Fly ∆way Girl

|13|

|OH MS BELIEVER|

I need alone time. Mostly to think.

The more information Larson and I dig up, the more terrifying my story becomes. I almost want to give up, but I know that isn't possible; we're in too deep.

Who knows where Larson is, or Josiah for that matter. I disappeared from the school without warning. Perhaps neither of them will follow me here.

My eyes were glued to the black sneakers on my feet. The toes were pointed at the line where the grass meets the wooden dock.

A sudden gleam of light broke my concentration and I looked up to find the rising sun peaking over the mountains at me. It's light poured over my face.

I'm grateful for the light since the lake isn't as scary in the day time. The light makes it just a little more bearable.

I slowly urged my feet onto the dock. It felt as if all the blood in my body was in my legs, making my feet heavier than usual.

My heart crept further up my throat with every step I took. I hadn't seen the knife yet because my eyes were focused on the sun, but somehow I knew it was there.

I didn't look down until I was nearly on the edge of the dock. My heart pounded as I lowered myself into a sitting position with my legs dangling over the edge.

My hands rested at my sides, and suddenly it was dark.

I looked in the direction of the sun, but the only light source was a full moon that hung in the otherwise black sky.

What happened? It was daylight just seconds ago..

The ice water licked over my shoes, soaking my socks and sending shivers all the way up my spine.

Loud music blared in the distance behind me, but I couldn't look back to the source.

I felt a biting wind rush past me, ripping my hair from my shoulders, and blowing it violently to one side.

A thought occurred to me. How can I feel the wind now? Or the water on my feet? I haven't been able to feel anything for the entire time I've been here.

My mind raced with thousands of new thoughts, none distinguishable from the others. I centered my attention on my surroundings. What changed, Harley? Fog. It had taken over the surface of the lake, morphing it into the lake in my vision. The trees were naked and their frames were skeletons reflecting the moonlight. The branches sliced through the air in jagged angles.

I couldn't handle it anymore, I needed to leave. I attempted to stand, but my body was frozen in its place on the dock.

I suddenly realized many things at once. One, the dock was no longer overgrown with weeds; two, the boat Larson and I arrived on the day before was no longer there; and three, my hands were wet with a sticky, warm liquid that in no way resembled the cool water my feet were submerged in.

I looked down now. The small waves were black, but that didn't hide the slight rippling that interrupted the flow. Every few seconds a drop from the dock fell into the water.

My eyes fell on my hands next, and my stomach curled at the fact that they were covered in the mysterious liquid, and it gleamed freshly in the moonlight.

The scent of iron suddenly flooded my nose, and my curling stomach threatened to spill its content.

This is no vision. That realization hit me hard. This is a memory that I'm reliving and that is my blood covering my hands.

I tried to slow down my thoughts so I could think clearly. I need to gather as much information as possible while I'm remembering it.

I tried to look around more, but I was limited. My body only allowed certain movements, perhaps the ones that I performed the last night of my life.

I closed my eyes. Breathe Harley. Are there any sounds, smells, or feelings that stand out? I tried to focus on the music. It was a beat that I recognized, though I was too far away to hear the words. The only other sound was my own gasps of air.

Smells? Nothing but the thick smell of blood. A lot of blood and maybe alcohol? I took in a deep breath. Yes, alcohol.

I pushed that from my mind and concentrated on what I felt. I was cold. Shivering even. I was light headed, which is normal for blood loss. My eyes burned with tears.

Where are my wounds? Figure it out Harley, it's important.

My left leg stung near my calf, and a shooting pain jolted from my right hip. My head was spinning, but that could be dizziness rather than a wound. My wrists were tight. Was I tied up? Were there ropes around my wrists?

My eyes ripped open, but they were steadily fixed on the water below me.
I couldn't look down to my hands anymore, nor could I move them. I could only feel the circulation being cut off.

Why didn't I scream for help?

My heart was beating through my chest painfully hard. Was I going into shock? Was I too stunned to yell out? My lungs forcefully sucked in air.

My body began to sink down the dock towards the water. My hands clenched hard to the dock, but it didn't help against my impending descent into the dark waves. Something was pushing me down!

Suddenly I realized something else. I wasn't alone on the dock.

A jolt of energy surged through my body, and I was standing on my feet with both fists closed tightly.

"Harley?!" Hands were on me, holding my wrists. "Harley?! What are you doing?!"

My tear filled eyes scraped open, and Josiah stood in front of me, fear in his eyes as well. I was surprised to see him again, especially after the way we left things at our last encounter.

"You were there that night! You did this!" I yelled at him. My voice was just a scratch, but it got the point across. My arms were swinging in his direction as best they could. His large hands still tightly gripped them. "Let me go, Josiah!"

"Harley, what's wrong with you?!"
His eyes frantically poured over my body.

"You killed me! I saw it!" I spat.

"You saw what?" His eyes were wide with wonder, possibly even some fear.

"Everything! I know where I died! I saw the last minutes of my life..." my voice was calmer now as sobs took over. "You...you pushed my body into the lake!"

Josiah turned my hands over, ignoring my claims. "What's this, Harley?"

The knife glistened in the morning sun. Dry flakes of blood had been transferred to my palm.
I must have picked it up when I jumped up.

I opened my hand and let it tumble back onto the dock.

I looked around to find everything back to the way it was before I had my memory. The boat bobbed in the slight waves, hitting the dock every few seconds.

"What did you see, Harley?" Josiah pressed, suddenly very interested.

"Nothing you don't already know about. My blood is on your hands." I said coldly, then I took myself back to the school to find Larson.