Dark Woods Academy

Chapter 17

Chapter 17
I felt like the ground had dropped out from under me by his words and I buried my face into Elliott’s sleeve as the tears came. I didn’t care that I was crying infront Webster and Detective Holden, I didn’t care about anything in that moment except that my friends were dead. It had crushed the hope in my heart that they were okay, it had tore open the guilt of being the only one that had survived that night. The air felt thick and I felt as if my lungs weren’t working, a pressing weight against my chest making me unable to get in a breath.
“Ace, Ace?” Elliott was saying.
“Breathe, Ace,” he said as I struggled to take a breath. I couldn’t and I felt lightheaded suddenly.
“Ace!” he shouted gripping my shoulders and pulling me to him.
“Breathe,” he begged tilting my face up to look at him.
“It will be okay, I’m here, I’m here,” he said and I found myself sucking in a breath as the anxiety attack finally let me suck in a breath.
“That’s it,” he said stroking my head soothingly.
I sucked in another breath feeling the panic starting to fade slightly.
“You’re doing great,” he said again as I held onto him tightly taking in small breaths.
I don’t know how long we stayed like that, how long he held me until the panic faded and I could breathe again
The men had left the room allowing us privacy. I tested my ability to stand feeling an emptiness in the place where my heart was supposed to be.
The anxiety attack had left me taking every bit of energy I had and draining me leaving nothing in its wake.
“Ace,” Elliott said as he held onto me afraid that I would fall on my own I could tell.
“I’m taking you to your room okay,” he said softly putting one arm around me, his jersey wet from my tears.
He held me securely with one arm against my side until we were at my dorm room.
The anxiety had left me nauseated and I rushed to the washroom throwing up in the toilet as Elliott rushed behind me, holding my hair away from my face.
I retched until there was nothing left in my stomach and sat there for a bit, the scent of vomit surrounding me but I didn’t care, because my friends were dead.
Elliott left for a bit and then returned with a bottle water making me rinse my mouth with it to wash away the taste of bile on my tongue. He wiped my face with a washrag and helped me up eventually half carrying me to my bed where he untied my shoelaces taking off my shoes so I could settle in on the bed.
I felt it then, numb, cold and empty. Elliott got off his shoes too and laid next to me pulling me against him.
I cried, I drifted in and out of sleep too and even dreamt of my friends awaking only to cry again.
Elliott said nothing but held me all the while whispering that it will be okay and that he was there for me and he wasn’t going anywhere.
It brought the slightest comfort to me in those moments and I thought to myself that at least I had Elliott even if he was my only friend left.
I drifted off and when I eventually awoke, it was dark, Elliott was asleep next to me and a glance at my watch showed that it was four in the morning, a little while before the campus would be awake too.
I glanced at the books on my desk from the previous day and decided to start cleaning to stay busy.
I organized the stack of books and came across the language book scanning the sticky note that I had left on the front feeling tears prickle at my eyes before I crumpled it and threw it in the bin. I cleaned the washroom, swept and mopped the room and then finally Elliott was up glancing around the room and then at me confused.
“I fell asleep sorry,” he apologized. I shrugged in response, I wasn’t bothered and he needed the rest.
“You cleaned,” he observed as I sat there fully dressed in sport gear.
“Hitting the gym?” he asked. I shook my head no.
“Running,” I said.
He nodded and threw on his sneakers.
“Let’s go,” he said.
“You need workout clothes,” I said as we headed for the door.
“We’ll swing by my room then,” he agreed.
I was grateful for the company, it made me feel slightly better that I wasn’t alone.
We started off at a light pace, the air cold around us, a slight darkness lingering before the sun rose.
I pushed myself hard enough that even Elliott was out of breath from keeping up with me.
I needed the physical exertion to keep my mind from thinking. I just needed to keep on the move else I would fall apart if I stopped to think.
“Ace?” Elliott asked as we slowed to a walk both winded and breathing heavily.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“I’m okay,” I said simply not looking at him.
“I should go shower,” I said cutting him off from responding.
I started heading back to my room before he could say anything else and I could tell that he was walking behind me a little way off making sure I was safely back in my room before he left to go to his.
I showered and got dressed just as he returned knocking on the door.
He had a backpack in his hand which he left by my bedside.
“Clothes,” he explained looking at me as if he was unsure if I would object to it. Considering that he always had to be going back and forth between his room and mine I was about to actually suggest it. Also, I just didn’t want to be left alone.
“You’ve been relieved of classes for rest of this week,” he said as I was about to gather my books for the day.
“I don’t need it,” I said reaching for my books.
“No Ace, the entire student and staff population have been given the rest of the week off,” he explained gently taking the books from me and putting it back neatly in a corner on my desk.
“Ohh,” I said feeling stumped. What the hell was I supposed to do with my day now?
“There’s a meeting this morning, it starts at ten, its mandatory that we attend,” he said.
“How do you even know this?” I asked. He held up his phone in response and I saw the announcement on the Academy’s website.
“Look Elliott…” I trailed off trying to formulate words because I didn’t know what to say.
“Just…thanks for…” I trailed off my throat burning with the feeling to cry.
He rested his hand on my shoulder looking me in my eyes, his face showing compassion and care.
“I know Ace, you’re most welcome,” he said giving my shoulder a gentle comforting squeeze, a half smile on his face.
I followed behind him to the meeting room taking a seat at the back as most were already filled. Elliott slid into the seat beside me and I was eternally grateful that he hadn’t left me since… I shoved the thought from my mind.
“Ace?” Elliott asked seeming alarmed.
“Yeah?” I asked looking over at him questioningly.
“They’re about to tell the rest of the school…” he said.
“We should leave,” he said standing up.
I reached for his hand and shook my head no.
“I’ll be okay,” I said.
I zoned out when Webster gave the news addressing the students. My head registered the words when he gave the details of the deaths. The students suddenly were in an uproar murmuring and talking and he had to struggled to quiet them again.
“It was believed to have been a wild animal attack,” Principal Webster said. There was an uproar again from the students and he struggled to get them quiet again.
“What?” I found myself saying out loud. It hadn’t been a wild animal attack, what the hell, I was there, those were footsteps behind me not an animal.
“The campus has been secured, security guards are posted all around and have been patrolling the woods,” Webster continued.
“At this time, students are warned to not enter the woods for any reason. It is not safe and should you be found in the woods, there will be severe consequences,” he warned.
“Sightings of bears have been reported outside the academy’s protective fences, please do not venture out of the perimeters of the Academy,” he warned again.
“Students and Staff are entitled to school counselors in this time of grief. Please reach out to them in this time of need or alert any of the staff if you think that someone needs assistance with dealing with their grief.”
“Classes have been cancelled for the rest of the week to give students the time to grieve and to also prepare for the funeral which will be hosted by the Academy,” he said.
“Be safe at this time, we cannot let carelessness cause us to lose more students, please respect the rules for everyone’s safety,” he finished and dismissed us.
The student body was in an uproar trying to digest the news that had been given. Elliott stood up beside me and followed me out.
“An animal attack?” I shouted as soon as we were outside.
“I know it doesn’t add up to your report of it,” he said shaking his head in confusion.
“Look I’ll look into it, see if I can use my authority to get access to more information and I’m also going to call your mother and inform her of what’s taking place,” he said.
He dropped me off at my room and I held myself back from begging him to stay because I knew that he could get answers for me about what the hell was going on.
My friends were dead but they still deserved to have the truth of their deaths told to their families. It was respect for the dead, it was what was the least that was owed to their families and friends. I was no longer interested in leaving Dark Woods Academy, I would stay and fight for the truth surrounding their deaths, it was my duty as their friend and the only survivor to do so.