Thanatophobia

10- Theory

I stared at his eyes until I came to a consensus. A theory. Maybe it's weird, but it'll explain it.

"So I have a theory," I said. "It might be the forest. It's not a normal forest, as seen with the monsters like Stacii, Emilee, and Isie."

"And the demon," Taylor added.

"And the demon." I paused. "And the other things we have seen, like the weird glowing things and the exterminations. I think that those 4- no 3 deducting that Juniper dog thing are hiding things from us."

"Okay?" Taylor said. "Continue."

"I have seen weird things about this theory in 2022 recently. 'If someone or something is in a different environment for too long, or for however long they are there, they will change according to the conditions that they are in.' Like Emilee said, if an Animat- Amer- whatever they are called turns human from being in a human area for too long." I stated. "That might be happening to us."

Just then, Isie burst open the door, breathing heavily. Tears struck her eyes as she showed us her burnt hand. Stacii, Emilee, and Gort soon turned up after her, arguing.

"It was an accident! I swear!" Gort screamed.

"No!" Emilee swore, "You did it on purpose!"

"Guys, Can we please not fight on thi-" Stacii spoke.

"No!" Gort and Emilee yelled.

"Erm?" I spoke. "What's going on here?"

"Gort tried to kill poor Isie here!" Emiliee cried, "My poor baby!"

"She walked into the flame!" Gort screamed, "She did it herself, not me!"

I looked at Isie, Emilee, Gort, and then Stacii. The two stared at each other in hatred, faces implemented in red anger. Stacii stared at the two as they looked at each other. Her face was caring, but the threat of tears and over-looming sadness was seen in her one yellow eye. Isie's face was tearful, fear showed in her eyes. I stared at her longer, her eyes had a strange shape like a water drop or dew on the morning grass of a cold night. I glanced over at Taylor, whose wide eyes were fixed in terror on the window. The color drained from my face as I followed his gaze, and the sight that greeted me sent a chill down my spine. A figure loomed outside, barely visible in the darkness, its presence suffused with an eerie malevolence.

Our hearts pounding in unison, we instinctively dropped to the floor, backs pressed against the cold wall, and motioned urgently for the others to join us.

"Get over here!" I whispered hoarsely, my voice trembling with fear. "And don't look out of the window."

"What is it?" She leaned forward, and peered outside.

"Don't look! Close your eyes and slow your breathing!" Stacii urged, her voice strained with urgency.

"What the hell is it?!" Gort's voice quivered, his eyes now fixed on the window. The darkness outside revealed a silhouette, its features hauntingly familiar, its breaths were heavy and labored. "It's the demon!"

With a sense of impending doom, we huddled closer together along the wall. Despite Stacii's instructions, none of us dared to close our eyes or slow our breathing. The tension in the air was eminent as the seconds stretched into eternity.

My calm facade shattered, replaced by a gnawing fear that twisted my features into a mask of terror. Above us, the sound of claws scraping against the roof of the shelter sent shivers down my spine.

I clutched Isie tightly in my arms, her trembling form mirroring my own fear. Taylor's embrace offered little comfort as we braced ourselves for what was to come, while Gort's eyes reflected his terror in stark contrast against the darkness that enveloped him.

A shriek pierced the air, reverberating through the cramped confines of our shelter. We instinctively covered our ears, our hands clenched in fear, as the demon's unearthly screams filled the room.

Taylor held me closer, his grip on my dress shirt tightening with each deafening scream. Tears streamed down my face, unchecked, as terror seized hold of us all. Stacii and Emilee were frozen in fear, their faces pale and drawn, while Isie cowered in my sweater, her breaths coming in panicked gasps.

As suddenly as it had appeared, the demon retreated, its wings unfurling with a deafening whoosh. We listened in terrified silence as the sound of its wingbeats faded into the night, leaving us shaken but alive.

And as the echoes of its departure finally dissipated, we dared to breathe once more, our bodies still trembling with the residual fear of what we had just witnessed.

"I think we are safe right now," Taylor said, his breathing labored. "We need to stay in the plane cave though."

"Womp womp," Gort said as his legs stood, and arms crossed. "We need food. We haven't had any in like 3 days, or even longer."

"And we didn't come back with any this early morning, or whatever time it is." Taylor grumbled, "And Oliver barely ate on the plane, so they must be very hungry."

"I'm fine!" I said, "Besides, I don't really need to eat. I don't get hungry like other people do."

"You need to eat though," Gort yelled.

"No, I cannot!" I said, raising my tone, "Also, who said I would like whatever you get me, I might be allergic."

"You need to eat though!" Emilee and Stacii screamed.

"Damn it!" I yelled, "You guys don't know what eating disorders are?!"

"But Oliver," Isie cried, "You can't not eat!"

"But I can!" I yelled. "It's my body, not yours!"

"Ollie," Taylor winced. "It's fine if you don't want to eat, but don't act like we are monsters."

"I'm sorry." I said, "I didn't know-"

"It's fine." Stacii grimaced, "I'll just take a walk with Emilee."

"Yeah, We should go." Emilee sighed, "C'mon Isie."

"No!" Isie screamed. "I don't want to leave Ollie and Taytay!"

"Okay Isie," Emilee sighed, "You can stay with them."

Emilee and Stacii walked off into the sunrise, hand in hand as they both braced themselves to run. Soon, their silhouettes displayed in black, disappeared into the forest. Isie curled up in my lap and fell asleep like nothing ever happened. I stroked her long hair while I set her down in the compartment she was lying in the first time we met her. When I sat back down, Taylor sat with a pack of pretzels as Gort left the shelter.

"Don't tell Gort," He whispered, "Want some?"

"Uh, no thanks?" I said, "Or is that even an option?"

"Nuh-uh!" He said, "You are getting one anyway!"

He grabbed a handful of pretzels and placed it into my hand. The pretzels had a powdery flavor coating that rubbed against the palm of my hand. It felt strange to have food given to me, even after my dad died. I took one bite and the flavoring snuck its way into the taste buds that never felt or tasted anything better. I soon realized how hungry I actually was. I looked at Taylor, and he winked at me. I instantly felt more secure with Taylor than anyone else. I ate half of the pile with content in my eyes.

"Thanks for the food." I awkwardly said, with flavor dust on the side of my mouth. "It's good."

"No problem!" He said, "Anyways, your pupils changed too."

"What the hell?!" I laughed, "Oh well, It's not just me."

"Hey!" Taylor teasingly said, "Your pupils look like-" He paused.

"What's wrong?" I said, "Is it bad?"

"They look like stars," Taylor said, his voice trailing off.