And I'm Left Alone

Chapter One

"Xanera?" A voice whispered from deep within the shadows. It was dark, but the moon partially lit up the vacant alleyway. What was I doing here? Where is here?

"Wh- who's there?" I let out in a small, shaky voice. The wind whipped around my poorly covered skin, and sent chills rolling down my spine and into the bottoms of my feet. It was freezing out here, and I tried looking for shelter from this hectic weather, but I couldn't seem to move.

"Xanera..." It called out again, the voice speaking ever so slightly. It was a familiar voice that made my heart pound loudly in my chest.

"Mom...? Mom is that you?" I choked out. "Mom!?" I called out louder, and more desperate than ever. Was it really her?

"Xanera... Xanera... Xanera..." It came from all around me. The voices were harsh and more evil than before, the voices didn't sound like my mother anymore, they sounded vicious and mischievous. Dark shadows moved around me, quickly, clawing at my feet and my body, mocking my pain.

"Stop! Leave me alone!" I yelled, tears rolling down my face by now. I ran down the long alleyway, as fast as my legs could take me, turning corners, but it never seemed to end.

The shadows were gaining on me and right as I felt one claw into my shoulder, "Xanera!" I gasped as I shot up in the uncomfortable, airport seat. I was breathing quickly, and my heart was beating fast. Everything around me was blurry, and unfocused, so I rubbed my eyes which were slightly damp. I calmed myself down before I focused on my surroundings. My ears listened to the lady on the intercom, announcing that the flight to Portland, Maine was accepting passengers now. I turned to my Aunt to see her worried face.

"Xanera, your plane is boarding now," my Aunt Eve said, and I looked over at flight A362 and the long line of passengers eagerly waiting to board, "are you okay, dear? You look a bit shaken." She said, furrowing her eyebrows and gently placing a hand on my shoulder. I immediately flinched away, but regretted it the moment it happened, even though I knew I did it on accident. Aunt Eve has always done nothing but help.

"I'm fine." I quietly said, and gave a sad smile, but truthfully I wasn't. Not in the slightest bit. I was scared, and broken. My eyes felt like they were fighting to stay open, and my heart ached.

I thought of the painful feeling deep within my gut that made me feel like I was about to throw up. I reached into my back pack which was next to my feet and took a sip from my raspberry tea. Tea always helped calm my nerves a bit.

My mother had passed away about four months ago, and my Aunt had finally figured out who I was going to live with until I turned eighteen and could handle things on my own. I was an only child, and my father had passed away when I was young, so I don't remember much about him. All I knew is that he was a good man, and wanted nothing but to help people. He left me with a necklace that I wore everyday. It had a symbol on it that I still didn't know the meaning of. The thought of my mother brought tears to my eyes but I quickly wiped them away. I've done enough crying over the past few months.

A headache struck me instantly when I stood up. I felt dizzy, and fatigued. I hadn't slept right since the accident, and I was hoping to get at least an hour or two of sleep on the plane.

My Aunt wasn't coming with me, but I was meeting my closest cousin in Maine, who offered for me to stay with him until I got on my feet, which I was grateful for. I was extremely tired of with living with two 3 year old boys, and one 2 year old girl even though I loved them dearly. It worried me more for Deacon's safety. Deacon was my adorable nine month old German Shepard, who had already became my best friend - he was my baby. I thought about how he would take his first plane ride. He was a tough pup, but it still worried me.

I gave my aunt a tight hug, and a quick kiss to her cheek. "Thank you for everything Aunt Eve, it means a lot, and I'm very grateful." Her eyes started to water and I gave her the tightest hug I could with my tired body. She didn't have to say anything for me to know what she was thinking, I walked into the line and waved at her before I scanned my ticket.
I boarded the plane and found my seat next to an old couple. I shoved my carry on suitcase into the overhead compartment. They old couple looked nice so I tried to smile as best as I could. "Excuse me," I said as I passed them to get to my seat, "thank you." The elderly woman nodded once with a grand smile which made my smile grow a little bigger. Her husband - I suppose that's who he was due to the fact that they were holding hands - gently kissed her on the forehead and proceeded to get some sleep by setting a head rest behind him.

I've always loved getting the seat next to the window, because of the fascinating view. Even though my eyes burned and I could barely hold my head up, I gazed hard and long though the small window. It was amazing to have a view that's above the clouds. It was about seven o'clock, so the sun was setting here in Utah.

As I opened my phone and turned airplane mode on, I could feel myself falling back asleep. I rested my head back, and tried to think about the positive side of what has happened in the past six months of my life, but I couldn't seem to do it. Somewhere in between my thoughts, the plane took off, and my mind drifted more and more into a deep sleep.