Moonlight

Chapter I: Into The Woods

It was one the darkest nights of the year. Barely a single star in the sky. The moon though. The moon was blinding. The woods never were that quiet, no owls hooting, no wolves howling, no trees moving with the wind. It was all so still, too still. Until the moment a young lady came running into the forest and in the middle of all that quietness, you could only hear her desperate sobs, her struggling with the sharp branches that left her hands bleeding. She could care less about her fresh wounds so she wipes her little hurting hands on her white newly torn and muddied nightgown. 

"What a mess..." She said to herself.

Suddenly, she could hear her name echoing into the nothingness that was surrounding her.

"He's following me" She thought to herself while covering her mouth.  Chills all over her body, she couldn't ponder the possibilities and so she did what she was best at, she ran.

She began running again, her feet were killing her as she was barefoot and stepping on whatever was covering the forest's ground. She couldn't stop herself from crying, she was being chased not only by the man to whom her heart belongs but also by what scares her the most, her worst nightmare. 

She gets closer to a lake, the bright image of the full moon mirrored on the lake could give any passing human goosebumps and stop them dead in their tracks to gaze upon its beauty, and for a second, she almost forgot all about the man screaming her name. That view was enchanting but almost cost her her life when she tripped over a huge rock burried into the mud and fell to the ground, facing her own reflection on the surface of the ever so still lake. She could hear his footsteps getting closer and closer to her by the second.

"LYLA! PLEAASE!!"

Hearing him beg broke her heart to a million pieces. She tried to get up and run but her leg was now trapped between god knows what. She sighed, closed her eyes and let a few tears descend all the way from her eyes to her lips. There was nothing she could do now, a lake in front of her, a leg trapped and him behind her now. She could hear his heavy breathing, his heart about to break out of his chest. 

I could feel him standing behind me know, i'm on the ground, the back of my hand covering my mouth to stop the sobs that were trapped in my throat. This is it. The moment of truth.

"Why would you do that? Why would you runaway the day before our wedding? I...I thought you ..." He said with a breaking voice, not able to finish his trail of thoughts.

"I DO! more than anything else in the world but.. but.."

"WHAT? but what Lyla?? is it him? do you love HIM?" He blurres out, not sure of anything anymore.

"BECAUSE... i've been lying to you. I've been hiding a big part of myself from you and i'm so sorry. I am not who you think i am and you do not deserve a monster like me. I've been blinded these past 3 months and it was only today that i realized that i've took it too far and i needed to put an end to this masquerade. I cannot fool you and lie to your face anymore. I can't be your wife." I say breathlesslty. It broke my soul to just say it all like that but it had to be done.

These last words echoed in his head and broke him, he didn't know what that meant. He needed to look her in the eyes, he needed to see her face.

"What are you talking about? I don't understand... Would you please just look at me Lyla? Just look me in the eyes and say it. Tell me what you've been hiding all this time and quit running away from it.. From me." He says hopelessly. 

 She didn't move an inch, she couldn't dare face him. With her face buried in her palms, she nodded a firm no. 

"That's it Lyla" And with that, he moved closer to her, grabbed her arm and turned her shaking face towards him by the chin with a gentle move. He stopped dead in his tracks, eyes wide open, he couldn't believe the sight before him although the moonlight made it clear enough as it fell on her face and made everything truer. He blinked twice, let go of her arm and took a step back. He couldn't believe that was his Lyla. Half her face wasn't human. Bright reddish eye that looked like a dragon's, grey skin covered half her skull, it was rock solid, her lips half black with pointy teeth, no ear and a single horn. She was half a monster. Half a demon.

Lyla was helpless, turned back and cried in silence. It was over. He saw her. He knows the truth.