Look at Me

Terry Fichly knew she wasn’t crazy. She was mega hyper, had an obsession with skittles, never straightened her hair, and had a mouth full of metal, but she was not CRAZY.
Unlike certain people, she thought angrily, but without any real malice. She was driving her boyfriend Kevin’s beat up new(ish) car to the woods. Not any specific woods mind you! Oh no, any old
woods\secluded area would do. The conservation land around a half a mile away was probably their best bet. It was “their” and not her because this was in no way even remotely her idea. This was all because of Paige, her boyfriend, and the hot dude from the street corner. She shouldn’t have agreed to go along with it….
Hayden was probably a missing person now. Whoopdi- freakin-do. And God knew why him and the other guy wanted to just randomly go hang out in the woods. Images of body part found in freezers came to mind. Terry didn’t know either of them and they both had a….an almost animalistic look about them. But she was doing this for Paige really, not them. And she would do anything for her friend.
Especially when she promised her answers. Terry wasn’t going to lie, that was what got her to go along with their retarded stunt. Paige had said if she did, EVERYTHING would make sense. And it was about time something did.
Unfortunately, the boys were being pretty tight lipped about the whole thing. They were just sitting in the back seat staring strait ahead.
When Terry asked Paige she said firmly, “You really have to see for it for yourself. “
Freezers and body parts for sure.

***

Terry pulled of onto an almost hidden road. Then she made her way toward a clearing where a abandoned building and an observation tower sat. The land was still protected, but the conservation program had lost a lot of it’s funding during the recession and the everything looked a lot like a ghost town.
It was as good a place as any, but when they finally came to a stop Paige was reluctant to get out. The sun was just beginning to dip in the horizon and the evening air raised goose bumps on her skin. Even though she’d begged Terry to bring them there, she almost wanted turn to her friend and ask her to go back.
If it had just been Hayden, Terry, and her everything would be fine. But the new boy, who said his name was Gabriel, worried her. She knew nothing about him except that he might be the same thing Hayden was. And while she trusted Hayden implicitly, she did not trust him.
He was feverishly intense when he’d spoken about the orphanage and he had the imbalanced look of a drug addict. Maybe he was just so completely exited to have found someone who was the same.
Maybe.
But what if he was a monster? What if he hurt either of the two people who mattered the most in her life? Would it be her fault because she’d convinced Terry to drive them?
“Do you girls want to just wait in the car?” Hayden asked as if he could sense her thoughts.
Terry wasn’t having any of it though. She twisted around in her seat and said, “Oh yeah, because I drove all the way out into the middle of freakin nowhere, because I ‘want to wait in the car.’ ”
“I get the feeling she’s being sarcastic,” Gabriel said surprising them all.
Terry frowned at him and said, “No shit Sherlock.”

***

Gabriel had decided the instant he met her that he did NOT like Terry Finchly. She was a loud mouthed and intensely annoying person who obviously just wanted a freak show. She kept rambling and asking questions until her friend, Paige, managed to shut her up. [That took serious talent]
Well when she did see, the little twit would probably run off screaming and leave them in the middle of nowhere. But the walk will be worth the look on her face, Gabe thought sagely as he got out of the car.
***

Hayden took a deep breath of the cool air as he looked around. They were alone. Nothing moved or broke the stillness except for birds and beasts of the forest. Part of him knew it was foolish to come out in the middle of nowhere like this. The police probably thought he’d had some type of breakdown and ran away so he wouldn’t have to go to an orphanage.
But of course, he’d done it because he needed proof. Someone couldn’t just walk up to him and claim they’d lived the nightmare he had. Gabriel HAD to prove it.
Neither of them had actually admitted to anything yet. They’d just stood on the sidewalk sizing each other up. Half hoping and half fearing they were not so alone in the world.
Turning to Gabriel, he said, “Well?”
Gabriel nodded and proceeded to start to pull his shirt over his head.
Paige looked confused and Terry turned an amazing bright shade of pink, but of course Hayden knew shifting was a lot easier when you where naked. Clothing didn’t just disappear, and it was a little hard to take off when you lacked opposable thumbs.