The Unquiet Woods: A Primeval Fan Story

Prom Night

Emmanuel edged the back door closed and dashed onto the street. The cool night air kissed his exposed skin as he slipped down the road towards the cul-de-sac. His heart palpitated with jitters of excitement mixed with the slight fear of getting caught. Not only was he breaking his family's curfew, but the town's too. The entire world was in the midst of a pandemic: COVID-19 had rapidly spread across the globe shutting almost everything down. If he were to be caught violating this quarantine, he would have to deal with both the authorities and his parents. Neither would be good.

Every so often he would glance back at the darkened house he had emerged from. Each time he thought he could see the kitchen light on or hear his mom screaming after him. Each time, nothing. The beer bottles clinked in his hand as the cardboard holder dug into his sweaty palm. He hoped his dad wouldn't miss the stolen liquor. He made sure to grab the crate that was gathering dust under the stairs rather than something from his dad's stash of expensive booze.  

As his home disappeared behind a curve, the jitters dissipated slightly. He still needed to be on guard though. The police in his tiny Connecticut town had nothing better to do than bust people breaking the curfew. The rules were strict but simple: No one was to be out of their house past eight o'clock. Those who were caught would receive a hefty fine or even jail time. 

Emmanuel checked his phone. Eleven-thirty. If all had gone right, he would have been leaving his high school prom right about now. He bit his lower lip and squeezed the cardboard handle, harder. A wetness begin to form at the corner of his eye. He gazed to his feet as he felt his pace slowing. Soon he came to a stop. For a second he just stood there, staring at the sidewalk. The once-grey surface was tinted orange by the overhead streetlights. In fact, whole night was lit in an artificial glow. He looked up above his head. Moths danced and flickered in the lamplight. Despite the cloudless sky above, he was unable to see any of the stars. As he looked into the sky, he felt a slick wetness trickle down the side of his face. It wasn't supposed to be like this. He never imagined it would be.

The buzzing of his phone jolted his hand. He looked back down to the phone screen. "New message from Noah."

"Where are you?" He found himself mouthing the text as he read it. "Shit." He muttered. He needed to hurry.

He heaved the case of beer off the ground and trotted off the main road. The street lights seemingly grew dimmer as he weaved through the empty streets. As he approached the gates of the park, the artificial orange glow was diffused by the new spring leaves that grew on once-bare trees. He turned the corner and finally there was no more road left to travel down. He walked towards the entrance of the park. Ahead of him he could barely see the outline of Roaring Brook Hill against the moonlit sky. At the bottom near the trailhead, he could see the glowing of his friends' phone screens. He eagerly trotted ahead. As he approached he saw a figure break off from the group.

"Where the hell were you?" Noah grumbled at a volume that surely would wake all in the nearby houses.

Emmanuel's heart jittered again. He lazily lifted up the carton of beer. By now, he was sure that the handle would sever his fingers. Noah shuffled up to his friend whilst eyeing the carton carefully.

"Coronas? How ironic." He chuckled.

Emmanuel's heart rate returned to normal as his friend held out a hand.

"How are 'ya doin my man?" Emmanuel tentatively accepted the high five. That brief contact of another's flesh felt so alien to him. It had been months since he had even been in the vicinity of another human outside of his immediate family. He smiled.

"Emmanuel!" A shrill voice called from the shadows. Shoes clacked across the pavement as a second figure emerged and ran towards him with open arms. He nearly dropped the case of beers. He knew the voice instantly. It was a voice that was not known to him since before everything shut down. Ellenor Riley Hickerson.