The Depths Of Fear

Chapter VI

"So why don't you believe in the supernatural," Elena asked, referring to her question earlier that day. Colin was trying to avoid the subject. He didn't like talking about the story behind his judgment about the paranormal.

Elena stops causing Colin to do the same," you can tell me anything." Her eyes are full of sincerity. She didn't like Colin hid something from her, she wanted him to be able to tell her anything.

He lets out a light sigh and begins to walk and tell the secret he kept to himself for so long, "before I moved to Belford, my brother and I lived in North Carolina. Our family was at a lake one day. I had just learned how to swim, and I thought I was unstoppable. Russ was supposed to be watching me, but instead, he was hitting on some older girls.

"I wasn't supposed to swim out so far because I was still learning to tread water. But like any young kid, I swam out further. Another boy, my age, swam out with me. His name was Carl, and he was a bit on the chubby side. Everything was going great we were playing Marco Polo. It was my turn, and I called out Marco, and he replied back Polo!" Colin mimicked what he and the boy would have sounded like when they were younger.

"I called out Marco once more, and he didn't call back. I opened my eyes to see Carl was gone. I panicked and dove under the water to see if I could find him. The water was so murky and sandy it looked green when the light rays shined through it. I was half relieved when I saw him. He was drowning. I grabbed hold of him and began trying to swim us both to the top. I pulled and pulled, but no matter how hard I tried we couldn't break the surface. And that's when I saw It."

"What do you mean It," Elena asked intrigued. When he had spoken the way he did, it sent chills down her spine and left a queasy feeling in her stomach.

"When I saw this creature holding on to his leg. It was the scariest thing I had ever seen. I freaked out and began tugging on Carl harder. I was running out of oxygen, and I swam back to the surface thinking I would be quick about it. But when I went back down there he was gone."

Colin had grown very quiet after finishing the story. Too embarrassed he focused on the ground trying to ignore the gawking stare Elena was giving him.

"But I don't understand," Elena said, breaking the awkward silence. This made Colin's gaze rise to hers.

"Shouldn't that make you believe in the supernatural," she questioned, trying to be gentle with the subject seeing as he was still sensitive about the matter.

He looks back down at the soil, "No because if that thing was there. It would mean I couldn't have saved him even if I was capable of doing so; it would mean that his death has been just something's lunch."

Colin looks up when Elena doesn't respond and sees she has disappeared. He looks around the forest. There was no sight of her or Tommy.

"Elena, Tommy," he shouts waiting for a scream or anything. The woods had turned mute, and the sun was setting, casting a bold blue blanket across the sky. Colin was confused by the sudden change in daylight and looks at his phone for the time.

2:50 p.m.

The white numbers glowed on his screen," what the hell," he mutters. He almost attempts to call Elena when he sees he has no service.

"Colin," Elena screams out," help!"

Colin darts off in the direction of which Elena's cries echoed. Elena's pleas for help bounce throughout the woods. He didn't want to let her down--he wouldn't. She mattered to him, and he never had the courage to tell her. He pushes forward trying to run faster in his boots. The trees were bunched tightly together as he bobbed and weaved through them getting cut by sticking out branches and bushes of thorns jabbing into his arms leaving a stinging pain behind in their place. The trees begin to space out more making it easier to run through the forest. He reaches a clearing and slowly comes to a halt. In front of him was the reason they had gotten into this horrible trip.