Replay

Chapter 2 - The Clearing

As Caden enters the clearing he is surrounded by many varieties of green. In the middle of the clearing, there was a large rock and a variety of different types of plants surrounding it. He would stop and admire it if he wasn't so concerned with his safety. He walks towards the center of the clearing, making sure to watch for the overgrown roots that line the ground while doing so. Once he got to the centre of the clearing he sat on the rock and carefully took his backpack off. His eyes widen once he sees the back of the backpack has a large splotch of blood on the back, he had no idea what it was from but it had to be his blood. He takes his hand and feels his back flinching as he touches what feels like a wet spot on his back, he brings his hand back to his face only to see red on his hand, the smell of iron filling his nose. He runs his hand under the side of his shirt, only to feel a large open scratch on his side. 

Staying calm, he knows it's nothing too bad, just a lot of blood. He would be okay. That doesn't change the fact he is still lost in the middle of the forest. He reached for his phone in his pocket, he pressed the cold screen causing the screen to begin glowing a dim white. It was past 8;00, and school had already started. He opens his messages to try to message somebody to find out where he is but he has no signal here, he sighs, by then he knows nobody is going to come to look for him, nobody, including the group that caused this, knew where he was.“Hey narrator person are you still there!” he yelled into the open, not expecting a response. After a few moments of silence, he hears a branch break in the distance. 

As his eyes dart to the area he sees a silhouette of a person. “I- who is there- show yourself! I- have a weapon!” He yells in the direction of the noise, only for a large deer to come walking out of the space, seeming to stare at him. Something about the deer’s stare was eerie. It didn't seem animal. Despite this, Caden brushes it off thinking it was due to stress. As he continues to look at the deer and its eerie gaze, not being able to tell what's off about it he feels his phone start to beep as it dies. His gaze then darts to his now dead phone “Shoot, shoot, shoot no! Damn it!” he cusses. By the time he looks back up the deer is gone. “That's incredibly creepy,” Caden mumbles as he looks around to attempt to see where it went only to find nothing. 

He softly sits on the rock behind him, trying to think of what to do. He decides that he should see what items he has on hand. Grabbing the handle of his backpack, the bottom of it now being a darker green than before. He opens the bag to see what kind of items he has on him which isn't much. A few miscellaneous items such as his science homework, some loose paper, a lighter he was definitely not supposed to have, and a half-empty water bottle. He was screwed, but if it came to it he would sacrifice his half-written science homework for a fire. 

A cool breeze comes through the clearing, causing Caden to shiver. He gets up takes his backpack with him, and walks around the clearing looking for sticks and twigs that weren't affected by the rain. He began to get the feeling he was being watched, but no matter where he looked he couldn't find anything. He was lucky to find some twigs under a tree that was covered by the rain. He decides that maybe here would be a better place to stay for today. He sits at the side of the tree and places the dry twigs in a pile in front of him. He takes off his backpack and sticks his hand inside of his backpack, after rummaging around a bit he feels his lighter, then takes it out. He pushes the side of the lighter, causing it to turn on. He puts the fire up to some dry leaves under the sticks, watching them start to light. 

As he sits back and watches the fire start to slowly build in size, he realizes that it will likely take a while to build up enough to give much warmth. He zips up his jacket noticing a new tear that was in the seam of the shoulder. It fit him rather baggily which he was happy about, it made him look more masculine. He grabs his backpack and moves it behind him on the ground. He leans back onto his bag as he watches the fire build further.

Caden’s eyes started to become heavy, only just now noticing how exhausted he was. He found himself falling asleep. He knew he had to stay awake, but he couldn’t bring himself to get up. His arms were now too weak. As his vision starts to dull, the eerie deer from before steps into his vision. He knows he should do something but his body is so relaxed he can't, he can't bring himself to worry enough to even move. As his vision goes black and he finally falls asleep, the last thing he sees is the deer approaching him.

Hehe, I'm finally back, sorry for the long break I have edited what I wrote in the past and I hope it's a bit better now  :> - Frost ❄