The woods were dark and foreboding;
even the moon was hiding tonight. Despite
all of the unspoken dangers awaiting me in the forest, I had no choice but to
enter. I couldn’t let him find me. Fear began to keep rhythm with my racing
heart. I ran into the forest searching
for somewhere to hide but my mind was too numb to concentrate. I tried to force myself to take deep breaths,
to focus on my surroundings. Most of the
trees looked too difficult to climb, but one caught my attention. I could easily conceal myself within its
branches. Scrambling up to it, I
grappled at the trunk, but I couldn’t get a foothold. There was no time to keep trying, I had to
move on. I began to run again. My ears were starting to play tricks on me. I kept hearing footsteps that weren’t there. I finally came upon a healthy sized bush just
off the forest path. Desperately falling
to my knees, I tore at its branches seeking a way to the center. Threatened at my violent approach it
retaliated by lashing out at my arms and face. I was getting nowhere. I heard him call out and dread hit me in the
stomach. Grasping at straws I headed
toward a fallen tree, deciding it was better than nothing. As I got closer I noticed there was a deep
ravine on the other side; enough that I could completely tuck myself into. I could hear him thundering down the path
behind me and I dove. As silently as I
could, I settled myself in the protection of the tree.
My position afforded me a very
small window of sight between the tree and the ground. I could really only see the path. Suddenly it became piercingly quiet. My breathing was the only sound, and it was
so loud I knew he would hear it. I couldn’t stifle it. The more I tried to silence it, the more
desperate and ragged it became. So I
tried to turn my focus back to my ears.
Where was he? The silence was
eerie. Even the night creatures seemed
to be holding their breath. A seed of
hope began to blossom in my heart, as I thought maybe he went a different
direction. Maybe I was safe. The moments began to stretch on, fueling my
hope. I couldn’t move yet though, just
in case. As the immediate danger had
seemingly passed, I began to grow restless.
I also realized that I needed to pee.
Anxiety was always rough on my bladder.
I was still cursing myself for drinking that grande mocha when I heard
the twig snap. The hope evaporated and
in its place panic took flame. I could
hear his breathing and I was so thankful mine had slowed. I could see his feet carefully treading the
path, stopping every once in a while to listen.
His feet disappeared and I willed him to move further away from my
spot. He apparently just turned around though
for his feet came back into view and they were only about a foot from my
tree. My terror was widespread and I
could feel my body begin to shake. He
stopped moving and I stopped breathing. He
stood there for what felt like an eternity.
I thought my lungs would burst.
When he finally continued forward, I exhaled as quietly as I could,
relief flooding my body.
Hope
began to gnaw at me again. I allowed
myself a moment to consider that he had not found me and would not be coming
back. I had to get out of here quick and
I only had one shot. I quietly rolled
onto my back trying to get in position to move.
The moment I looked up at the sky, my blood ran cold. He stood looking down at me.
“I found you.” His silvery voice
mocked. I was so scared I couldn’t even scream. I hadn’t even heard him come back. His face split into a sly smile. There would be no persuading him to forget
me. There would be no getting out of
this. He laughed at my paralysis.
“Come on Emily, You’re it.” He
extended his hand to pull me up.
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