《On The Inside》


 A Nightmare Come True

    In the distance, I saw it. The small burning light, the only warmth in this dark place. I walked down the overgrown path toward it, my feet bare on moist grass and fallen leaves. Around me the trees were still, there was no breeze, there was no sound. Yet it was cold, my skin was pale and icy as I shivered. I walk closer and closer to the light, but it gets smaller, the forest around me further darkens. Whispers fill my ears of an indistinguishable language, yet its voice seems so familiar. Chills are sent down my spine as glowing red eyes now appear behind the trees.


    "Lyra...." an unsettling voice coos. Blood begins to flood the forest floor. Rising above my ankles, its source is unclear. I am so panicked I can''t move forward. I frantically look behind me, searching for the voice.


    "Come home Lyra" The voice returns. The small light sits right in front of me. As does the monster with the glowing red eyes, staring me down. My heart races in fear, and the eyes begin to come forward. I turn toward the darkness behind me and run. I hear the horrifying shrieking of a woman''s voice and then-


    "Marin! You forgot to turn on your alarm again!" My eyes pop open to see my very angry looking mother tearing off my blanket. "You have thirty minutes, get up!" She continues. Rubbing my eyes I look at the time. 7:00 am... Damnit.


    "Im sorry mom, I really didn''t mean to! I was distracted last night uhh.. studying" I try to explain. She walks away unimpressed by my lie. I get ready quickly, not wanting further antagonize her, and head downstairs. My other mother, Jo, smiles at me brightly.


    "Well look who decided to get up... How''d ya sleep honey?" she inquires. Mama Tessa, the angry one just rolls her eyes. I look away embarrassed.


    " Well, to be honest I''ve been having these freaky nightmares" I start to say, hoping to get out of school, but Mama Tessa has other plans.


    "I''m sorry to hear that baby but you gotta go or you''re going to be late!" she informs me. I kiss both of them on the cheeks goodbye and head out. As I am driving to school, I notice the street ahead of me seems eerie this morning. Living in rural Florida I''m used to desolation, but the thick fog is creeping me out. Paying less attention to the road and more on the scenery I look deep into the woods looking for something I cannot explain. The dark forest reveals a set of glowing red eyes, staring directly at me. I panic and immediately swerve off the road and into the grass, stopping my car. Looking back into the forest, I see that the horrifying eyes are gone. Yet the feeling of being watched is not.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    When I arrived at school I sat in my car trying to wrap my head around what I saw. It was just like my nightmare... But that is impossible. I come to the conclusion that I must be losing it from sleep deprivation. Yeah... thats it... I need more sleep.


    BANG


    I jump in my seat and look through my car''s window in horror, only to see my best friend staring at me with a mischievous smile. She starts laughing obnoxiously when she realizes she''s scared me by hitting my window.


    "Ha Ha very funny Em" I say after getting out of my car and rolling my eyes similarly to Mama Tessa.


    "What? I can''t help it you looked so funny I thought your eyes were going to pop out of your head! Let''s get going or we''ll be late!" Emma responds. We race into the building and I somehow make it to physics before the bell rings. I sit down next to my other friend, Lucas, who winks one of his blue eyes at me. After class he follows me down the hall,


    "Hey Mar, are you going to the Senior Bash tomorrow? I hear it''s going to be pretty lit" He asks expectantly. Ah yes, the Bash, where the entire senior class of Lake Katherine High School gets together, in the creepy-ass woods, and gets collaboratively wasted . What a fun tradition. Too bad I''m being forced to go. Don''t get me wrong, drinking and partying sounds great, but in the woods...


    My nightmares make the thought of it sickening.


    "Yeah Emma wants me to go, and I still owe her after dropping plans last time there was a party" I respond solemnly. His blue eyes shine at my response,


    "Great! I''ll see you there then, save a drink for me!" He then turns and hurries to his next class. I stare at his retreating form before entering class. I smile, wishing I could be as carefree.


    Sighing, I take my seat in English, right by the large window. I admire the winding woods the wrap around the entire town of Lake Katherine. However through the dark, the fog, and the trees I see them again.


    Those glowing red eyes.

 Dont Turn Your Back

    I stared back at the figure with wide eyes. This couldn''t be real, this has to be a dream, I think as I pinch my left hand. The figure begins to reveal itself, leaving me unable to look away. The red-eyed being is a nearly human-looking man. He has deep chestnut-colored hair that falls to his shoulders. His facial features are nearly indistinguishable from this distance, but appear sharp. He is frighteningly tall, appearing to challenge the winding pine trees around him. As we stare at each other time seems to freeze. I am afraid yet also excited as if I had caught a predator before he could kill his prey. The menacing creature begins to travel toward my window and I am left frozen. Adrenaline courses through my veins but I can''t decide whether to run or face him head-on. Just feet before he reaches me, I shoot up out of my chair in fear.


    "Miss Kelly, could you please take your seat" My English teacher, a short and stocky old woman, lectures impatiently. I immediately point to the window only to find that the creature is no longer there. My classmates stare at me bewildered, as I sit back down with a warm face. My snickering classmates only flare my anxiety. Great,  my daydreams are embarrassing me at school now. I put my head down and spend the rest of the class contemplating what I just saw, my eyes searching the woods for him.


    As soon as the last bell rings I rush to my car, ready to go home and forget about today''s hallucinations. Or check myself into a mental institution.


    I text Emma an apology that I didn''t stick around and drive away. I have to get away from here. Barely down the road home, I am stopped by a police car as I notice a cleanup crew beginning to clear the road of a grotesque scene. My eyes set upon what appears to be a dead fawn in the road, it''s head ripped clean off and intestines scattered. Bright red blood is scattered in small puddles like something made the mess on purpose. I swallow the bile rising in my throat as a police officer approaches my car.


    "Sorry, but I''m going to have to turn you around, this road is going to be closed until we get the mess cleaned up" The officer explains.


    "What happened to it?" I inquire, my curiosity getting the best of me. Though perhaps it would have been better not to find out.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    "The poor thing must''ve wandered off from its parents and got taken up by some predator, never seen anything to this extent. It''s just what happens to the young when you turn your back, you know?" he says a bit indifferently and walks away. I back away from the scene and take a different route.


    Once home, I take a moment to collect my thoughts before entering. I know my moms have some sort of surprise behind the door. A celebration in place of a birthday, today is the anniversary of when Mama Tessa found me abandoned at the hospital. On a late-night shift, she found me in an empty patient room under a blanket after hearing the sound of a baby''s cry. They tried to locate my birth mother but were never able to figure out who she was. Just five short months later my mothers were able to officially adopt me and we''ve been a pretty happy family ever since. You know, when I don''t get on their nerves.


    "HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MARIN!" I hear shouts as I walk through the foyer to the living room. The walls hold photographs of happy memories; camping trips, birthdays, Christmases. In one photo there is a petite red-headed woman with fair skin holding hands with a tall brunette with dark skin. In another picture, they hold a little girl with short brown hair and many freckles scattered across her tan face. I look around the room and see my mothers smiling, tears in their eyes, and pride smearing their features. I also see that Emma and Lucas have joined in the surprise, both giving me encouraging smiles.


    "I can''t believe its been eighteen years, I don''t know how we got so lucky," Mama Jo says, voice crackling as she holds back tears. I quickly hugged them both tightly. I want to say that I am the lucky one, but I am overcome with emotion.


    "I don''t know Mama, whoever gave birth to me must not have felt very lucky..." I relinquish not trying to ruin the mood but want to express my thoughts honestly.


    "Oh! I''m sure she had her reasons Mar, you know what they say, everything happens for a reason." Mama Tessa tries to soothe me. I nod my head and smile, although I do contemplate what reason my birth parents had to abandon me as they did. Almost as if they were trying to get rid of me in a hurry. Were they ashamed of me?


    "Mar! come get some of this cake!" Emma enthusiastically grabs my arm and pulls me to the dining table. On the table sits a large chocolate cake decorates with strawberries, my favorite! The rest of the night is filled with laughter and playful chatter. Lucas and Emma banter about anything and everything while my mother''s reminiscence on my childhood. The whole night puts me at ease and allows me to momentarily forget the harrowing events of today.


    If only I had taken today more seriously. Tomorrow would have turned out differently.