The woods were dark. The night was approaching faster than I could have ever anticipated. "Shaun! This game is over! Get out here!". My yells went unanswered. I knew he wouldn't respond, his game had just begun. I couldn't tell where I was, it was far too dark. I could feel my mothers disapproval in my soul, but I couldn't leave without Shaun. I continued to call for him, frustrated since I could almost feel his stare at my back.
I felt that I still knew these woods from my childhood. Even the breeze seemed familiar. Shaun and I played in these woods for years. I could see several carvings still on the trunks around me. However, I knew my mother wouldn't want me here, although I've seen pictures from her childhood of her and my father playing in these woods. She was always so adamant, punishing me whenever she found that I was in here. Shaun also got a stern talk, and several threats of never being able to see me again. I never saw her more angry than when I broke this one rule.
Beyond her forceful instructions to never enter those woods again, my mother was a wonderful parent. She supported my art phase during 8th grade, even though I could barely draw a recognizable tree let alone anything else. She bought me instruments junior year when I was determined to become a musical artist, although I could hardly hold a note with a recorder. She always baked cookies for me and my friends, no matter how many we had in the few days prior. She loved me and everything I did, so long as I stayed out of those woods. My mother loved her community almost as much as she loved me, and she constantly donated to local charities. She volunteered at all the clinics around. The whole town mourned her death.
It was a heart attack. She was working in the garden and collapsed. It wasn't quick, and I had time to say goodbye, but she had one more important lesson for me.
"Listen, this was always going to happen, and it will happen to you too if you don't pay attention to me now." She was talking fast, wheezing past the pain. I wasn't sure what she was talking about, there were many things I was sure she could teach me. What could possibly be so important as to tell me on her deathbed?
"Stay out of those woods. They have always had a power over us, but it can end with me. Don't try anything I wouldn't want you to do. Move away, forget about all of this, live your life. Promise me." I looked at her. She was pleading with me, almost begging.
"I promise, mom." That was all I could say. She looked at me, tears streaming down her face.
"I love you." and that was it. She died moments later.
Shaun was quick to offer me a place to stay. I expected it, he's always had my back. I have known Shaun since birth. He was born five hours before me, a fact he was always quick to point out in an argument. We grew up together, we played together, we learned together. He was family to us, and was always welcome in our home. Shaun, unfortunately, was a bit of a troublemaker. He loved pranks. It was excessive, everyday. I fell victim to quite a few of them, but they were typically pointed at 'the man'. Teachers, police officers, parents. Anyone with a position of power knew Shaun's name. He was always in trouble for something or another. Yet he always respected my mother.
Shaun was the one that suggested going into the woods. At first I wasn't sure why he would want to, but he was almost frantic when he approached me. " We have to do it." He was breathless, "You need to know what happened. You have to understand." I could see the sweat pouring down his face. I've never seen him more serious. It was almost scary.
"What are you talking about, Shaun? What happened in the woods?"
"You wouldn't believe me, I have to show you." He almost dragged me to my old home.
It was just as I had remembered it. The house I was raised in. My father ran out on us shortly after my birth and my mother never remarried. She never talked about him, although I've seen pictures. Since I was her only child, technically the house was mine. I couldn't stand living here, however, so it's fallen into disrepair. Vines ran along the walls, the old one-story house was almost covered. My mother's garden in the backyard was filled with weeds. I felt shame gracing my cheeks when I thought of how my mother would feel. "Come on," Shaun said suddenly. He too had been drinking in the sight. "We need to go deeper in the woods than we ever went before."
"What in the world are you talking about? This is starting to get annoying."
"Just," Shaun looked spooked. He was bone white. "Hang on, would you? Just follow me." I was seriously frustrated at this point. He didn't say anything on the ride here. He sat beside me as I drove, just staring out the window with this same spooked expression.
"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell is going on."
"You have to follow," Shaun said, stating it as if it was a fact. " you need to see."
"You keep saying that, but you won't say what I need to see." I crossed my arms and widened my stance. I wasn't moving until he told me what I wanted to know. Shaun sighed impatiently, and my anger rose. He was treating me like a child.
"Hey," he said suddenly. "I think I left my phone in the car. Can I see your keys for a second? It'll be easier to explain if I have my phone with me." It was suspicious. He had this wild look in his eye, looking around as if he expected someone to jump out at us. I didn't respond, but I did pull my keys from my pocket. Once the keys were in his sight, he made a move towards them. I yanked my hand back as he moved forward. My foot fought on a rock, and as I fell Shaun barreled into me. I hit the ground hard. I could already tell I was going to have a few bruises. Shaun looked unapologetic as he stood. He grabbed my keys from where they landed a few feet away.
"You need to see." With that, he took off running towards the woods.
It took only a moment to scramble to my feet, but by then he was already at the tree line. I took off after him. I was going to kick his ass.
"This way!" He yelled behind him, as if I was a part of this. I just wanted my keys, but at this point I wanted to beat him down even more. He slowed his pace once I regained a good view of him, then he sped up. Shaun was always skinny, not too strong. However, his lanky frame meant he was faster than me. He knew it too, and he stayed just far enough ahead that I could see where he was going. I could see his head whipping around, looking for something I guessed. It was late in the evening, I'd say around 6:30. He dragged me here after dinner and I could feel the weight of it in my stomach. He barely ate his meal. Shaun then picked up his speed, sprinted through the woods. It was getting denser, and his ability to run through it was surprising. I slowed to a jog, then a walk, and finally I stopped. I could still hear him running, breaking twigs as he went. Before long even that went silent. I was deep in the woods now, completely out of breath. It was only then that I remembered my mother's final words. Guilt flooded my system, and I turned around and walked away. Let Shaun play his stupid game. I was done.
It was then that I remembered a very vital fact about the woods: it all looks the same. I didn't keep track of any landmarks on my way in, and so I was hopelessly lost. It was starting to get dark now, and seeing no other option, I began walking in the direction Shaun took off in. There was something strange about the woods after dark. The mood seemed different. Somewhat familiar too. Silence reigned the area. The silence unnerved me, my anger dimming.
"Shaun!" I yelled. "Shaun, get back here!". I could see the last rays of the sun.
The woods were dark. The night was approaching faster than I could have ever anticipated. "Shaun! This game is over! Get out here!". My yells went unanswered. I knew he wouldn't respond, his game had just begun. I couldn't tell where I was, it was far too dark. I could feel my mothers disapproval in my soul, but I couldn't leave without Shaun. I continued to call for him, frustrated since I could almost feel his stare at my back.
It was then that the silence was broken. The sound of twigs breaking underfoot appeared, seeming deafening due to the lack of ambience. The sound came behind me, back the way I came. Did Shaun circle around? I turned around, but the sound stopped once I did. I peered through the dark, yet nothing seemed out of place. The sky turned a brilliant pink. It was time for me to go home.
I heard it. Once again behind me, I heard it. Breathing. Loud, ragged breathing. The hair on my neck stood, my stomach dropped. I turned, hoping to see Shaun's familiar face. That's not what I saw. My heart leapt to my throat. My eyes widened. "Mom?" It looked just like her, but after closer examination, there were some differences. This woman was taller than my mother, by a foot at least. My mother's eyes were bright, brilliant blue. I assume this woman's eyes are brown, I could hardly see a color with how dark it is out here. The way this woman dressed was different as well. My mom always wore jeans or sweatpants, with a non-branded T-shirt. I never saw her wear something different. The woman in front of me wore a dress. I think it's a dress, it was as pale as her skin and hugged her form incredibly tight. She had wide hips and supple breast, a firm stomach and soft edges. She looked like a mother. She looked a lot like my mother.
We stared at each other for a few seconds, though her colorless eyes made it seem like hours. Even though I couldn't see her eyes, I knew she was examining me. I didn't know what to say. What could I even say? I could feel an odd clench in my chest, faint but painful. I tried not to react to the sudden pain, but I didn't manage to stifle a small flinch. That's when she smiled. Her teeth seemed to reflect the little light around her. Her smile stretched across her face, almost literally ear to ear. It paralyzed me. I wanted to run, more than anything I wanted to run.
When she spoke, it reminded me of a spiders web. Smooth and beautiful, inviting, but captures prey. It was soft, barely above a whisper, but it echoed through my skull.
"It's so good to see you again," her mouth barely moved, the voice not coming from a discernible place. "It's been far too long since we have played." Confusion danced just ahead of fear. Confusion also danced in her black eyes. The she chuckled. A dead sound. There was no amusement there.
"Apologies, you look so much like your father."
She moved towards me, making no noise as she closed the distance. Her arms, as long as her legs, wormed their way around me. In one movement she had pulled me into a hug. Her skin was cold. Ice cold. It smelled strongly of iron. Her dress felt and smelt the same, and it was a horrid thought that it wasn't a dress at all. She never dropped her smile, but now that I was paying attention, I noticed she had opened her mouth. I knew too late. Like a vice she latched onto my arm, going straight through muscle like it was nothing more than open air. My scream was drowned out by her mirthless chuckle. "You taste just like him too." She released me, and I fell to the ground. Panicked, I glanced at my wound. It was nothing more than a red, bleeding mass of flesh, but I thought I could see bone. I screamed in pain and fear. She towered above me, smiling still.
I heard another yell. Somehow, mixed with my screaming and her laugh, Shaun's yell was louder. He sprung from the deep brush with that wild look still in his eye. He was flushed, all color drained from his face. He didn't even look at me, his wild eyes locked on hers. He used the surprise and his speed to tackle her. They both went down in a tangle of limbs. His yells changed from a war cry to a single, uttering plea. "Go! Get out here! I'll be right behind you!" He threw punches down at her, with seemingly little affect.
I rolled onto my stomach and propped myself with my good arm. Once I got to my knees, I started to run. I didn't look back. I heard commotion behind me but I didn't look back. My lungs burned, my arm felt like it was going to fall off, and my ass still hurt from falling. I still ran. For all I was worth, I ran. The commotion behind my went silent, there wasn't any screaming. Twigs broke under me, and before long a second streak of twigs broke behind me. There were two of us, hopefully running back to my home. We escaped. Those words ran through my mind innumerable times. No matter how many times I thought it, that gut feeling never left.
I tripped. I flew forward, protecting my head with my good arm. I skid a meter or two when I landed. After a moment of catching my breath, I flopped over onto my back. A root had caught my foot. Odd, I didn't see it until now. On the other side of the root stood a figure. "Thank you, Shaun, for the rescue." Shaun smiled at me. That was when I noticed how tall he was, and how his smile was so wide. How it seemed to shine. That was when my chest began to tighten. I searched for Shaun's features, but everything was black.
The woods were dark.
