10 Years Later

I was walking through the woods alone trying to get back to the main road. “This is definitely going to be the last time I go out to the middle of the woods with Jake again. I am going to kill him at school tomorrow- “I said as I tripped and fell on something my phone flew out of my hand. Good thing it just landed beside me. I took it and turned the flashlight on to see what it was. I screamed as I saw the dead body we had come to look for. As I screamed, I fell back and rolled down the hill behind me I got up off the ground and brushed myself off I looked up to see something with glowing eyes-

~A While before~

I was writing because I was stressed, and I always write when I am stressed. It’s the night before school and I am starting my sophomore year. I got up and went downstairs to find my mom walking around looking for stuff. I stop on the stairs as she walks up to me “Hey sweetie” “hey mom have you seen my bag? It wasn’t in my room.” “Yeah, it’s in the kitchen so…. Have you thought about lacrosse-” “Mom” I say with a whiny tone “I know I know but come on honey it’s been two years since that fight with your brother and sense he left” “I know but I just don’t know about playing again that’s something me and him use to do together and it makes me mad when I think of him and-” she cuts me off “look I completely understand but if you do happen to change your mind I put your stuff in the living room you know all ready and everything.” I looked at her and laughed “okay I’ll think about it” I looked at what she’s wearing and realized she’s in her work clothes “get called in?” “Yeah, I have to go in, but I’ll see you tomorrow night okay and good luck at school okay” I say okay and love you she walks out the front door.

I was about to go upstairs when I heard something outback. I walked outside to see what it was as I walked towards the tree “BOO” “AHHH HOLY CRAP JAKE!!” My best friend since birth Jake falls hanging from the branch scaring me, he jumps down “come on let's go I heard my dad talking about something amazing on the radio apparently there is a dead body in the woods, and we need to find it lets go.” I look at him “a dead body now why in the hell would I follow you into the woods where there could possibly be a killer or a wolf or something that could KILL US just to find a body that is dead?” “BECAUSE…. It’s really awesome and why the hell not and because you love me and know I’m going with or without you and you’ll feel terrible if anything happens to me because you didn’t go”

I look at him “ Let me get my jacket “ I run into the living room where my jacket is grabbed it and put it on and ran outside and jumped into Jakes jeep “You know I still can’t believe you got the same car as your brother” “AH AH I have a more updated version first of all plus I always idled my brothers jeep” I rolled my eyes we stopped the jeep and got out and went into the woods we run for a little ducking down behind some branches. “Jake there are cops everywhere what the hell.”

“God Mari, you need to relax come on” he gets up and takes off “Jake dammit” I chase after him and he doesn’t pay attention and runs right into his dad “JAKE?” “This one belongs to me boys″ I hid behind a tree. “Where is she?” He says while looking at Jake he plays dumb “who?” “Mariana where is she whenever you do something stupid, she's right there with you. So where is she?” he says as he shines the light ahead to try and spot me “she’s not out here she was writing and didn’t want to come out because you know how she is when she’s writing.” His dad looks at him “that makes sense, come on let’s get you back to your car and on the way, we can talk about how to respect other people’s privacy hmm.”

They walk away and now I’m by myself. I start to walk towards the main road because I don’t live too far away from where I am. I walk and trip backwards. “Crap” I looked for my phone because it flew out of my hand. It just landed beside me. Thankfully I grabbed it and shone it at the ground, and I saw the thing we came to look for. I scream and fall backwards rolling down the hill that was behind me. I get up and start to brush myself off then I hear rustling. I look up to see someone or something staring at me, and it comes at me. I brace myself and scream as it bites me. After it bit me, it disappeared. I got up holding my wrist Cuz that’s where they got me, I walked towards the road and walked home.

I woke up in the morning and went to my bathroom. I unwrap my wrist and it’s gone, the mark that was there the night before I brushed it off and got dressed. I went downstairs and found a note on the fridge from my mom:

Have a good day sweetie

and good luck with tryouts promise

I’ll be home after school later

~Love Mom

I smiled and opened the fridge and grabbed a smoothie out and a granola bar off of the counter and ran outside to get in Jake’s Jeep. He Looks at me with a wide smile “so last night was crazy right?” I look at him “are you serious? I had to walk home BY MYSELF in the dark and in the middle of the night and nearly got hit by a car and BEFORE all that I got A FREAKING TTACKED by someone or something and. WHATEVER it was it bit me then the bite MAGICALLY disappeared in the morning and now here we are on our way to go to school one of the worst places on earth OH and I found the body. So does that answer your question?”

He looks at me in shock then smiles and says “So everything's good and we are going to find the body after school too” I just sit there and laugh to myself and enjoy the ride to school jamming out to some Whitney Houston, Madonna, and Rick Springfield. We were singing our hearts out to some. I wanna dance with somebody when we see the rest of our group Mia, Eava, and Akamai but we call her Kamia. They wave us over “hello my friend's what trouble are we goanna start with this year?” Jake says we all laugh then he starts again “so Mari are you goanna tell the rest of our friends about what happened last night?”

“I mean why not so last night Jake and I went to find a dead body in the woods because he heard something on his dad’s radio so he came and got me and we went into the woods him dumb self-got caught by his father and I had to walk home by myself in the middle of the night, and long story short I found the body and was attacked by someone or something and the bite it gave me disappeared this morning like it wasn’t there at all.” “Okay well that sounds traumatizing but what about the party tonight what are you guys' goanna wear you know what Eava, Leah, Maddie, Kamia, Jamie, and Marianna you guys will just come to my house after school and we’ll try on clothes.”

The bell goes off and we go to our first class I’m sitting in class when I smell something it’s like cologne it gets stronger then the principle walks in with a boy “Attention this is Lucas Donvan make him feel welcome” he turns to Lucas “Take a seat” he walks over and sits in the seat behind me he taps me on the shoulder about half way through I turn around “yeah” “hey can I borrow a pencil or a pen or anything to write with really I forgot mine” he says with a nervous laugh. “Yeah” I say as I reach into my bag and hand him a pen “thanks” after class I see him at his locker “Hey you. Lucas, right?” He looks at me and smiles “Yeah Lucas Donvan” “Oh how rude of me sorry I’m Marianna but everyone calls me Mari.” I say with a little giggle he laughs to “so hey there is a party tonight being thrown by my friend and you know since you’re new why don’t you come so you can you know meet new people.” He was about to answer when someone called my name down the hall “MARI” I turned around waving at them then back at Lucas “so what do you say?” “Sure, why not everyone needs to meet new people right?” You smile “Ya party starts at seven I can Pick you up at six thirty, how’s that sound?”

“Nah it’s cool I gotta ride but I’ll be there.” he says, “okay we’ll see you tonight then bye.” You walk towards your friends, “hey guys what’s up?” “Nonthin much just watching you flirt with the new guy,” Kamia says while smiling at you. “WHAT I was NOT flirting with Lucas I was just inviting him to the party tonight because he’s new and needs a little help making friends.” I say while thinking if I really like him or not “OH inviting him to the party tonight huh so all the giggling and smiling was just part of it, because you normally do all that when you’re flirting because you like the guy.” Leah jumps in with Kamia, Jamie starts talking “that does kinda sound like you were flirting Mari just sayin.” Maddie grabs her drink from Jamie and looks at me with a little smirk “I mean he is hot em we wouldn’t blame you for flirting I would to you know if I wasn’t lesbian.”

Andrew starts to mock me “Oh Lucas you’re so dreamy oh Lucas why don’t you come to the party tonight oh Lucas-” I cut him off by punching him in the arm “Look you guys if I liked him y’all would be the first to know ok? Can we please drop it now please?” “Okay so we can worry about him later and don’t think I won’t try to make matchmaker with you and “Lucas” she says then continues “anyways we got to get to class and don’t forget

Mari, you have tryouts after school okay” I completely forgot about that and was also hoping I forgot I don’t know if I was ready for it, but I guess I’m doing it I nod and go to class which happens to be the last class of the day thank God I was ready to get out of there. A couple hours go by, and school is finally over. I grab my stuff and go to my locker. “Hey” I heard someone say as they tapped on my shoulder. I turned around and it was Lucas I smiled “hey what’s up?” “I just wanted to ask about the party tonight. Is there a dress code or something? Is it casual or?”

I laugh “it’s party casual so something you would wear on a normal day just not sweatpants and a sweatshirt.” “Okay well I just wanted to ask. I actually might need help because I don’t really understand what you’re talking about to be honest with you.” I laugh and I shut my locker “ok how about this after lacrosse tryouts I come over to yours and I help you then I can go to Mia’s and get ready.” “Yeah, that’s actually convenient because I was trying out but speaking of trying out, we might want to hurry and get ready for it.”