The Trail

I was late to school again and missed the bus, which meant only one thing. I had to walk. It was about a fifteen minute walk from my house to school. I wasn't too excited, but only because it was cold and windy. I put my coat and shoes on, making my way out the door, locking it behind me. While I was walking, I could feel the cold breeze and the smell of wet grass. Lucky for me, there wasn't much road around the path I took to get to school, just trees and a dirt trail. I felt safe knowing no cars could accidentally hit me.

As I was walking, I couldn't help but feel watched. I suddenly felt goosebumps down my entire body and my stomach was uneasy. I looked around the trees. there was no one and nothing. I thought to myself, saying I was just overthinking things. I was taking deep breaths as I walked the trail, glancing into the trees with every step. I turned my head to the side, noticing a bush. it was bigger than the ones around it and appeared to be moving, i took another step. then tripping on a tree branch and falling to the ground, scraping my knee and elbow. I looked up to the same bush I noticed before, but it isn't moving anymore. Instead, the bush a couple feet ahead to it was moving, like it was following where I was walking. Maybe it was an animal, startled by me. I thought to myself. I got up, brushing my clothes off and looking at my scrapes. I then heard rustling from the bushes. Looking back up, There was a tall, slender looking man with big beady eyes, staring directly at me. His body was slouched over and his clothes were torn. My heart started pounding in my chest, I then took off running back on the trail. All I knew was I needed to get the hell outta there.

I looked behind me to see if he could have been following me. He was walking at a slow pace, but when he noticed me checking if he was there, he started running. I screamed as I ran, turning my head back to the trail. I yelled for help, hearing his footsteps get louder and stronger behind me. I could feel his arms trying to reach and grab me, his long fingernails scratching my back as he tried to grab hold of my ponytail. I cried and screamed for what felt like eternity. Suddenly, he grabbed hold of my hair, pulling me backwards as I fell. the hard trail of sticks and leaves scraped against my skin, his grip on my hair tightened, pulling me into the woods. Just when I thought all hope was lost, a beam of light from the sun shined through the trees, illuminating an object on the ground nearby. With my last bit of energy, I reached for it, grabbing hold of a long shard of broken glass, my hands were shaking uncontrollably. I swung back and slashed into his ankles, stabbing him over and over again. screaming and crying. His grip on my hair loosened as he groaned. I scrambled to my feet and bolted through the trees, back onto the trail. not daring to look back this time. I got to the end, sighing deeply and collapsing to the ground, practically begging for air. What just happened? leaving the trail, I couldn't shake the feeling that he was still watching me, waiting for another chance.