Ella reached up and took off her headphones. Her ears had started to hurt and redden from hours of listening. She stared at the wall, and the strange events of the day reeled through her mind.
At first it was just a regular, boring and miserable day at school, they had gone on a walk near the woods to get there brain going. Ella walked with Gracie, Taylor, and Nora, and they talked about books and music as usual.
CRACK, RUSTLE, RUSTLE, CRACK!
"What was that?" Taylor asked. They all looked around.
RUSTLE, CRACK!
" I think it's coming from the woods," Nora said anxiously. Ella started walking toward the sounds, when she looked behind her she realized that her friends weren't following her.
" Well come on," she said, gesturing for them to follow. They looked around nervously and shook their heads
" forget you guys," Ella muttered and trudged into the dark abyss of branches.
She forged through branches, roots, and bushes until she decided to rest. She sat on a nearby rock and caught her breath.
This is stupid, she thought to herself, it was probably just a squir--
Before she could finish the thought, a boy stumbled out of the shadows.
She stifled a scream, if she were to scream out loud her teacher would know where she was. Instead she stood there frozen in fear and surprise. The strange boy stared at her, and his gaze made her shiver. There was something about him that made her feel cold and lonely. He kept on staring at her, but it felt more like he was staring right through her. As if he were examining her very soul. She wished he would say something. To give proof he was human and not a monster.
"They're coming for you," he said and he disappeared into the shadows once more.
