Save Me

“Where is Natah?” It was a familiar voice, but I couldn't think of who the person was. It was a scratchy, deep voice. It was so unique, but I couldn't put a face to him. I couldn't talk. I was too scared to answer. I was too scared to do anything. I couldn't look at him, or he will obviously kill me.

“I don't know.” I tried to say those 3 small words with as much ease as I could, but it sounded like I was horrified, which I was. The person holding me didn't answer, but I felt his eyes on me. He started to shake. He whispered something, that I understood. “She isn't dead. She just ran away.” After a while, he moved away. I turned around, seeing no one there. “Where did you go?” No answer. I slowly got up from the mushy ground, walking away from the pond.

I stumbled as I walked.  My head was spinning with a million and one thoughts. I was cold and my vision was becoming blurry. There were wet drops on my cheek, and I thought it was raining again. That was until I heard myself sniffling. I was crying. I couldn't stop. I just wanted to get back to my friends. To find Natah. I need to find her. I need to find out who that man was. 

My feet were starting to feel numb. The feeling spread to my legs. I wanted to collapse on the ground and just lay there. I kept trudging along, wondering when I would come across someone. I wanted to call out, but something kept me from it. 

The wind started to pick up. It whipped my hair all over and creeped along my skin, it felt as though they were fingers. It sent chills up my spine. The wind was blowing the snow from the trees at me. I wrapped my arms around my body. I was so cold. As if knowing that, the wind became more fierce. Taunting me. I grew angry. I wanted it to stop. The wind howled, sort of laughing at me.

I stopped dead in my tracks and screamed at the top of my lungs, "STOP!". As if understanding, the wind abruptly ended. I stood there just breathing, calming myself down. To my left I heard the sound of a twig snapping. I didn't move.

In the moonlight i recognized the face instantly as it stepped from the shadows. I threw myself into Zach, wrapping my arms around him and burying my head into the crook of his neck. His arms slid around my waist. His embraced warmed me. 

"Are you alright? I was so worried about you. You're freezing." Zach put his jacket over my shoulders and started leading me back the way he came from. "What happened?" He looked down at me. I couldn't speak. I didn't even know what to say if I could. "Was that you that yelled? It was in another language?" 

I ignored every word he said.  "Where's Natah?" The words came from my mouth, but it didn't feel like I said it. 

His eyes held so much sympathy and concern. "We haven't found her yet. We were hoping that you possibly had." I started to cry again. "Oh Krista. It's okay, we're gonna find her." He held me in his arms tightly. I could stay here forever. My eyes started to burn and there was a sharp pain in my head. I fell unconscious. 

"You're a fool little one." 

"G-get away from me."

"You can run and hide all you want, but in the end I'll always find you," the menacing voice growled. 

"No," The child's voice quivered. "I can get rid of you. I know it." 

The woman laughed. "I'm always going to be here. NOTHING will ever get rid of me." 

"You're dead. I'm alive. I'm stronger than you. The light will keep me safe. As long as I'm in the light I'll be safe..." The voice faded out.

It should have been Alexander's voice. I've seen this before. I tried to grasp onto this nightmare. I couldn't. I was floating into the light. I needed to hear the voice again. I could almost place it but then again I was far from it. The white light grew stronger. It felt as thought it burned. 

"The light will keep you safe...."

I woke up and my skin was on burning. "It was Natah." 

"Krista? What was Natah? You're burning up." Zach's voice filled my ear. I opened my eyes and saw Zach. I tried sitting up but my body ached. Raine put a cold, wet wash cloth on my forehead. It cooled me down some. The room looked bright and I realized it was coming from outside. 

"It's morning already?" I asked feeling somewhat better. 

"Actually you missed morning. It's three o'clock already," Raine said. Three o'clock!? I couldn't believe I slept that long. I realized two people were missing, actually three. 

"Where's Cameron and Oli? Did you guys find Nat?" I asked sitting up hopeful. Neither of them looked at me. I already knew the answer. 

"They went out to look for her again but no luck. They're on their way back," Zach ran his hand through my hair. I wanted to cry again. Not because I was sad and worried but because I was angry. How could Nat be so careless? Why the hell would she just runaway like that? My pulse raged. My head was spinning. I felt like losing it. 

"I want to go home," I looked at the both of them. Zach started shaking his head. "Now."

~~~

I sat in front of my window staring out into the darkness. I didn't know what time it was, but I know I've been sitting here for hours. 

Nat still hasn't come home. I tore my gaze away from the window to check the time. The little red glowing letters read 1:06 a.m. I looked back out the window. I noticed the street light directly in front of my house was out. I looked down the street all the others were on. Weird...

I heard footsteps down the hall. Probably my mother's. Hopefully she wouldn't come in my room to check on me. 

I thought back to when I came home. My mother was a little suspicious when I only came home. I told her Nat was staying at Raine's house another night to work on a school project. It was a lie, but she didn't suspect anything. Zach ended up staying with me a few hours. Hardly any words were said between us, but I enjoyed the silence and being held in his arms. 

A sudden movement across the street caught my eye. It looked like a shadow of a person. I wrapped my blanket closer around my shoulders and focused in on the shadow. Its to dark to tell whether it's an actual person or not. I didn't want to find out the answer so I got up to close my curtains, but when I did the shadow appeared closer and that's when I saw them. 

Gold beady eyes staring directly at me. They scared me. They didn't seem human. My breath caught in my throat and I wanted to scream. Fear trembled through my body. 

I backed away from the window. I started calming down just a bit, until I backed into something. I turned around definitely not expecting to see what I saw. 

I was face to face with the gold eyed shadow.