ROUGH DRAFT OF Slasher Kids Volume 1

Chapter 14

The next day, I was surprised to be opening my eyes to the morning sun. Somehow, I managed to survive the second craziest night of my life. I smiled to myself, thankful for that. I laid in my bed for a moment, thanking whoever would listen for protecting me throughout the night. Thanking them for keeping Jessie from barging in our home and putting our lives to an end. I heaved in a breath of fresh air, then let it out slowly, a small smile spread across my face.

I was alive.

I rolled out of bed and stretched, listening to my stiff limbs pop and crack in delight, then snatched the paper bag from last night up and ran to my door. I slowly opened my door and tiptoed out of my room. My family weren't early birds like me, especially on weekends. Grayson and Jane could sleep in all morning and wake up at noon while mom usually woke up around 10 or 11. After such a crazy night, I didn't think they'd want to be forced awake by me. I crept down the hall and walked down the stairs as quiet as the morning breeze. When I reached the kitchen, I threw the bag away and stared out the window.

The sun had just barely been sprung into the sky, warming the dew-covered grass. It wasn't too hot and not too cold; the beauty of the morning was its perfect temperature. The woods didn't look as ominous as they did at night. When the sun was up to scare away all the evil spirits that haunted the wilderness, the woods looked peaceful. I admired its beauty and imagined all the adventures I could have in there. Playing tag with the bunnies, chasing them until they made it safely to their home. Climbing one of the tallest trees that stood in those woods and claimed my throne as the ruler of nature- even just having a picnic with my family by the creak sounded nice.

To rip apart my daydream, something- or someone caught my eye. Someone I wasn't expecting to see so early in the morning. No, it wasn't Jessie; it was none other than Ralph. What was he doing? Especially near the woods.

"He knows." I murmured. I glanced towards the door, pondering whether to go after him or get mom or Grayson to come with me. No, Grayson was hurt and mom was probably exhausted. Jane?
I glanced back out the window. Ralph had already disappeared in woods. Without hesitating, I scrambled to the front door and threw on a pair of shoes, then ran to the black door, speeding after Ralph's direction. Why was I always having to chase after someone in the woods?

The ground was still soft from the morning dew, making it a little harder for me to run. Every step I took, my foot would sink in the dirt. I had to rip them out and carry on, yelling at Ralph.
"Ralph! Stop!" I screamed, but he was nowhere to be seen. It might have been a lost cause, but I knew if I didn't get to him first, Jessie would bash his brains in with the same hammer she used to stab my brother. Ralph was a bad person, but that didn't mean he deserved to die. Nobody deserved to die, no matter how bad they were.
Once my feet had reached a bit more firmer ground, I ran as if it were my life on the line. Where could he be?
"Ralph!" I called again, hoping he'd answer. He didn't. I had gotten lucky when I noticed wet footprints were implanted on the dirt path used by hikers. It had to be him.
I ran down the path, allowing the footprints to guide me. How was he so fast? Where was he? It didn't matter- all I knew was that I had to get to him.

I ran until I reached the same location I reached yesterday. The shack. My legs were numb from running so fast, especially without stretching. My chest was so tight, it felt nearly impossible to inhale anything; the lack of air burnt my lungs. I opened my mouth to call out to Ralph, but nothing came out, just a hard, short wheeze that almost sounded similar to the birds chirping happily in the trees. I fell to my knees, refusing to go anywhere near that shack and tried to catch my breath. Unfortunately, I didn't get enough time to regain my composure. Someone had kicked me in the back, knocking me down on my chest. The very few air I had somehow managed to suck in had immediately left my chest.

"You knew. You knew she was alive, didn't you?" Asked a low, angry voice. I coughed and carefully rolled on my back to see who my attacker was.
It was Ralph. He held a crowbar in his hands, possibly ready to use it on Jessie, but maybe I was going to be its first victim.
"Where is she? Where are you hiding her?!" Ralph screamed. As much as I wanted to tell him, I couldn't. He glared into my eyes, waiting for answer, but when I didn't answer right away, he raised the crowbar over his head and brought it downn on my abdomen. I cried out in pain, listening to my own bones crack from its impact.
"Answer me!" Ralph screamed. He raised the bar again, ready to break my ribs, but something brought him to a stop. His eyes had left mine, and instead, he stared at something in front of him. He looked disgusted, almost as disgusted as Grayson would look when Ralph came over.

Despite my aching ribs, I kicked Ralph's knee and watched him crumble to the ground in front of me, dropping his crowbar. I forced myself to sit up and scooted away from him, but I didn't get too far. My eyes widened when a pair of legs put me to a stop.
Slowly, I brought my gaze up to see who those legs belonged to.
It was Jessie, and standing next to her were my masked brother and sister.