I'm Not Sure Yet.

Written by: Abigail K.T. 

I wake up to clanking sounds coming from the kitchen, probably my brother cooking. With a yawn and a long stretch, I stumble out of bed, not so gracefully. "Come on, Zara! It's nearly time to head to Auntie's cottage." My brother yells, up the stairs, making sure I got up. Walking to my dresser, I trip on a book, lurching forward and almost smashing my face on the large dresser. I reach for the drawer and start to jerk on my outfit for the day. I Quickly brush my hair and teeth. Mumbling tiredly, I unhurriedly inch down the stairs. The aroma of freshly cooked eggs and bacon wafts up my nose, immediately giving me the energy to swiftly scurry down the softly carpeted stairs. As soon as I land with a dull thud, on the hardwood of our dining room, my eyes find my older brother's light blue eyes and I stare at him, as he stands next to our fully packed suitcases. I run my fingers through my long, fading indigo hair and hastily grumble a "thanks, Zander" for the breakfast he prepared.

As I sit down to eat, my brother says "Took you long enough. I finished packing your bag for you. So once you are done, we'll head out."

Once I finish, Zander grabs his large, fancy truck's keys and leaps into the driver's seat. Purposefully placing his bag next to him, I have to get in the back. We start down the rough asphalt road to Auntie's. After many hours on the long, winding, and forested road, we arrive at a dank, dark, and downright creepy cabin. My brother shrugs at the sight and mutters "I've seen worse", but I shiver, wondering how dusty it was on the inside. We grab our things and head inside. Lugging my heavy bags, I am a few paces behind my brother and decide to let it stay that way, him clearing all the cobwebs.

"Auntie, we're here!" I call. "Zara, look at that huge spider over there." Zander teases, I glare at him and we move on. Creak! The floorboards groan under us, and with every step I take, I notice something feels off. I look up at Zander, whose typically light blue eyes have gone to a creamy white, with only a trace of blue, he says "I don't know yet." in a hollow voice. Then, he seems to snap out of the daze, and asks "Sorry, what was that Zara Bee?" Zara. Bee. That was an old nickname he hadn't used in years.

Forgetting the weird comment my brother made, I start to go up the stairs, since it's dark outside, we quickly get ready for bed, and both drift off, sleeping.

In the middle of the night, I woke up to a strange raking noise, and someone scaredly whispering, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm not sure yet!" I look over at my brother, but he is sleeping soundly.

I peer out the window, only to see a ragged figure, whose hair was snarled and grey, whose clothes were ripped and tattered. But the figure's most striking feature was its nearly white foggy, confused eyes, just as her brother had the evening before. Falling back into a fitful sleep. The next morning, we both wake up frazzled and unrested. My brother makes an unneeded remark, as I was already wanting to get out of here: "Zara. We need to leave this place, I had this weird dream last night, and- I don't know, but something is off about this place." That was all he had to say, Zara was convinced. They needed to leave as soon as they could.

They both scrambled to pack up as quickly as they could, yet nothing could be fast enough if it was related to leaving this interesting, seemingly abandoned place.

As they drive back home, the dark forest around the eerie cabin devours them.

Mist surrounds them as if commanding them not to leave. Out of nowhere, Auntie shows up, driving her old sedan and staring at them blankly through her dirty windshield, and says quietly, in a harsh whisper: "I'm not sure yet." Zander takes this as a sign to put the pedal to the metal, and they start rocketing out of the long driveway. Meanwhile, behind them, Auntie veers sharply, and tails them, her face contorted with pain, and her eyes. Nearly. White.