Alone (Bluford High) (Watty Awards 2013)

Chapter 5

    After Michael got home, Karen and her mother told him what happened. A fire broke out at Bluford and it was the first fire that did. What also was surprising was a first death. On the news, the police had announced that the body of a woman was burned alive and her face was nothing but skull. Karen was very disturbed by this. She knew that it would be traumatizing for Elle, Dale and the rest of the students of Bluford. After all of that, the missing children, the nightmares, the noises at night and the fatal blazing flames were making her petrified and she wanted it to go away. But it wouldn't be easy. 

   That night, the Amersons were eating dinner in the living room, each one of them still frightened by what occured earlier that day. It was all too much and too fast.  Susan kept the windows down and locked the doors. 

"Karen, have you been keeping a lookout for Allie Richardson?" she asked her daughter.

"Dale, Elle and I looked and asked our other friends if they've seen her, but everyone has no clue where she went."

"My God."

"OK, from now on, we are picking you up from school,'' said Michael.

"That sounds much better," thought Karen anxiously.

"Good idea. This is too serious and dangerous. First, kids end up missing, then its the noises at night like someone is banging on our doors and now a fire broke out at your school and someone died from it!" exclaimed Susan.

"Calm down, honey," Michael said.

"I can't calm down. This is too much and it'll be worse if Karen was one of those kids."

"Don't say that. Please don't"

"I'm sorry, I'm just extremely worried."

   Karen cringed at her mother's words "It'll be worse if Karen was one of those kids.".  What if she was? What if it was Dale or Elle or someone else? What's next,  a baby? She was tired of thinking. She just wanted to go to sleep and start fresh tomorrow. Although that was idealic after a tragedy, it wasn't realistic and Karen knew that.

  A couple of days later, Karen and the Bluford students were staying at their homes due to the incident. Every night, Karen would hear the banging on her doors, which would only intensify her dreadful nightmares. The skull of the deceased woman burned into her brain and she would start seeing it more and more. For instance, she was brushing her teeth and while doing that, she saw the skull image as her own face. It was so overwhelming for her. But if she told anyone, she knew that they would think that she was totally insane.  

   In the afternoon, she was eating a snack in the living room while her father was at work and Susan was napping in her chair. She grabbed her cell phone from her pocket and dialed Elle's phone number.

"Hello?" said Karen.

"Hey, girl. You OK?"

"Actually, I'm still thinking about that fire."

"Me too. Dale called me and told me that he had a nightmare about that dead lady at our school. The news said that the lady was a lunch lady from our cafeteria."

"Really?!"

"Yeah, I'm for real. Girl, you need to ask yo mom if you can come over."

"Well, my parents are basically on lockdown mode for me because their worried and so I can't really go anywhere right now."

"That sucks."

"I know."

    As Elle kept on rambling, Karen noticed something strange happening to her mother. Susan was  shaking in a seizure sort of manner. Before Karen could help, Susan's body strangely disintergrated itself and instead a terribly burned body, looking like charcoal, replaced Susan. The body was still shaking violently and the face was no longer Susan's but a skull. Its mouth opened and screamed fiercely as well as Karen did.  She dropped the phone and ran outside the front door, running down the street. She kept on running and running like she was in a track competition or like Forrest Gump. 

"Karen!!! KAREN!!!!" yelled out a voice.

 Karen looked back and saw her mother standing on the front porch screaming her name. She was in perfect condition. Karen stopped running.

"Karen, what are you doing?!!! Get back in the house!!"

  When Karen returned, her mother was more frightened herself than angry.

"What were you doing? Why were you screaming and running away from me?" asked Susan.

"I-I-I-I"

"Do you know how bad you scared me? Don't ever do that again!!"

  Karen went up to her room and shut the door. She sat on her bed, rubbing her temples. The recollection of that short moment was confusing and scary for her. Why was all of this happening to her? Why? She knew she had to get help, but who would do it? She didn't have any money for a therapist even if she wanted to see one secretly. Who would help her in a serious situation. The nightmares, the fire, the disappearances and the weird noises were almost bringing her to the brink of a breakdown. She was being tortured by the events and she had to do something to make it go away.