Love Like This

3

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Jane tossed her duffle bag onto on the back seat of her car, making she that her new can of bug spray was tucked safely inside.

"Have fun, sweetheart," her mother had told her before she left the house, placing a kiss on her cheek. "Tell Sherry and John I said hello!"

Jane had felt bad about lying to her mom, telling her she was sleeping over at Kai's house, but there was no way she'd allow her go camping with a boy she barely even knows. But as soon as she pulls out of the driveway and cruises down the street with music blasting, she forgets to feel guilty.

By the time the high schooler arrives at Hollow Falls, the sun is setting behind the hundreds of trees lining the horizon. Parking right next to Hunter's dented truck, Jane slings her bag on her shoulder and walks along the dirt trail in search of a certain brown haired boy with sparkling brown eyes.

Nearing the third camp site, she spots a green tent overlooking a fire pit with logs lined up around it like little benches. Jane stops, listening for a sign of life. Honestly, she didn't think of asking him for his phone number; Hunter told her in school to simply meet him here.

"Boo!" a deep-voiced person yells, grabbing her by the shoulders. Jane lets out an ugly scream, squirming away from the stranger and turning around to face him with her car key aimed as a weapon.

Quickly, she realizes that it's just plain old Hunter goofing around like a typical idiot. He laughs at her as she punches his shoulder. "That's not funny," she fumes, shoving him away from her.

"Clearly, it is," he chuckles, coughing into his hand to control the giggles. Once he gains his composure, he leads her to the campsite. "So this will be our paradise for the night. I'll take your bag, and you can have a seat."

Raising an eyebrow, Jane hands over her duffle bag and takes a seat by the fire pit filled with logs. An owl hoots from afar, and the light breeze rustles the tree branches hanging above her. Aside from the fact that they are hunting for the most dangerous monster that (supposedly) ever existed, camping really isn't all that bad.

"Okay, so before you came, I decided that we needed to have some bait to lure Bigfoot to us," Hunter explains, "so I bought a pack of ribs from the grocery store to hang from one of those trees over there." He points away from the campsite to an arbitrary point in the woods.

"I'm not sure if that's crazy or genius," she says, glancing at the package of red meat in his hands, "but please don't make me help you; I'm a vegetarian."

Hunter decorates one of the trees farther down the dirt path as Jane decides to light a fire with a set of matches her new-found friend happened to bring. Soon, night falls upon the campers, and the pair sits around the fire to keep the mosquitos from biting their arms and ankles.

"I also brought some snacks," Hunter says, pulling out a bag of marshmallows, a box of graham crackers, and some bars of chocolate from a plastic grocery bag.

The friends begin to roast marshmallows and eat s'mores by the flickering light of the fire. Oddly enough, Jane finds herself enjoying this whole experience with Hunter. To her, it's not about finding Bigfoot, it's about creating a friendship she never expected to have.

It would also be nice to get that book safely into her possession again, too.

Jane yawns into her hand, rubbing her eyes. "I think I'm going to go to sleep."

"Goodnight, Jane. I'll wake you up if I spot anything."

She sleepily smiles, too tired to roll her eyes. "Alright, goodnight."

They wave at each other before Jane ducks into the tent. Changing into sweatpants and a t-shirt, she rolls out her sleeping bag and slips inside of it. She doesn't remember closing her eyes, but before she knows it, she's lost in dreamland.

Outside of the tent, Hunter cleans up the mess they made and checks to make sure that the bait is still hanging safely on the oak tree. Once he returns, he decides to leave the fire burning to attract the beast he that knows is wandering around out there. After adding more wood to the fire, Hunter retires to the tent and falls asleep the moment his head hits the pillow.

The open sky above the sleeping humans glistens as the twinkle of a million stars litters the blackness. In the distance, a branch snaps and fallen leaves crunch under the heavy weight of a creature. The wind whistles, and the trees groan under its pressure.

Jane wakes up with a start in the middle of the night. Not only is her heart racing, but she feels hot and sweaty all over. Obviously, she just dreamt up a nightmare, but she doesn't really remember what happened. Realizing that she's not in her comfy bed at home, Jane looks to her right and spots Hunter sleeping peacefully. His chest rises and falls evenly as he softly snores. Though Jane would never admit this aloud, she thinks he's kind of cute when he sleeps, almost vulnerable-looking.

She decides to head outside to cool down. Being careful not to wake up Hunter, she quietly slips on her sneakers and tip-toes outside with her phone in hand. The campfire is now just a pile of gray, dusty ashes, and the sky is covered with clouds. Jane walks down the dirt path in search of the bait tree, but she wasn't really sure which tree he picked. Surely, it can't be too deep in the woods.

But after searching every tree along the path, she decides that he must have chosen a tree in a more secluded area. Jane steps off the trail and searches a couple of trees before coming across a tree with blood stains on its branches. Looking closer, she notices that all of the raw meat is completely gone, and oddly enough, a pile of clothes is folded up on the ground.

What ate the meat and who left their clothes here?

In the distance, a branch snaps and fallen leaves crunch under the heavy weight of a creature. Jane whips around, freezing in place because she swears she just heard something moving behind her. Frightened, she quickly rummages through the pockets of the cargo pants, in search of a driver's license or some type of I.D. Her expectations fall flat; all Jane finds is an ornate brass key, a pair of glasses, a few crumpled-up gum wrappers, and a couple of brown hairs.

The crunching of leaves becomes louder and more defined. Jane looks over her shoulder, pointing her phone in the general that the sound originated from and hiding behind an oak tree. Goosebumps rise on her arms and legs as she waits to see who (or what) will emerge from the forest.

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