ghost stories • 5sos

kenz // thirteen.

Walking hand in hand through the forest with Michael should've been relaxing. Romantic even.

Nope. No where even close to being relaxing or romantic.

It was straight up terrifying.

If we were at a different lake, in a different town, under different circumstances, we would be fine. I could focus only on the feel of his calloused fingers tracing random shapes on the back of my hand. I could focus on the way his shirt clung to his torso and the way his skinny jeans seemed to be painted on to his legs.

I wouldn't be focusing on the fact that one of my friends, maybe more, could be dying in the woods right now.

We hadn't seen or heard from anyone in close to an hour, but at least we knew our way back to the camp fire. We followed a trail unlike the rest of them.

Neither of us had said a word in some time, but the grip we had on each other was consistent and comforting. Every few minutes, the wind would blow and I would catch a whiff of his cologne. That I was able to focus on. Even given the circumstances, the familiar scent brought a smile on my face.

We had been walking uphill for a good while when I saw a break in the trees. It was brighter, the moon not being hidden by the leaves up above. My eyebrows furrowed, had we found the road?

As we grew closer, the earth seemed to stop out of nowhere. We were standing on a cliff high above the lake, the water lapping at the rock below.

I backed up quickly, not a big fan of heights. I would honestly rather hold twenty snakes in one hand than be hundreds or thousands of feet above the ground.

It wasn't the general height that scared me, it was the idea of falling. Falling, physically or emotionally, was my biggest fear.

As a child, I told myself that I was never going to fall in love. But one day, Michael showed up and I totally abandoned that thought. I wasn't emotionally scared to fall anymore.

But, as a child, I also fell off of my scooter and broke my leg. I never got over the fear of physically falling.

The idea of hurling in the air as the ground became closer and closer didn't appeal to me.

Michael was fearless though. While I was standing a good ten feet away from the edge, he was right up on it.

I wish I was like that.

I wish I could be standing beside him as we looked over the water. I wish I could be facing the possibility of death and not be afraid. Michael wasn't afraid of anything.

He hadn't moved in quite some time, so I gently said his name, wanting him to walk back over to where I was standing.

Michael turned to face me and I nearly screamed. His eyes were, once again, deep black holes.

I took a step back and held my breath, but he made no attempt to step towards me.

Instead, he stepped back.

He was going to jump.

"Michael, stop!" I yelled, stepping forward. Panic took over my body. This wasn't him, he wouldn't do this to me. He wouldn't play some twisted prank like this on me. This wasn't my Michael.

He took another step back.

"Michael, please, s-stop..."

Another.

"I'm begging you, please! Michael I love you..."

One foot left on the ground, the other off the edge.

My heart was pounding in my chest and I felt as if I was about to pass out. I was absolutely helpless. 

His eyes changed back to their normal shade and a look of panic crossed his face,"Help me."

I rushed towards him, but he had already started to fall backwards, the wind knocking him back and over the edge.

And I found myself literally falling for Michael.

//

okayyyy ik it was short but it was too beautiful to drag out im sorry