The Blackwood Curse

Ten Hours Until Dawn

"Wow. When you said you'd changed," I whirl around to see Josh sitting with his arms crossed on one of the benches, "I didn't know you meant you had turned into a total beast"
I laugh a little, running a hand through my hair. He gets up and offers me his hand. I take it and he helps me up.
"Lemme have a look at you"
His eyes search my body. First he sees the hair, then the piercing, then the tattoo. He can't see the change in my body because of all of the coats and jumpers.
"You look good. Uh..." He coughs awkwardly, his cheeks flushing a little. Or maybe he can.
"Sports therapy" I explain, shrugging. He averts his eyes.
"Oh"
I can see the view out of the window. My breath catches.
"It's really beautiful"
"Yeah. It is"
He used to reply to stuff like that with something uber corny like 'not as beautiful as you'. I used to tease him about it, but I secretly loved it.
Times really have changed.
I remember how we met; it was a major case of butterfly effect. I was in town and shopping for groceries. For no reason, I decided to walk home a different route than usual. I bumped into him and we recognised each other from school. If I hadn't diverted, we wouldn't have started to become friends and eventually dated. Looking at both of us now, it seems like such a waste of a perfect coincidence. I catch his eye and quickly look back to the scenery, feeling my cheeks warm up. It's stunning, but every second I look at it more memories come back.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
I wish he didn't know me so well.
"Maybe" I sigh, folding my arms. There is a definite tension between us, and it is made even more apparent by the silence. I sit down and watch the floor. There's a question on my mind, and I'm itching to ask it. Eventually I just blurt it out.
"Do you care that I've changed so much?"
Josh exhales slowly, gaze fixed on the view.
"You know I don't"
Well, that answers that, then. In a way, I'm glad that he doesn't view me any differently than he did.
Wait, does that mean he still-?
I watch him carefully, frowning slightly. He doesn't look at me, but I can see a faraway expression in his eyes that makes me suspicious.
When the cable car stops, I get out with a relieved feeling. That was the longest cable car ride ever.
"Hey guys!" I hear a male voice shout before Mike emerges from the station. He catches sight of me and gives me a shocked look.
"Maxie!"
"Uh, it's just Max"
"Wow, you look fantastic! Damn!"
"Yeah, she does" Josh agrees curtly. I glance at him out of the corner of my eye, and he's giving Mike a strangely aggressive look. Drama queen.
"Alright boys, one at a time" I tell them jokingly. I begin to feel myself relax. This might not be so bad after all.
That's when I hear the same inhuman scream that I heard...that night. I feel the colour drain out of my face.
"The hell was that?" Josh asks. It's suddenly like I can't breathe in enough air. My heart thumps against my ribcage painfully.
Oh no. Oh no, no, no. I can't have a panic attack. Not here. Not now. Even as I try to calm down I feel my anxiety level rising. I stumble back and lean up against the wall.
"You okay?"
"Yeah...I'm just..." I fall to my knees, extremely dizzy. I start to hyperventilate, and tears fall down my face without me realising it. I can hear both Josh and Mike calling my name, but they sound muffled and distant. I am transported back to the cliff top, where the creature has me pinned to the snowy ground. I can even smell its rancid breath. I'm shaking as I try to pull in enough oxygen to still the spinning sensation in my head.
Suddenly a warm pair of arms envelop me and pull me close to their owner. They feel familiar and safe, so I lean into them. A hand gently strokes my hair while a soft voice gently mutters comforting things in my ear. I calm down a lot quicker than I usually do. As I stop panicking, I recognise the voice as Josh's. I nestle into his shoulder.
"Shh. It's okay. I've got you. Shh" He croons tenderly. I'm annoyed with myself for letting them see my weaker side. They probably now think I'm still the wimp I was a year ago. I hear the cable car arrive again. This time, I can hear Emily's loudly, nasally voice even from inside the car.
"...and I was like oh my God, that is totally not cool. Hashtag bitch, much!" I groan internally. Emily is the last thing I need after a panic attack. My breathing returns to normal, but my heart is still hammering like a drill inside my chest.
"Are you alright?" Josh asks softly. I nod, my head still snuggled into his shoulder.
"Sorry" I mumble into his jacket.
"It's okay" My heart jumps at the tenderness in his voice. I look up at him and he looks down at me. We're close, so close I can feel his breath brush over my skin. My eyelids flutter.
"Hey Josh! Who's your new girlfriend?" Emily announces her presence in her usual loud manner. I turn to face her fully. Her mouths falls open and her eyes widen.
"Oh my God, Maxie! I, like, totally didn't recognise you!" She exclaims.
"It's just Max" Josh and I say at the same time. He looks at me out of the corner of his eye and smirks. She looks between us and makes a face.
"Alright. I'm 'a go up to the lodge while you two make kissy face at each other. Come on Matt!"
Emily prances off while Matt trails along behind her, carrying all of the bags.
"Hey guys"
"Hi Matt"
He smiles at us before running off after Emily.
"Whipped" I comment. Josh nods.
"Completely" He agrees. He takes his arms back and stands up.
"I'm going to go up to the lodge and get everything ready. Are you sure you're good?"
"Yeah, I'm fine" I get up and brush the snow off of my trousers. I'm a little wobbly, but otherwise fine. I start walking up the path to the lodge behind Josh. Perhaps this won't be as bad as I thought it could be. The scream I heard was probably a result of my over active imagination.
Probably.

Shoutout to IceCreamSunDaze DobbysFavoriteSock & Sneha60