Haunted Memories

CHAPTER ONE

" The fear of death follows from
the fear of life. A man who lives fully
is prepared to die at any time. "

—Mark Twain

.✫*ﾟ･ﾟ｡.☆.*｡･ﾟ✫*.

A blinding light entered the room through the stark white curtains that billowed with the cool breeze. Buried within the bed, snoring softly, was a girl who had just turned twenty one. Her auburn hair glittered like a flame beneath the sunlight, spread out across the pillow beneath her head like a fan. Her elven nose was littered with freckles. The light brown spots were spaced out like stars resting against her ivory skin, painting her like a pretty picture. Her cheeks were pink from the mild sunburn she had gotten days before from her family vacation at an amusement park (her younger sister had insisted that they go). Dark eyelashes rested against her rosy cheeks, hiding away those bright hazel eyes. Despite the dreams she was dancing within, that light began to stir her awake.

          She rolled onto her back, her arm slung over her face. Her mouth felt entirely too dry and the pounding within her head was becoming too inexplicable. She slowly rose from the soft mattress, her eyes still closed. Her long hair was matted, most of it sticking up in places, yet it fell against her back in a straight mess. She could barely remember much from the night before. All that she could recall was her birthday party. Her sorority had thrown her a surprise party, and everyone was there. She drank tequila shots like water and danced around with boys much older than her. Until she spotted a boy with long brown hair that lead her upstairs. A soft hum slipped past her lipstick smeared lips that curled into a knowing smile. She was in a bed. That was the only one thing that could explain what had occurred the night before.

Her eyes slowly rolled open, her palms falling back onto the mattress. A squelching sound echoed in her ears as this warm, wet substance coated her fingers. Without a second thought, she turned her head, and the sight made her heart beat rapidly in her chest. The boy from the night before lay there, his skin a papery white. His lips were a shade of blue, his fingertips matching. His jugular was missing, his blood smeared across his bare chest and the white sheets she had been laying on. She wanted to scream. She covered her mouth to muffle the sound of surprise still waiting to be left out as she scurried off the bed. She was dressed in his shirt, the fabric long and loose around her waist. Her smooth legs were marked with blood. Oh, my God, she thought. He's fucking dead.

Her eyes trailed from the place in his hair that seemed to have been where the attacker held him down, to the jagged marks in his skin. Tears pricked the backs of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She began to fumble with the bathroom door that was closed tight, her fingers fighting with the knob until she heard the sound of wood creaking. Her chest heaved as anxiety began to riddle her body into violent shaking. She knew that if the attacker was still in the house, she was going to die. Think, Riley, think. Where would you hide in a scary movie? The room she was in wasn't her own. It had a set of drawers in one corner, a closet filled with clothes in the shade range of white to red, the bed, and a bookshelf used for picture frames and trophies instead of books.

She thought between the closet and under the bed, but the creaking began to come closer, and she felt as if she didn't have much time left. She dropped to her stomach and slid herself beneath the large bed, praying she wouldn't be found. The thick scent of metal swarmed her nose. The crimson fluid had stained her hand that now covered her mouth and nose to try and prevent any erratic breathing being heard. "Shit, uh.. Our father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name," she began to whisper, her hazel eyes staring at the new shadow spilling into the room through the bottom of the door. "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. On earth as it is in Heaven." Her tears still fought to be released, warming up her eyes. Yet, she held them back, too scared to show any weakness.