Let's Keep My Brain From Exploding, Shall We?

Run Like Hell

"Maria?" I call, pushing open the front door, arms full of plastic grocery bags. I walk to the kitchen. "Hey, can you get the rest of the groceries? They're in the bike bask--"

The bags in my arms tumble to the ground and I slap a hand to my mouth, horrified. The kitchen is covered in blood, dark red, wet, blood. The stench is unbearable and I have no idea how I missed it. I spot Maria's head on the window sill, like a prize. Her eyes are wide in frozen terror.

"Welcome home, little flower!" A familiar voice says from behind me. Arms casually deal over my shoulders, like he had just walked up to me at the library or something. "How do you like my gift? Miss Maria makes wonderful decoration, don't you think?"

I rip his arms off me and leap back, turning to face him, but slipping on the blood and falling. Then I scramble backwards, terrified by the amused glint in his beautiful green eyes.

"W-what..." I stammer. He smirks playfully. There's sickly warm blood coating my hands and soaking into my jeans. An urge rises up in me, the urge to run from this unreal situation. As if feeling my urge, his smirk turns into a full blown smile.

"Go ahead and run, little flower~." He purrs, taking a few steps forwards. My hands slip against the floor as I try to get purchase to get away. "You know you want to~!"

Finally my feet are under me and I spring up, turning and rushing to the back door. I wrestle with the lock and knob while his quiet chuckling follows me. Finally the door seems to spring open and my feet fly down the stairs and to my bike, and then I'm flinging the groceries out of the basket and pedaling as fast as I can down the street. But I can still hear his chuckling, which is turning into crazed laughter, still see Maria, still feel the blood, still smell the carnage.

My surroundings become dark and clouded but his laughing become louder, closer. I'm terrified out of my wits and it's all I can do to keep pedalling. I'm in shock and it feels like I can feel his eyes boring into my back and his breath knocking against my neck and all the sudden this horrid, chaotic beeping joins his laughter. And the smell and sounds and memories are just too much and I can barely breath, barely move my legs.

"Little flower~ Oh little flower!" He's calling and then he crackles and it's terrible. "You know you can't outrun me, right, little flower? I'll just keep following until I trap you!"

He's on me now, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me off my bike and I kick and try to push him off. Open my mouth to scream, to cry for help.

"Kaleb!" Someone shouts. "Goddammit, Kaleb, wake up!"