𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐘𝐎𝐔 ➙ 𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐧

𝟑. 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐞

𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 that I was back.

Back to the place where I dreaded going every time I closed my eyes. The place where my body seemed to fight against me, leaving me stranded and helpless. A feeling that I hated. I hated every minute I spent here, even if it was just a dream, it never felt like one.

I walked away from the beach, the sound of waves crashing against the shore behind me and rolling towards the back of my heels, pushing me to move faster. I stopped in front of the clearing, where the dark forest met the open beach. The place where it felt as if all the light was sucked away.

Sucking up the courage, I pushed through the bushes. I treaded against the dirt, the smell of Earth wafting through the air as I pushed leaves and branches away. My shoes squished and crunched against leaves, while I tried to avoid any roots that could become a casualty. 

In the distance, like before, I could see the faint glow of orange and yellow pushing through the bushes. As I neared, the light grew brighter and more wild as it flickered around in the air. Sparks shot away from the trees, threatening to catch a leaf and set the whole forest ablaze. 

Loud cheers of excitement and joy travelled towards me, while a small bubble of content filled in my stomach. Like I had just found the missing piece of a puzzle. As I pushed through the greenery, I could see boys, old and young, dancing around the fire as a soft tune flowed through the air. 

As if my feet had a mind of their own, I was walking towards the group, but staying far enough that the boys wouldn't notice me at first glance. But as I studied them, the way they moved with such grace, how their eyes were almost glazed over, it was as if they were in a trance that they couldn't pry away from. 

Then, my eyes fell on the hooded boy, the one dancing around the circle with a panpipe in his hands. The only thing standing between me and riping his hood off, besides the fact that I had no control over my body, was the group of wild boys dancing. 

The music carried on, but the boy had stopped dancing. His body was faced towards me, but his head was still down, still playing the captivating tune. But slowly, almost as if he was fueled by the stress and anxiety radiating off of me, he lifted his head. It was as if he knew that I was dying to know who he was; like it was my life source and I was clinging on to it with all I had. 

His jade green eyes met mine through the fire, making it seem as if we were the only two people on the island. He smiled –no, it wasn't a smile, but a smirk. His eyes lit up as he pulled the hood down, showing a head filled with luscious brown locks. 

Finally being able to see who he was, was like a sigh of relief. Comfort flooding through my body as we stared at each other, faces glowing in the light of the fire. But when he took a step forwards, I stepped back. 

The boy frowned as the music stopped unexpectedly. All the boys looked towards me as if they finally noticed my presence. I took another step back, panic now overtaking the comfort I once felt. Then another, and another, until I was sprinting into the woods with every ounce of energy I could muster up. 

I ran as fast as I could push my legs. Sweat rolled down my neck while my hair glued itself to my damp skin. Running through the woods, unknowingly missing every rock on the familiar path. But as I glanced back, I tripped. My body rocketed into the cold ground, dirt spraying everywhere. 

I awoke, gasping for breath as my chest ached. Whipping my head around my room, I realized that I was in my bed, and not in a forest. Trying to collect my thoughts, I pushed my back against my headboard and pulled my knees up to my chest. 

I had seen the boy, but why did I run. He didn't seem threatening, and he didn't seem at all dangerous. So why couldn't my mind calm down, stop the fear that was causing my hands to shake and my heart to race? 

That's when I remembered Kiara and the football game that I promised to go to. Running my hands over my face, I pulled myself out of my warm bed and towards my closet as my phone rang. 

"Hello?" I answered while searching through my clothes. 

"Yo!" Kiara called, "I'll be there in five, so get ready fast,"

"Weren't you supposed to call me like half an hour ago, or something?" I asked, trying to pry the boy out of my mind for, at least, five minutes. 

"Yeah, about that, I might've forgotten," She answered with a small chuckle as I pulled out a pair of jeans. "But, the good thing is that you got a longer nap, right?"

"Yeah, you're right," I lied as I grabbed a brown crewneck sweater and threw it onto my bed. "I'll see you here, the front doors open," I told her before she hung up. 

Quickly throwing on my clothes, I cleaned up my makeup, re-brushed my teeth and hair, before grabbing my purse. "AYO! Anyone here?" Kiara yelled from the front door as she closed it behind her. 

"Ready," I replied as she rolled her eyes. 

"I still have no clue how you manage to get ready in five minutes and still look good," She confessed as she leaned against the kitchen island. "And have this pretty sick place,"

"It's-" I began. 

"You parents, I know," She grinned as she moved away from the kitchen and towards the coat rack. "Sometimes I wish I was an orphan if it meant my parents left me this sick place," I chuckled to myself before pushing her out of the door, coat and bag in hand. 

I never really knew my parents, seeing as they gave me up when I was just a baby. Honestly, I don't remember much of my childhood, just a few odd moments of switching from foster care to foster care, and a few attempts of running away. 

When I was fifteen, social services alerted me and told me about the flat that my parents left in my possession. As long as the neighbours checked up with me on a daily, I would be able to stay here by myself. I never thought that a rule like that existed, but with the social service guy that was assigned to my case, who's clearly drunk all times of the day, it didn't matter. 

Never trust strangers that you don't know, to look after you. That was a big rule with foster care and the only rule I truly followed. And so, they kept their distance and so did I. I feel as if I've been running away all of my life, and I've gotten pretty good at it when needed. But so far, everything had been perfect and I knew that I needed to make these small things last as long as I possibly could. 

Soon enough, as the sky darkened and the football field glowed with stadium lights, we headed towards the bleachers and found a seat. "What's up, Bayshore High!" A teenage boy, who was dressed as a wolverine, yelled into the microphone, his mascot head placed on his hip. "If you may not know, t-shirts and other spirit wear are being sold at the concession stand next to the snack shack, so go head up over there," He called into the mic before one of the principles whispered something into his ear. 

Handing the microphone to her, she smiled brightly. "What is up Wolverines! Tomorrow is the last day to send in your tickets for the raffle Monday morning! You could win the surprise prize if your number is called! Now, without further ado, your Bayshore Wolverines!" 

The crowd erupted in cheers as the football team ran through the opening off to the side of the field, all of them jumping and yelling loudly. The crowd went wild as the football captain, Blake Norris, ran onto the field waving his helmet around in the air. 

Off to the side, the ref blew the whistle and the cheers began to die down as both teams formed into a huddle.