The Dark

Visit

Jordan's POV:
When he asks the question I sigh and look to the house.
"We have to go to the treehouse." I state while pointing towards the entrance of the bushland. His eyes trail from my face to the tip of my finger when he brings his large hand to pull my arm down. He opens his mouth to say something, but then closes it again. He looks as if he decides that what he was going to say wasn't worth it and then he swiftly turns towards the bushland, walking straight and never taking his eyes off of the entrance. I realize I'm just staring and not actually walking so I follow, as fast as I can, and trip as I enter the small path. Something seems different as I walk down the narrow walkway. Is it the birds?

It's Matt.

He's acting weird, not saying many words, maybe he's just down. His footsteps are loud and unevenly paced, I trip over again, not realizing that I am trailing behind. The wind picks up while my feet dig into wet dirt as I walk.
"Matt!" I yell out. There's no reply and the silence hurts. "Matt!?" I yell, louder this time. His loud footsteps suddenly stop. This moment of absolute stillness creeps up on me, making my long hair feel heavy on my shoulders. Even the wind stops, as well as the sprinkle of rain on our heads. I wonder what's wrong with Matt. He's not being the Matt I know and ,well I guess, love. He makes my heart race at his every touch and at every moment he's away I feel empty. He's always been there for me and now he seems distant and I hate it. His and only his footsteps break the silence as the sound of them becomes louder and louder. I am staring into the ground at little leaves and insects. Every detail distracts me from the footsteps and I need every ounce of concentration to resist the temptation of glancing up at the boy approaching me from behind. He is close now I can feel it and suddenly he stops. I feel his breath against the back of my neck as his hands stretch around my waist. He's behind me, and then he twirls me around so that I'm facing him. His bright green eyes stare into my dark brown eyes and my stomach drops. In panic, he glances to the side and then back to me, he gently kisses my nose then quickly turns away, embarrassed.
"Matt! Wait!" I say as he runs towards the treehouse, obviously embarrassed as heck. I run after him but this time I'm fast and I catch him, tripping him over and we fall into the long grass, laughing nervously. He turns to me and smiles calmly now and says
"You're amazing."
"Thanks," I say automatically but then I reply with,"You're quite amazing yourself actually." He blushes and struggles to stand while helping me up. "Do you think that shadow is watching us right now?" he asks without thinking. I ask myself why he's asking me this. "I'm sure it isn't, that's just weird," I reply a little late as we walk towards the treehouse. I notice the shadow though, this time it's wearing a dark dress.
********
We walk in through the back door of my house, hand in hand, with my head on his shoulder when I realize something. My Dad is home.

My Dad. Is Home.

"DAD!!??" I yell, letting go of Matt's hand. Dad is standing at the end of the hallway and when I see him I sprint towards him. When I reach the end of the hallway I hug him as tight as I can but then I notice Matt is gone. I have no idea where is is.
Oh well.
Dad is the greatest father anyone could ever ask for. He is funny and he can cook. I love him to bits. When I separate from Dad he looks at me with his blue eyes and tears up a little.
"I haven't seen you since last year, sweetie!" he says enthusiastically.
"I know, I've missed you so much. Where have you been?" I ask curiously. He chuckles nervously and says,"Never mind that but how have you been??!" I wonder why he won't tell me what he's been doing before I say,"I've been great, and Matt hasn't been around for two months but he's back now soo,"
"What have I told you about Matt? He's a no-good-teenage-boy-who-only-likes-you-for-looks kind of person, don't let me see you with him around here ok?" Dad looks angry but calm at the same time. I sigh and say,"Yes of course Dad, I won't." That is really the only bad thing about Dad, he just doesn't like Matt. But besides that, he is the greatest dad anyone could have. We walk down the hall and I'm surprised to see that the living room has been cleaned but I walk in and sit down anyway. There is a bunch of paperwork on the coffee table but I don't touch it because Dad would kill me. Ashley walks into the room. I roll my eyes and she smiles sweetly at me as I poke my tongue out at her. Dad puts his arm around Ashley and looks down at me. "Now Jordan, Ashley and I have been planning this for a while, but we're going on holiday," he pauses,"Without you." Frustrated, I stop fidgeting and look at Dad. How could he? I can't be left here, alone. That's horrible. I begin to say,"But-"
"No, that's it you're staying here, you're old enough to look after yourself okay?"
Fine. That's just great. How wonderful. Dad only comes back to say he's leaving again, and this time with that witch Ashley. How dare he. I stomp out of the room to try to find Matt but he's no where to be seen.
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