What Lies Beyond The Gravel Road

Part 1

“Poppy, are you coming with us tonight?” Zoey asked me, smirking. She probably already knew my answer; no. Going out with my friends made me anxious, and I didn’t want any chance of having a panic attack. I  didn’t quite know what the plans were for tonight, but considering it was the end of the long school week, something good had to be planned.

“Oh, I don’t know,” I shrugged, carrying my lunch tray to the table Zoey, me and a few of our friends sat at. “What are you guys even planning?”

“We’re going down Helm’s Cemetery Road!” She said as we sat down.

“Isn’t that not considered a real road anymore? And isn’t that near that huge cemetery?”

“Well, yeah, but it’ll be so scary! It’s been said that anyone who’s gone down that road has never come out alive to tell about it. It’s a total mystery!”

“Oh, I don’t know,” I spoke softly shoving a spoonful of potato salad into my mouth.

“C’mon Poppy, you’re the only one in our group of friends that doesn’t go out with us on Friday nights, it’s so much fun!” Zoey said grabbing my right arm. I could feel my palms getting sweaty and my chest start to tighten. “I know how you get, but you just need to loosen up and live a little! This is our senior year, you can’t live it curled up in your room every weekend, can you?”

“Yeah,” Zoey’s boyfriend, Rylan, slammed his tray on the table next to ours.  “You have to come!” His very large figure sat down next to Zoey, followed by two more of our friends, Kenneth and Bria. I felt surrounded.

“I have some stuff I have to get done tonight,” I lied biting the inside of my lip.

“BS,” Kenneth said before dipping his pizza into a puddle of ranch dressing and shoving it into his mouth. My face got really hot, and I felt trapped. Finally, my boyfriend Logan came to my rescue, sitting by my side giving me a sense of comfort. He put his arm behind my back, and began to rub up and down with his hand.

“What are you guys pestering her about today?” He said only half-joking.

“She won’t come down Helm’s Cemetery Road with us,” Kenneth explained. “She hasn’t come out with us at all this whole year.” Logan's dark green eyes looked at me sincerely.

“You should come, babe,” Logan said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun.” He smiled his crooked smile. 

“And terrifying,” Bria added in. I swallowed, looking at all the hopeful faces around me.

“Fine,” I said, feeling peer pressured into my answer. After everyone at our table had celebrated together, Logan leaned into my ear.

“You’ll be okay, I promise,” he whispered. Something about his voice made me feel a little better, but I still felt like I could be sick. I half smiled, and he kissed me on the forehead. I sat the rest of the lunch period quiet, not touching my food.

                                                                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

        

        Ever since I had started experiencing panic attacks in my junior year of high school, I became disengaged from the world. I no longer was the life at the party, I didn’t give witty answers to questions in class and I didn’t go out on Friday nights with my friends. The only person who made me feel comfortable and secure was Logan. He was always right by my side or on the other end of the phone line when I needed him most. The thought of going to this abandoned road made me feel nervous and nauseous, but if I didn’t go I would never hear the end of it from my friends.

After the last bell of the school day rung I went to my locker where Zoey was waiting for me. I usually gave her a ride home, since her parents were super strict and took her car away a few months back for sneaking out. “How was health?” She asked me as I opened my locker to put my textbooks in.

“I watched a live childbirth,” I told her.

“Nasty.”

“I know,” I smirked. To my right, Logan came walking up to me.

“Hey, me and a few of the guys are going to get lunch, I’ll come over to your house afterwards, I'll bring you something” He said. I nodded.

“Alright, sounds good, I’ll see you later." I gave him a kiss before he walked away. I reached for my purse, grabbing my keys out. “You ready?” I asked Zoey. We walked outside into the fresh November air. I drove Zoey home and we sat in her driveway for a while before I headed home.

“I think we’re all meeting at Rylan’s house tonight before we leave,” She told me. I knew she could tell how tense I had become. “It’ll be fun Poppy, don’t worry.”

“I know,” I said. “It’s just-”

“I know, but you’re going to be surrounded by four of your best friends and your boyfriend, and we all love and care about you. We’re not going to let you have a panic attack, I promise.” I started to feel a little better. Zoey reached over the middle console and gave me a hug.

“This is why we are best friends, thank you,” I said, and I truly meant it. She reached for her backpack and her purse that were at her feet and opened the car door.

“I’ll see you at eight!” She said before slamming the door shut, and walking up the steps to her front door.

"Unlikely," I spoke to myself as I pulled out of her driveway.