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Of course, I’m not looking for a boyfriend or anything. But hanging out with Alex has been a nice way to break up the time I’m being forced to spend here. No matter what my mother says, I don’t have a drinking problem. There is nothing wrong with a girl my age hanging out with friends and having a couple of drinks. It’s not like I’m out getting sloppy drunk every night. It’s not like I’m going on benders that last for days. I’ve never gotten a DUI and my mother has never had to come bail me out of jail because of my drinking.
“Are you sure it’s a good idea that you go hang out with those guys on your own?” Sara asks.
“Probably not,” I reply with a mischievous grin. “But like I said, I just need a little time out. I need a little fun. You’re welcome to come with.”
She shakes her head. "No. But thanks. I need to get it right this time.”
A frown touches my lips and I feel bad for suggesting she come. I know she's on her last strike and she's doing the work he needs to do to avoid being disowned by her parents. As much as I like Sara though, her life isn’t mine. I don’t have the same problems she has and there is nothing wrong with me getting out and having a few laughs.
“Okay. Well, I’m going to go,” I say.
“All right. Have fun,” she replies. “And be careful, Jordan.”
“I will. Thanks,” I say. “And thank you for not ratting me out.”
“I’m your friend. I’ve got your back.”
I give her a quick hug and then slip out the door of our cabin. There are lights around the compound, but they’re spaced out enough that there are plenty of pools of dark shadows for me to hide in. Holding my breath, I dart from one pocket of darkness to another, moving toward the perimeter of the compound. I move as quietly as I can until I make it to the trail. No alarms have been raised and I don’t hear anybody calling me back, so I take that as a good sign. And a sign to keep going, so, I turn and plunge into the darkness of the forest.
Only when I’m sure that I’m far enough away from the compound that I won’t be seen do I pull out the flashlight and turn it on. I scan the woods around me and swallow hard, my skin prickling with goosebumps and my stomach churning wildly. I don’t think I noticed how creepy it is out in the woods at night. It’s darker than pitch and the bright beam from my flashlight doesn’t penetrate very far into the inky blackness around me.
Licking my suddenly dry lips, I clear my throat and start down the trail. As I walk though, the sound of twigs breaking and something scurrying through the underbrush echoes through the dark, making the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. I stop moving and strain my ears, listening. All I can hear though is the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. A quiver runs through my body and when I hear what sounds like a whispering voice, I feel a cold, hard weight pressing down on my shoulders.
“H—hello?” I call out but my voice is swallowed by the darkness.
The flashlight trembles in my hand, making the glowing beam bounce around and I give thought to turning back. But when I hear the sound of another twig snapping on the trail somewhere behind me, lightning bolts of adrenaline surge through my veins, making my entire body vibrate with it. A small squeal bursts from my throat as I turn and start running in the direction of the cabin and away from the compound.
I plunge through the darkness, running past the thick, dark trunks of the ancient pines, wrapped in thick bands of fear that drive me forward. As I pass one of those trees though, a long, loud scream bursts from my throat as something steps out from behind the trunk and grabs hold of me. As a terrifying screech fills my ears, I thrash and writhe, trying to break the grip of whatever’s holding me, only to feel its hold on me growing tighter. It squeezes the air from me, making a strange noise that sends fingers of ice racing up my spine.
“Jordan relax. Stop. Relax. It’s me. Relax.”
It takes a moment for the absolute terror gripping me to ebb enough that my mind clears. And when it does, I realize it’s Alex holding into me. He’s smiling and laughing like my reaction is the funniest thing he’s ever seen and anger flashes through me, driving out the fear and leaving me trembling as the adrenaline ebbs.
“Let go of me, you asshole,” I shout.
Still laughing, he lets go of me and I rain down slaps, and punches to his arms and chest, which only seems to make him laugh harder. Feeling winded, my breath coming out in labored gasps, I still hit him and step back. Alex holds his hands up, his palms facing me in a gesture of mock surrender.
“Sorry, I couldn’t resist,” he says.
“You’re such an asshole,” I growl.
Looking down, I pull and straighten out my clothes, giving my heart a moment to come down below five hundred beats a minute. The trembling in my body slowly begins to subside and the ice encasing my spine starts to thaw.
“Why would you even do that?” I snap.
“I’m sorry, I just saw you walking down the trail and thought it would be funny.”
“Yeah, well it wasn’t.”
“Noted,” he says, still smiling. “You’re wound pretty tight, Jordan. You need to loosen up.”
“I’m wound tight because I’m not supposed to be out here. Do you even know what’s going to happen if they find out I’m gone?”
“Nobody’s going to know,” he tries to reassure me. “You’ll be back long before anybody even thinks to look at you.”
“I better be. If they find out I’m gone, they’ll send me home. And I don’t even want to think about what my mom will do to me,” I say.
“Come on. Have a couple of drinks and some laughs. Getting out and having a little fun will make the rest of your stay in that freakshow tolerable.”
