Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
- Lilly-Mae's point of view -
A thin blanket of morning dawn hung over the fields off Mr. Joseph's farm. That spiteful rooster that caused me to wake from my sleep in the most brutal manner, was once again singing whatever hell song he sang every morning. Singing is too polite, rather screaming; although the sun wasn't supposed to come up for another hour.
My bare feet ran through the damp grass of a large field while the cold morning air danced between my locks of dark brown hair, causing goosebumps to cover my entire body. About ten minutes ago Thomas had sent me a text asking me to meet him in the barn of the farmer, also known as Thom's dad. His father knew we spent time together at the barn, which he didn't like, but we did it anyway. I had lost count of the amount of times he had caught us and I had to run home so quickly that my own feet had trouble following.
It was an emergency, Thom said, so I was in a hurry. So much so that I left the house without shoes, still in my pajamas. His message sounded pretty serious, only another reason for me to be more curious than a child on Christmas morning.
When the barn finally appeared on the horizon, I could feel my stomach do a backflip, filling itself with butterflies as their wings fluttered. The feeling caused my cheeks to burn, leaving them completely red behind.
What Thom and I had was unique. We had known each other for the longest time. We had practically grown up together, which made the situation only more complicated.
'He's like a brother to you.'
That was the sentence I forced myself to believe, although the fact that I obligated myself to not have feelings for him spoke for itself.
Out of breath, I finally arrived at the typical red barn. Carefully crawling through one of the planks that had come loose months ago during a wild storm to enter. That was our only way in, because his dad had locked the front door with double chains in an attempt to keep us out.
"Thom?" I asked softly, expecting a response. Moonlight shone through the many cracks in the wood, creating just enough light for me to be able to see. Except for some old boxes, a broken-down tractor that had been there for as long as I could remember, and some hay was there nothing special to see.
"Thomas?" sounded my voice again, louder this time. Once again, no answer. An annoyed sigh escaped from in-between my lips. That wasn't the first time he would text me, asking me to meet, only for him to hide and scare me. Once Thom hadn't even shown up, he pranked me, while he was still in his cozy bed at home, probably laughing at me for falling for his so-called prank.
"Dammit Thomas, you're twenty-five, cut the crap," I snapped and decided to take a seat on the hay-covered floor, leaning against the tractor. To be fair, I was not the sportiest person, and running all that way got me exhausted. Apart from my heavy breathing, was there no other sound to be heard. No cars driving past, not a single cricket in the tall grass. Even that spiteful rooster had gone quiet. That was when I realized the weird atmosphere around me. It was cold—but not just the frisky type. A chill that creates tiny clouds when you exhale. It left your nails blue. At that same time, I had trouble breathing, as the only air filling my lungs was the desert type. Black spots appeared in front of my eyes, obstructing my vision. It consumed me and dragged me into a fear I had never felt before.
