Distant

Ashton Bennett

I'm cold.

Am I sticking to something? Is that why my arms feel so heavy right now and why everything is completely pitch darkness?  But why  this darkness feel like it's wrapping its arms around my skin and tugging on me to walk forward?

I looked around me and everything was pitch darkness. I couldn't make out a single thing in this darkness. I got off from the ground and started wandering around in the darkness, feeling completely nervous and confused. 

I don't know where I'm at. I don't know if I'm dead or if I'm alive. But, right now, there's is this blinding light that is starting to appear in front of me.  It's a fuzzy light but the more I wander, the closer I get towards the light. I feel like it's calling for me, maybe.

I took a deep breath and started dragging my feet behind me, towards the bright light. The closer I got towards the light, the closer the feeling of the darkness clawing it's claw inside of me continued. 

"I'm almost there. Just a couple more steps." I mumbled. I took my time making sure that I took one step after another step. Slowly the distance between the blinding light and I decreased, until finally I was only a few feet away from the light. 

"I'm almost there!" I smiled. I quicken my pace while I started at first jogging to the light then sprinting towards the light, at full speed. I brushed my bangs out of my face with one hand and with the other pulled my feet towards the light.

However, the darkness that stood behind me grew and its claws started pulling onto the shadow of my feet. I could feel the shadow of my feet being tugged behind me and my actual feet starting to trip. I stumbled a few times but eventually I continued running, this time faster. I pushed my hands through the thick darkness as it attempted to swallow me within it. 

"A-Almost there!" I exclaimed. I grind my teeth together and started desperately pulling the darkness and trying to pull away and break free.

But, the darkness won, it swallowed me whole and the blinding light that barely touched my fingertips quickly disappeared. I was closed up by the remaining darkness and the fresh blackness of the darkness slipped through my throat and started choking me. I uneasily tried fighting back the darkness, but ended up feeling this overpower of something pulling me towards to something.

I quickly awoken and gasped for air, coughing and wheezing for air. Eventually, I calmed down and I blinked back the few tears that were slipping through my eyelids. I opened my eyes and looked above me and noticed the darken night sky and freshly lit up stars.  While my nostrils were filled up with the scents of pine cones and the wet lips of the water that slid down my bare wounded skin. 

"Where am I?" I halfheartedly thought. I massaged my forehead and glanced above to see a maze of trees that were surrounding me. 

"It's already night time? How long was I out?" I sighed. I attempt to stand up but quickly lose my balance. I fall down to the muddy ground and sighed. I took a peek down and noticed my ankle was the size of my fist. I stared angrily at my ankle and my shoulders slumped over.

"Great. I'm stuck here and I don't even where here is exactly." I groaned, frustrated. I glanced again at my ankle and wished that it would just magically feel better.

"Okay. First thing is first, I can't stay here all day long. Which means, ankle you're going to need to start moving." I mumbled, to myself. I scanned the area around me and saw only muddy paths, leaves that were left on the ground and a few sticks laying around.

"Okay, let's recap back to all those tips Dad gave. Urr... What was the first thing he told me to remember?" I thought. 

"Oh! First, check if any electronics are on you. Alright-" I gasped. I tore into the pockets of the discolored jeans and found nothing inside of them.