My Living Nightmare

I was standing alone at a seemingly abandoned campsite. The wind was howling and I was freezing. The branches were swaying and the fire crackling.

The fire went out unexpectedly and suddenly there was only silence…

“Hello?” I called out nervously.

How did I get here? And where was here for that matter?

I heard twigs snapping in a distance.

Snap, snap, crack!

“Hello? Who’s there?” I stuttered, folding my arms to my chest. I was chilled to the bone. “Hello? Where am I?”

There was no answer, but the sound of twigs being trampled on could still be heard, getting nearer and nearer.

Snap, snap and crack!

An icy breeze ran down my spine. I froze. I could feel my chest tightening.

I was beyond terrified. I could handle bipolar fiancés and hormonal teenage boys, angry best friends and even oddly perky soon-to-be sister-in-laws, but a haunted encampment was another thing entirely.

Snap, snap, crack!

The pale moonlight which had been shedding light on the site ever since the fire had mysteriously gone out disappeared, leaving me in total darkness.

The snapping stopped abruptly.

The smell of gentle lavender reached my nose, confusing me further. I hugged the flimsy material of my purple cami tightly, shivering uncontrollably.

“Alexandria…”

The voice was raspy, old, and, above all, deadly.

A shadowed creature appeared in front of the campsite, just in sight range. It moved towards me, not walking, but gliding. The silhouetted figure slid forward, and then, as fast as lightning, it stood in front of me.

I stared at where its face should have been and shrieked, horrified.

It raised its arms, lifting the flowing pitch black robe around him and-

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!” I screamed, waking up drenched in a cold sweat and gasping.

It took me a moment to get rid of the disorientation in my mind. Still breathing heavily I carefully pulled the covers back over my head. I had this thing about nightmares; once I got scared I would always hide under the blankets. You know, if you can’t see them, they’re not there.

There was a soft but firm tapping on my door.

The first thought that crossed my mind was that the silhouetted figure had somehow followed me. Then logical thinking kicked in.

I hit back the covers and, after a second of hesitation, I leant over and turned on the bedside lamp.

“Alex? Are you okay in there?”

I looked over at my alarm clock. 03:07 am.

“Tory?” I said whispered as I got out of bed and opened the bedroom door. “What are you doing up so late?”

She stood bleary eyed and pajama-clad looking slightly worried.

“Well, I was asleep, and having quite a nice dream about talking dolphins and pink turtles dressed in tutus, when someone screamed loud enough to wake up the entire neighborhood,” she whispered back.

I smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry ‘bout that; had a nightmare.”

“’S alright… Can I come in? I won’t be able to fall asleep immediately now,” she murmured, yawning lightly.

“Yeah, sure,” I said, moving aside for her to pass.

“So spill! What’s the deal with you and Taylor?” I asked, sitting crossed-legged on my bed, a pillow resting on my knees.

Tory paled, all the blood leaving her face.

“W-w-what?” she stuttered.

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell the guys,” I said gently.

“There’s nothing going on between us, nothing at all. Wow, someone had too much ice-cream tonight,” she chuckled nervously, babbling a little.

I wasn’t buying it.

“Tory, there’s no point denying it. This is me you’re talking to, and I’ll get it out of you one way or the other,” I said, trying to coax her into telling me.

She heaved out a heavy sigh.

“Okay, fine… Taylor and I are sort of going out.”

“Sort of?”

“We…we had a huge argument and he said maybe we should take a break from each other,” she said looking down-cast.

“Why?” I asked. I had kicked Taylor’s butt once, and I had no problem doing it again. “I mean, what was the fight about?”

“He wanted to come out into the open with us being together, but I said no. I mean, he’s sixteen, he’s Sean’s friend, and he’s got a history of being freaking womanizer!” Didn’t I know it... “Do you think Jamie would approve of him as boyfriend material? Let alone Sean,” she said, twisting a strand of her hair around her finger.

I exhaled noisily.

“I understand Tory, I really do, but you have to see it from his perspective. He’s male, remember that, and they all have this instinct, this impulse, to show off their girlfriends, and he can’t do that with you. I guess he feels like you’re ashamed of him,” I advised.

You’ve been reading too much romance novels.

“But I’m not! It’s the opposite! I’m trying to save him from having a very gruesome and miserable death,” she argued.

“I know, but again, you have to remember he’s male and the only thing bigger than his ego is his pride.”

“Men…” she trailed off.

“Men,” I agreed.

“So what do I do?” she asked after a while.

“That’s up to you, I can’t tell you how to live your life, but I can suggest that you smack him a couple of times, then sit him down and explain it to him. And if he doesn’t listen, start smacking him again, and only stop when he gives you his full attention… Or you break something,” I grinned.

She chortled quietly, then let loose one huge yawn.

“Time to get some much needed beauty sleep,” she said, starting to get up.
I grabbed her by the arm.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“Bed,” she answered, looking confused.

“Uh-uh, you’re not going anywhere. You’re part of the reason I woke up screaming my head off; you’re not leaving me alone now. Grab a pillow and get comfortable,” I said, already burying my head under my covers.