Lydia felt as if she was falling from a cliff. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't move her lips. Her voice was caught in her throat and her body was completely immobile as she tried to grab onto something-anything that would stop her from falling. But there was nothing. Just air. She couldn't be saved.
"Lydia, dear? Come set the table for dinner for mommy. We have guests coming over in a few. You know what to do," her mother's voice suddenly rang in her ears, and she turned her head. She was standing in her living room and watching as her parents prepared the dinner table. She remembered this day. It was Thanksgiving, 2005. She remembered this day because it was the day that she dropped her mother's crystal bowl and it shattered into pieces on the floor. it was also the day her parents began fighting.
"Yes, mother." She set the forks and knives on the table just as the doorbell rang. "Want me to get that?"
"Please. It's probably the Whittemores. Didn't they say they had a surprise, honey?" Ms. Martin asked her husband.
"That's what I was told on the phone. If it's a dog, I'm kicking it out of the house..."
Lydia rolled her eyes and opened the door, but she was blinded by a flash of brilliant white light. She was suddenly in another room, but it wasn't one she recognized immediately. It was only when she heard a voice did she realize where she was.
"You be Commander Rick Campbell. He's the head of the squadron," a little boy, no older than 11, sat across from her. He made an airplane noise and made an explosion sound effect with his lips. "What's wrong, Lydia? Why aren't you playing soldiers with me?"
"I don't want to play soldiers. They are boy toys. I'm a girl," she pout. "Can we play dress up or something?"
The boy scoffed, a sound that was all too familiar to Lydia. "No! I'm a boy. Boys don't play dress up. Unless they're going out to the army, then yeah they dress up then. But dress up as in a wedding or playing house? Ew! Gross!" He gagged, going back to playing with his army men.
Lydia opened her mouth to say something in response, but a woman came into the bedroom and smiled at them.
"Lydia, sweetheart. Your mom called. She's on her way to pick you up. Did you have fun playing toys with Jackson?"
Lydia turned to look at the little boy, whose smile revealed dimples in his cheeks and his bright blue eyes twinkled at her. Jackson. This was Jackson.
She blinked and everything around her changed again. This time, she was standing outside in a field. On either side of the field, there were nets and a boy stood in front of one, holding a lacrosse stick and scooping up balls into it. She remembered this scene as well. She was 13 years old here. She and Jackson had come out here for a picnic but it turned out he had other things on his mind.
"Jackson can we go now? I'm bored..." Lydia complained. "You've been at this for 2 hours!"
The boy turned around, and Lydia almost gasped. Jackson still had the childish roundness around his chin, but he looked older, more chisled as he clenched his jaw at her. He looked serious as he shot another ball into the net and groaned out loud.
"Jackson, please. Before it begins to rain or something-"
"Shut up, Lydia! You don't get it! No one understands!" His voice cracked as he yelled at her. He clenched his hands into fists and groaned. "If I don't get this right...if I can't make the team..." He choked on his words and fell to his knees, sobbing and gripping his hair.
Lydia didn't know what to say or do, so she just watched him cry and yell at the empty air around him. What was his problem? He scored every single time...why was he so upset with himself?
She hung her head and turned to face her back to him and found herself to be in the lacrosse field of the high school. She looked down at her clothes and saw that she was in her prom dress. Why, she had no idea, but as she glanced around she saw that she was surrounded by faceless people. They had no nose, no eyes, no mouth. Nothing. Yet they were all staring at her.
Her breath was now coming out in desperate gasps as she tried to escape this nightmare. No matter where she turned, another faceless freak appeared before her. She couldn't scream-her voice wouldn't let her-all she could do was turn around and go in the other direction. But no matter where she went, she was always surrounded by these frightening people. Where did they even come from? Who are they? What do they want?
"Going somewhere, child?" A voice rumbled. Lydia jumped with fear, looking over her shoulder to see a man standing before her, arms behind his back. "Don't fear me, child. I won't hurt you."
Lydia stared at him, tears running down her face and ruining her eyeliner. She couldn't speak, so she just watched as the crowd of faceless people made a path for him and revealed Jackson, dressed in a suit and tie like he was for prom. He was pale and frightened looking, trying to scramble away from the man as he was grabbed and shoved to his knees before her.
"Lydia...help me. Please," he whimpered, tears rolling down his face. "Help me, Lydia!"
Lydia never moved; she merely watched as the man with the dark wavy hair and emotionless face stood behind Jackson, yanking his head back so that his throat was exposed.
"You see, Lydia. Humans are fragile beings. They act tough but deep down...they're like frightened little mice..." The man looked at his hand, and Lydia could see his nails lengthening, becoming sharper and more gruesome. "Take our boy Jackson here for example. He has a tough exterior, but on the inside?" He clicked his tongue. "Poor boy doesn't know what to make of himself. Can't please everyone, can we son?" He gripped Jackson's hair harder and the boy cried out and began to sob. "Oh well. You won't be missed...much. Will you miss him if he's gone, Lydia?"
Lydia blinked at the mention of her name, her gaze moving from the man to Jackson. She heard him whimper in pain. She wanted to move, yet she didn't budge. Maybe this was to be his punishment for treating her like crap in the past...
"I'll take that as a no? Hmm. You're stronger than I thought, young one. You'll make a fine addition to our family one day..." The man opened his mouth, and Lydia could see his teeth gro longer just as his nails had did. He lowered his mouth near Jackson's throat and a deep rumble came from his chest.
Jackson let out an agonized scream that echoed for miles around.
Lydia flinched, closing her eyes in fright. As she slowly opened them, she saw that the strange man didn't bite Jackson. Instead, she stared at the hole in Jackson's chest where his heart would've been. Jackson's eyes were lifeless as his body collapsed to the ground, dead. She could smell the coppery smell of blood and wanted to turn and throw up but some part deep within her liked the smell. Some part deep within her wanted to taste it...
The man seemed to be oddly intrigued with the stil beating heart in his hand, watching the blood drip from it and onto the ground, but his gaze quickly turned to Lydia as he caught her staring at the bloody heart in his hand. He half smiled, kneeling down in front of her.
"You want this, don't you? You want a...taste?" He watched as she eyed the heart in his hand, hand beating and warm in his palm. "I'd be surprised if you don't..."
Lydia moaned and found herself to be actually drooling at the sight of the heart in front of her face. She raised an arm, tracing it with a finger, feeling its warmth and power. Each beat thudded in her ears. Each beat she felt like she was about to lose herself. She grabbed the heart from him and stareed it hungrily. Like a wolf.
"There you go...feast, my pretty. It's all yours for the taking..." He smiles at the sight of Lydia staring at the heart in her hands. "Go ahead. Feast."
And so she did.
The taste in her mouth exploded-she never tasted anything so good before in her life-the blood in her mouth, the feel of the heart in her teeth, the squelching noise it made when she bit into it...she...loved it.
She opened her eyes and to her horror, Jackson was sitting up in front of her, looking down at the hole in his chest, and gasping for air.
"What did you...what did you do, Lydia?" He looked at her, his eyes flashin red with anger. "What the hell did you do?"
For the first time, she screamed, her voice distorted even to her own ears, just as Jackson opened his mouth and everything turned to black.