Crimson Nightmares (#WATTYS2016)

Chapter Seven

I feel as light as a feather, joy bubbling in my heart as I think back to last night. The time spent alone with Joshua has changed something in me, although I haven't quite figured out what. Ready for school in record time, I sit on the porch waiting for him with my bag on my lap. My mind drifts to the phone call the Mayor received before they left, and I wonder who was attacked, since he hadn't given any more details.

What is out there?

My thoughts are interrupted when I finally hear the rumble of Joshua's motorcycle. Excitement rushes through my veins and something does a somersault in my stomach as he drives through the old iron gates. Stopping a few feet away, he jumps off and walks towards me while holding out a helmet.

"Good morning fair Juliet," he says as he hands the helmet to me, "I'm just going to say hi to your mom and grandparents, and then we can go." He flashes me a smile and winks as he moves past me.

I stand there with a mouth full of teeth, my brain once again unable to function properly in the presence of Joshua Steele. Fumbling with the black helmet in my hand, I try to calm myself down.

He returns a minute later, and we walk to the big green machine together. I put the helmet on and fasten the strap, hoping my hair doesn't get messed up too badly, and then he helps me to get on. "This is the part where you hold onto me tightly," he says while wearing the wickedest grin I've ever witnessed.

After I lock my arms around his waist, he proceeds to pull away slowly. I relish in the strange current running through my body as if it originates in his. This is much more exciting than catching a ride with Michael. Once we're outside the gates, he picks up speed. My hair flitters behind me in the wind, adrenaline coursing through me. I've forgotten how much I love being on a motorcycle.

For a moment I think back to when I used to ride with my father. I remember the first time he'd let me ride it myself, how the gears had confused me, and I ended up driving half a mile in second gear. When I'd finally gotten over my fear, I picked up speed and left my father behind. I'd seen him in the side mirror wearing a proud smile.

Halfway to school, Joshua slows down and pulls off beside the road. Dust clouds form as the tires hit the rust colored dirt, and I sneeze. Once he cuts the engine off, he removes his helmet while staying seated on the green beast.

"This is where I was attacked," he says.

I look around. Everything seems calm in the early morning light; the long grass is almost unnaturally green from all the rain these past few weeks. The trees beside us are all equally lush. I half expect Bambi to come prancing out of the bushes, not something that could cause the amount of damage I'd witnessed on Joshua's unconscious body on that stormy night.

"Did you see it?" I ask after a moment.

He stares into the bushes as if he can somehow see through the thick growth. A bird calls out and another answers its call somewhere deeper in the bush. Joshua jerks his head towards the sound so suddenly that I inhale sharply out of fright.

"I'm sorry, did I startle you?" His eyes are focused on me now, a slight frown creasing his brow. I giggle then.

"Nothing to be sorry about, it doesn't seem to take much to scare me these days." I smile to try and reassure him. He looks more worried than the situation warrants.

"I didn't see much," he starts while still assessing me, "it was really dark. I heard a growl, and the next moment something sank its teeth into me. When I tried to see what it was I could only make out its eyes," he stops talking and looks around again. He looks uneasy, which causes my own nerves to come alive.