Guide • Laurmani

Stranger Things Are Happening

Normani

I was taking a stroll through the woods behind my house, listening to the chirping birds and the running river. It was a pretty day outside as I walked, not sure why I was really out here. It could be because of what I saw a few weeks ago, a girl watching me, or maybe it was because my sisters were being mean like usual so I escaped through my bedroom window.

When I reached the river, I stopped and looked around because this was the place I had saw the girl. My father told me I was being delusional and that no one was there but I knew there was. I had felt her following me since I was little and when I looked back, she was gone just like that. It was as if she could move in a millionth of a second, almost as if she had powers.

I was sure she was the one following me. No one else had. The thing that struck me odd was the strange aura that seemed to follow me. I knew it had to be hers because when she stopped following me, it went away. Part of me wanted to believe I was just being crazy like my adopted Grandmother because I knew better than to think that girl was something other than a human. That would be devils play, but something told me otherwise. I had vague memories of the girl from when I was little. I was sure it had been the girl that used to appear in the night and soothe me to sleep when I was young. It had to be.

I cleared the thoughts out of my head and kept walking, pushing my earbuds in so I could listen to some music. I let the random song play as I went down the trail, being mindful of the little train of ants and rolly pollies that we're moving around on the flattened dirt.

We had moved five times in the last twelve years and I was hoping this would be the place we would settle. We were living in Georgia, but then I started seeing things in the dark and it got to the point that we had to move. My adopted grandmother, Charlotte, honestly believed that there was a little demon following us wherever I went.

She claimed she could feel its evil spirit and that she had seen it before. My father had told me there was nothing to be worried about, but I knew better. When that crazy old woman talked in her sleep about seeing a young girl with fangs, I knew she had seen what I had seen.

Of course, I kept my mouth shut and just let it happen. There was no use in trying to prevent what they planned to do. Parents didn't take a five year old into consideration when moving. Especially if the child wasn't actually theirs.

They had adopted me when I was a baby, but the story had always felt odd and filled with flaws. I could never put my finger on it when I asked about my birth mom that they had told me passed away while giving birth. It didn't feel right. It just didn't.

They tried to love me none the less but I was a struggle. With a crazy grandmama who was obsessed with her spiritual crystals, my life had gone downhill pretty quickly. She was causing trouble for me and so did my adopted siblings. They always seemed to have something to hold against me and get me in trouble for.

That's why I came out here. The woods behind our house are thick and provide a safety from the life of my fake family. Out here, it's just me and for a little while, it was her too. At least, it always felt like she was out here with me.

As I walked, I pulled my earbuds out and stuffed them in my pocket, not in the mood for the music that was on right now. I was honestly too lazy to hit skip twenty times to get to my favorite song.

I flinched when I heard a stick break and I spun around, finding that there was nobody behind me. "Hello?" I called out, looking around.

It had probably been an animal so I kept walking but then I heard the sound of cracking leaves and I knew someone was out here. They shouldn't have been because one, no one came out here except me and two, there was only access to the forest from my backyard and my neighbor's backyard. I knew for a fact the Hansens were out on a vacation so it couldn't be them.