closed her eyes.
She found herself standing in darkness. There wasn’t anything around her she could see, however she could see herself. So it wasn’t really dark, there just wasn’t anything there. She turned in place and looked all around her, not exactly sure what it was she was looking for.
“Hello?” She shouted out into the nothingness. “Hello? Is anyone here?” she called again. A familiar voice came to reply, and it made Nire’s heart stop in her chest.
“Come to me,” it said. It was not a command, nor was it a question. More of a suggestion… The voice was low and steady. It rolled through the darkness as if it came from all directions.
“Who are you?!” Nire shouted back with desperation in her voice. Fear began to trickle its way inside her. The fear of not knowing…
“Come to me,” it said again, sounding a bit more urgent this time.
Nire turned in place, trying to find the source of the voice that seemed to come from nowhere in particular. Frustrated she shouted back.
“I don’t know where you are!” Her heartbeat sped up, and she felt the rush of adrenaline as her cheeks grew hot and her hands began to shake. She felt as though she was going to come to tears.
“Come… Come to me,” the voice repeated, seeming more distant than before.
“But I don’t know where you are!” Nire shouted back, and tears started streaming down her face as she panicked. “Why am I crying?” she asked herself, unable to figure out why she felt so upset.
“Come…” The voice faded away as she spun in circles. Unsure of which way to go she started running in a random direction, hoping it was towards the source of the voice. “Come…” It beckoned to her again as she ran, but it didn’t seem to be getting any closer. As she ran as fast as she could, the voice faded completely and Nire’s tears turned into sobs. Why, why am I crying? She asked herself again as her feet carried her deeper into the nothingness. Suddenly she felt the sensation of falling, and screamed.
Nire woke in her bed, her face soaked with tears. Footsteps came running down the hall, and Jane burst into the room.
“Nire are you all right?!” she asked in a panic.
Nire sat up in bed and wiped her face. “I… I didn’t realize I screamed out loud…” she said with a shaky voice.
“Nire honey, what on earth is wrong?” her mother asked as she came to sit on her bedside.
“I don’t know… I had a strange dream and I was crying, but I don’t really know why. Then it felt like I was falling and I woke up,” she sniffled. “I guess I screamed out loud when I started falling.”
“Don’t you remember what the dream was about?” her mother asked, wrapping her arms around the girl. Richard poked his nose into the doorway, and Jane shooed him off.
“Well, yeah. But it doesn’t make any sense. I don’t know why it upset me so much,” Nire explained.
“Not a nightmare?” Jane questioned.
“No, not really,” Nire answered.
“And you’re okay now?” she asked, wanting to be sure.
“Yeah, I’m okay. Sorry I woke you guys up.” She looked up at her mother and smiled, reassuring her she was all right.
“Okay sweetie…” Jane started. “Let me know if you want to talk about it anymore tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Are you going to be able to get back to sleep all right?” she asked as she neared the doorway.
“Yeah I think so.”
“All right then. Goodnight sweetie.”
“Night mom.”
As her mother shut the door Nire flopped down on her bed and let out a sigh. What was that all about?
Late the next morning Nire sat and ate breakfast alone at the kitchen table. Her mother and father were both at work, and she had slept in a bit after the disturbance late last night. She quietly pulled off pieces of her muffin and popped them into her mouth. With her head resting in her free hand, she couldn’t stop thinking about that dream.
It was the same voice. She thought to herself. The same voice from that first dream. She poked the remains of her muffin with her finger as she thought. Why would I try to find it? The voice frightened her, it didn’t make any sense that she would actually try to go towards it in both dreams. Perhaps the heaviest of questions that weighed on her mind, was why she had hurt so much. She hadn’t just cried… it wasn’t that simple. It hurt.
As she stared off into space the dim light in the kitchen slipped away, and sunlight washed the floor in a yellow glow as a cloud passed overhead. Nire focused her eyes and looked outside. It looked like a nice day out. She thought that perhaps a walk would clear her head, so grabbing her bag she left the house through the back door.
It was quiet as she walked thoughtfully through the grassy field.
It bothered her. The dream was more than just confusing. She couldn’t stop thinking about it. She couldn’t stop thinking about the way she’d felt when it called to her. The way she’d felt when it started fading away. Why…
Her thoughts were broken when she realized she had already walked into the forest and made her way to her favorite spot, on what must have been autopilot. She blinked and looked around her, surprised she was already there. Having been so lost in thought, she hardly remembered walking there at all.
Nire sat on the large rock and continued thinking about the dream as the day passed slowly around her. She lay down and stared into the canopy, watching the leaves rustle below the bright blue sky. Her thoughts were interrupted as a shadow crossed her face. Blinking she focused and searched for the owner of the shadow.
It’s that hawk…
“Oh!” she shouted as she jumped up. Completely forgetting the dream and remembering she’d wanted to draw that hawk weeks ago when she’d been caught in the storm. She quickly grabbed her bag and turned in place, her eyes turned towards the sky, looking for the hawk.
“There!” she shouted out loud as she spotted it circling inside the trees not too far away. Hopping off her rock she kept her eyes on the bird as she walked towards it. As
she neared the hawk, which was now perched on a tree, her foot caught on a root and took her to the ground. Falling on her hands and knees into the underbrush she quickly shot up and danced around hysterically, brushing her hands wildly all over herself to make sure nothing unwanted had crawled onto her.
After she was fairly sure she was critter-free, she brought her attention back to the tree tops in search of her target. Damn… she thought as she scanned the branches. Where’d it go? She couldn’t quite remember exactly which direction it had been in. A small tickle on the back of her neck made her screech and brush the spot with her hands. Great now I’m going to be feeling spiders on me all day… she thought.
Deciding on a direction, she wandered to where she thought the hawk had been, but looking around she still couldn’t see it. Suddenly she came to the realization that not only had she lost the hawk, but she had no idea where she was either. Frantically she turned in place, looking for anything familiar, but there was nothing.
Damn it! She screamed to herself. Ok Nire calm down… the sun is in the west so all I have to do is walk away from it and I should be able to find my way home. Nire turned, to where the sun hung low in the sky. Crap it must be almost 7:00 – Mom and dad are probably wondering where I am. Turning away from the sun and following her shadow she walked east.
But the forest still surrounded her. She looked over her shoulder to the sun, which was now so treacherously low that it barely showed through the trees. The yellow light hung above her, glimmering on leaves in the canopy, but Nire walked in the long stretched shadows of the trunks.
A familiar feeling of panic began to creep into her chest as the yellow glow moved higher on the trees and the ambient light grew darker and darker. She’d been walking for hours now, but there had been no break in the trees. It should have ended… She thought. The sun sets right behind the house… East had to be the right direction to go.
Not being able to think of another solution, Nire kept walking and the light continued to fade. When the sun finally sank below the horizon and she was left alone in the twilight, she felt the fear that had been creeping in like a thorny vine squeeze her heart. I’m lost… She thought to herself as tears began to well in her eyes.
The crickets had begun to chirp a while ago, and there was the occasional burst of light from a stray firefly. At least it was warm… but that was only a small comfort as she sat on a rock in the darkness. She could think of plenty of other better places to sit, but those places all had a high likelihood of also housing other creatures that had the same good idea. Like spiders… and snakes…
So the rock it was. At least nothing could crawl into her hair unexpectedly here. She hugged her knees, trying not to cry as the strange noises of night surrounded her. There was no moon tonight, and the forest was almost completely black. Her mother and father were probably worried sick by now. She hadn’t even left a note saying shed gone for a walk in the forest… she hadn’t planned on being gone when they got home.
They would have no idea she was lost out here, or even where to start looking. They’d call Jen and Nikki, and they wouldn’t know anything either. For all they knew she’d been kidnapped and left dead in a ditch somewhere. The thoughts of what her parents must be thinking flooded her mind, and she began to cry.
As she sobbed quietly into her knees a rustling sound in the brush behind her caught her attention, and her head shot up to listen for the direction of the sound. She jerked her head to the left, and then the right. It sounded like it was coming from all around her… and it was getting closer.
Terror surged through her and she froze as the rustling sounds surrounded her. The possibilities of what could be making the sound rushed through her head, and before she even knew what she was doing, she had jumped off the rock and ran. She could hardly see, and blocked her face with her arms as she plowed through the forest. She couldn’t tell if the sound was following her, or if it was just the sound of her own footsteps. A tree branch hit her hard as she flew through the woods, but it didn’t stop her.
The sound of her own heartbeat and ragged breath drowned out everything else in the forest. Blood pumped through her ears, and her arms had been caught numerous times by stray branches. It was a miracle she hadn’t run head on into any trees yet, she thought. Suddenly through the sound of her own footsteps, she thought she heard a whisper. No. no, no, no. Not a whisper. Her mind was playing tricks on her. It was just the fear. But then she heard it again, and this time it was louder, and much clearer.
“Come to me…”
Nire brought her hands to her temples, blocking her ears as she tried to keep it out.
“NO!” she shouted. “You’re not real! I’m just imagining you because I’m scared!” she tried to reason out loud. As a child she always thought she heard voices, she always thought she saw shadows move. But it wasn’t real… it was just her fear. It’s not real It’s not real! She shouted inside her own head.
Her feet were still carrying her full speed into the darkness and a branch caught her face. She suddenly realized she had closed her eyes, and had been running completely blind as she tried to escape the whispers. Her eyes shot open at the sudden sting on her cheek. Stop… she told herself. Her lungs were burning and her legs ached as they pounded the earth beneath her. Stop! She yelled inside her head, but her legs didn’t want to listen. The fear in her chest kept driving her forward.
Her next step convinced her completely that stopping would have in fact been the right decision, and the fear in her chest found its way to her lungs, and then her lips, as she fell.
Chapter 3
Table of Contents
Her scream rang in her ears until it was stopped by her abrupt introduction to the ground.
“Ough!” she yelled as her hands and knees came into contact with the leafy earth. Every part of her was trembling, partially from fear and partially from exhaustion as she panted heavily trying to catch her breath. Around her all she could hear was the wind in the trees, and the silence comforted her as she sucked in breath after breath of air.
A rustling broke the heavenly silence and Nire jerked to attention at the sudden sound. She swung her head around from left to right, trying to find the source. Jumping to her feet she turned in place, her heart sped up again as she prepared herself for whatever it was. It was getting closer, but there was no way she could run anymore.
Nire’s heart nearly stopped in her chest as she saw the shape of the bush in front of her shake. A creature suddenly jumped from the bush and stared at her with glowing yellow eyes. Nire jerked back, and then relaxed. A fox. Have I been running from a fox this whole time? She asked herself, feeling rather ridiculous. The red fox looked at her for a moment longer, and then jumped back into the bush.
Nire took a deep breath and let out a sigh.
“I. Am. An. Idiot,” she said to herself in staccato as she relaxed.
“Are you… ok?” came an unfamiliar voice. Nire nearly jumped out of her skin and spun around on the ground.
“Who’s there?” she shouted back urgently.
“Just me,” the voice responded as a form stepped out from behind a tree. “What are you doing out here? You seemed awfully scared a moment ago…” the figure inquired. Nire squinted to see who was standing before her. The figure moved slightly closer, and Nire could vaguely make out the figure of a girl standing a few feet from her in the darkness.
“I… I’m lost,” Nire said.
“Oh… well that’s not good. These are dangerous woods to be lost in.” The figure stepped closer and gently took Nire’s hand. “Here, let me help you out,” she said sweetly as she tugged gently on her arm, helping her to her feet. Without many other options, Nire followed the strange girl’s lead.
“What are you doing out here?” Nire asked the other.
“Collecting herbs. What were you doing out here?” she inquired in return.
“Um, well I was drawing.”
“In the middle of the night? That seems a bit
odd.”
“No… I was drawing during the day and then got lost around sunset,” Nire clarified.
“Oh… Watch out for that stump,” the girl warned.
“Huh? OUGH!” Nire shouted as she tripped. The girl kept a tight hold on her hand and prevented her from falling very far. Standing back up she continued following the other girl, minding her warnings. “How on earth can you find your way out of here in the dark?” she asked as they walked.
“On earth?” She pondered out loud. “Um, I have good vision in the dark,” she responded, still tossing around that first question in her mind.
“You must… I can’t see a damn thing,” Nire started. “Oh… by the way, my name’s Nire, what’s yours?”
“Miko,” the girl responded.
Nire looked around as she realized they reached the tree line. It was still black as pitch outside, but she could at least see the stars in the sky now. Looking around however, she couldn’t pick out anything that looked even vaguely familiar. Miko still held her hand, and continued walking.
“Where are we going?” Nire asked.
“To my house,” Miko responded. “You can stay there for the night.”
“Oh, well, thank you, that’s really kind, but I should really call my parents…” Nire said. The girl walking in front of her stopped and turned to look back at her.
“How would they hear you?” she asked, confusion ringing high in her voice. Nire didn’t know how to respond, the question didn’t make any sense at all. At her silence, Miko turned back around and continued leading her through the open field.
The sky in front of them was completely black. There must be something there, Nire thought. She could see a set of high walls as Miko led her between them, and that there was a large building in front of her. Miko pulled open a wooden door, and lead Nire inside. She quickly lit a fire in the hearth, and a few candles on the table.
