Don't let me get too close...I bite...

Chapter 1-Discovering me for what I really am

He was already gone… and I felt empty, as though a hole has just been formed in my heart. Nothing could have ever prepared me for this…. Nothing in the world would ever help me get over this, you're probably confused. I would be too; it all began when I was starting my senior year of High School at Burling High, in Maine...

1 year earlier September 5th, 2009

I was very surprised when I got a phone call the night before the first day of school… it was my best friend, she had horrible news. When Michelle told me, I was devastated, and told her that I was coming over immediately; the news was that her parents had just recently informed her that they were moving to Nebraska...tomorrow morning. No, this isn't what caused me to become – what my sister (Joanne) always tells me- a depressing shadow, not complete and empty all the time. Lurking around so silently and swiftly that it was almost like I wasn't ever there. Looking as though there was no meaning to life, no matter what anybody else did to cheer me up. After a while it gets to become normal and I move on from trying to think of some new insult to tell her every day after she insults me. Now it's just boring so I don't even bother. Whatever… I raced over to Michelle's house, getting dressed as fast as I could not caring if I looked like a freak or not, and remembering on the phone that I told her how disappointed I was and asked her when she was moving. She said tomorrow morning would move as slowly as possible, and then I asked her if she even bothered to mention to her parents if they ever thought about senior prom, her friends, graduation, and everything that she would be leaving behind. Her response was very unusual coming from her, she sounded as though she had just woken up and… I don't know it was just a difference coming from her since she usually sounds all peppy like me and, well. Now she didn't.

On the way there I felt as though I was flying. With the window down and the air that was being flung at me with intense speed moving threw my light brown hair. I felt free, a rush or excitement ran through my body and made me feel exhilaratingly happy. Then I remembered that this was no time to be happy, my friend was moving and my life was well… boring, it was going to be very boring with Michelle gone. Before I knew it, I had arrived at Michelle's house. It was a tan, two story colonial house that had about ten rooms (as far as I can remember). When I stepped outside of my black mustang after shutting off my C-95 engine I thought that I saw something in the nearby woods, just along the side of her driveway. With curiosity, prowling among my thoughts, I began to walk towards the side of her cobble stone driveway. That was when I saw something move, only… I wasn't quite sure what it was. At first I thought that it was just 

Michelle's cat or something, but I then realized that it was something larger. No cat could imitate the sound of a human falling on the ground, getting up, whispering, and then finally moaning and whispering again. All that I could make out from all of the whispering was that some guy (who sounded about my age, 17) was in the woods, and he hoped that he wouldn't get caught by me. I was just about to say something to the mystery boy when I heard my name being called in, what seemed like, 100 miles away. It sounded more like an echo rather than Michelle's voice telling me to get inside her house. Just in that instant, I began to obediently turn to her front door and walk. I continued to walk while slowly coming back from my curious zone about the mystery boy. Again, Michelle called my name, only this time she sounded closer, and put more emphasis on the words "come on!!" So I then started lightly jogging towards her. When I finally reached her front door she had a weird and awkward look planted upon her face. Then she questioned me with a voice that I had never heard her use before (as if there was any reason in the past that would oblige her to use it.)

"What the heck were you doing over there?! I was calling your name like 50 billion times! I'm having the absolute worst day of my ENTIRE life and you'regiving my tree weird looks?!" just then there was a short moment of pause, then Michelle continued her rage filled with complete anger. "While I'm up here, waiting for you to help me figure out a way NOT to move, or to at least help cope me threw the fact that I WILL move." I could tell by the fact that after the first few seconds of silence, that this time she really was done with her raging lecture. On how, if a friend is in need of someone to help her get over the fact that there's nothing that she can do to get them out of moving… (Even if they don't even know that there is NO chance on getting out of it) the other friend definitely shouldn't be talking to trees in on the side of their driveway.

"Well, I have a good reason!" I said cautiously in my defense, having the words (not intentionally) sound weak, maybe even making me seem little. I completely forgot that I even said anything. That was until I heard Michelle say,

"I'm waiting." What was with her tonight? Wasn't it just a few minutes ago that I talked to her and she sounded depressed and upset?? Just then, it hit me, hormones. Not just the fact that she was a teenager, but she's a depressed teenager. It was bad enough that she was angry with me, but what was worse was the fact that I had to be the one to help her get back into her normal feeling. This was definitely going to be a long night.

"I heard something. Or more like someone. But I told them to go away, and then I heard footsteps headed deeper into the woods. So I figured that they were gone… Did you actually think that I would talk to a tree??" I knew that I should have told herthe truth, but I was afraid that she might go crazy, and then think that someone was out there, out there to get her. When that would probably, most likely, be a lie. The other reason why I didn't tell her the truth was because… well… I don't quite know how to describe it, but it was sort of as if I knew the mystery boy and somehow I felt as though 

he was trying to tell me something by not really saying anything directly at me. It also felt as though he knew me as well, as though we have talked before in school or something, I don't know… but it's one feeling that I know that I will never forget, when Ilooked into the dark nothingness I—I felt as though I was looking into his eyes. So in that instant it was as if our eyes connected, and locked. Then, Michelle sighed; no I knew that she was fully calmed down for the night. Maybe this wasn't going to be such a bad night after all. "Listen, I'm REALLY sorry for spacing out on you like that, okay?"

"No, it's not okay… I should be the one apologizing to you, it's just that with the move and everything it's just-"

"I know, I know." I responded, trying to calm her down. It must have worked since she didn't reply, but instead she decided to give me a friendly bear hug. As we separated, we smiled and knew that everything was going to be fine.

"Come on; let's go head up to my room." We headed up to her room; only in the process I almost died by tripping on the stairs. After that, we got to her room. When I entered I noticed that she had redecorated. Now the bed was on the right side of the oval room, the TV was in front of the bed against the wall on the other side of the room. I also noticed that she must have gotten a new bed spread, because now it was a light shade of blue, probably sky blue, and her walls were a darker shade of blue with a white border on the top. She went to go sit on her bed, while I was headed to go sit on her purple swivel chair that matched her purple rug that was placed neatly next to her bed on the side that she must have gotten up on and taken her first steps of the day. As I was about to sit down on the chair I heard another strange noise. Only this time it wasn't the sound of a person breathing. It was the sound a hand or something being tapped on against her window. Michelle must not have heard it because she just began to talk.

"So, what do you want to do on my last night in Maine? Wanna have a sleep over, just you and me? You can use my phone to call your sister to let her know." I starred at Michelle's excited face, with a look planted on her face that was like a puppy dog trying to tell you to take them home. I then knew that I had to say yes, it was just too hard turn down a face like that.

"Sure, why not, I'm sure that Joanne won't mind, she's been telling me to hang out with other friends besides Jason anyways." I was just about to get up and reach for her baby blue phone when she stood up and put a hand in front of the phone to cover it up and in other words tell me to stop. "What??" I was very curious about why she was trying to stop me from using her phone when she just told me I could use it.

"Jason? Who's Jason?" I looked at her, noticing that we both had confused looks on our faces.

"Jason, remember… I told you about him, and how we met in the middle of the road. Didn't I?" I could have sworn that I told her, did I tell her? Or did I just put it on my blog under MY NEAR DEATH EXPERANCES, since I have a lot of them I decided to record them so other people and myself can read them a laugh our heads off.



"Um…. No, and what do you mean you met him in the MIDDLE of the road, what were you doing there?" Having Michelle's face turn from confusion to shock I almost forgot why I was in the middle of the road.

"Oh, well… you see, my friends dared me to stand in the middle of the road for 10 minutes straight. But they said I could move if a car was coming. So I told them 'What a stupid dare'. Well, that's where I was wrong, they went to go up the nearby hill and told me to stay where I was and I did. Only I was too busy watching THEM instead of watching to see if any cars were coming down the road. I heard a noise and screamed, forgetting that I had feet to help me run. Thankfully the driver stopped in time but got out to ask what I was thinking by standing in the middle of the road, so I told him about the dare, he laughed and then he started asking me if I was okay and if I needed anything. I told him that I was alright and he gave me his number and said that if I began to feel pain to call him first and not my lawyer, since he doesn't want to get sued. I didn't blame him, so yeah, that's how we meet. And no, don't go thinking 'Nellie's got boyfriend' cause I don't. He even clarified that when he said ' I'm not hitting on you or anything when I'm giving you my number and insisting that you call, I'm just concerned. Okay?' so he's not. And we're not, there isn't anything going on. So yeah, that's how we meet." I sighed, after getting that mouthful out, and then I began to continue again. "After that we saw each other at the Café and we talked and then I had to go to meet you, but that was last week. Can I please use your phone to call my sister; she'll be ready to call the cops on me if I'm not home in 10 minutes. You know how she is and how motherly she can get ever since mom and dad died in that car crash back in '01. Ever since she was 15 and I was 9 she took care of me, which means that she had about 8 years to turn into a mom."

"Yeah, now you can use the phone, I was just curious."I reached for the phone and dialed in my number.

"Hello?" It was my sister, and from the sound of it she was watching Reba and probably sitting on our lavender couch wearing her new silky green pajamas.

"Yeah… Joanne? It's me, Nellie."

"Oh. Hey! What did you want??" Joanne sounded very cheery tonight, which only means two things. One, either she just finally caught her breath from laughing so hard on Reba, from what Vann did. Or she was thinking about some bizarre way to pull a weird trick on me when I come home, if that's the case then maybe I shouldn't sleep over, and have more time to think of a plan for her…. No, I was definitely staying, Michelle needs me, okay. I'll just ask her, hopefully she'll say yes.

"I wanted to know if I could spend the night at Michelle's house, would that be okay?"I stared outside her window and waited in suspense until I heard Joanne's response.

"Sure! Just call me when you're gonna be coming home tomorrow just so I know. Okay??" YES! This is awesome, now I can help Michelle with… well…. The problem that she has.



"Yeah, thanks! Bye!"

"Bye." And without even knowing it, that was the last conversation that I would ever have with Joanne for 6 long, antagonizing months. Now thinking back on it, I just wish that I knew that….

--Time passes when you don't even realize it--

Soon enough it was morning and I woke up to a scream. I slowly opened my eyes a good 20 seconds later to find a horrid scene that I knew I would never forget, for it was already smothered into my mind, stored away just waiting to be let loose again; a scare, scared for life. It was Michelle… She was propped up like a doll against the pink trunk that was at the end of her bed, which I just happen to be right next to. It felt weird, falling asleep laughing at a joke that she just told and then having her mother tell us to quiet down, making us fall asleep… And then waking up to a dead best friend and having her eyes filled with blood, like a massive swarm of red was overcoming her face, just staring at me. There were scratches and bruises on her face, and huge blood gaps were smothered into her skin…. Her face told a story, the expression of it, it read how she was murdered, and the anguish and pain that she must of went through to get to that point. I felt as though I was going to vomit. I quickly got up out of my dark red sleeping bag and hurried out of her bedroom door, wondering if her mother knew about her tragic death, or maybe…. would her mother be dead too? Would I be the only one that the murderer left behind so that way they could torture me themselves? Taking their time, just making the process even more painful and miserable...…slaughtering everyone that's close enough to me that if they were to ever die an awful death it would just rip away chunks of my heart and not even bothering to take time to repair it, making it whole again. But just making me remember only the look on their faces, having that become both the wallpaper and screen saver of my life. Snap out of it, this isn't going to happen. It's just a prediction, just a prediction. I walk into her kitchen and see a shadow. Only it's not the size of a woman, it's more the size of a man, a big stocky man, with broad shoulders and short hair. I peek around the corner even more just so that way I can see who it was, but he must have heard me. He snapped his head around so fast it was like one of those movements when you just get out of jail and you begin to hear police sirens, even if they're not coming for you, you still hear them, and you still worry. He had dark blue eyes and a 5 o'clock shadow, and I could tell that the moment he turned around, his eyes were on me. I panicked, and attacked him, apparently he didn't think that I would EVER attack him little too much self confidence on the way you look, you think that no one would ever dream of jumping on you with only one thought in their mind, death and kill?? Well think again…… I just did. The shock on his face was priceless, for some bizarre reason I like and enjoyed hurting this complete stranger. I guess the anger just took control and 

overwhelmed me. Just seeing Michelle's mom all scrunched up in a corner, and then hearing him whisper …'Michelle, check. Her mom, check. Nellie's sister, check. Keeping Nellie alive, check. Okay, looks like I'm done here. He'll be pleased. And in record timing I might add.' It was just too horrible to listen to any more, I couldn't stand it, and so I pounced. I was just so angry I didn't realize what I had done until I had done it. I stood up, to examine the damage that I had done to this murderer, it was then that I realized that I was a cannibal, his nose was ripped off and laying down next to him on the hard, tile floor, and his fingers had bite marks on them. Ashamed with what I had done I ran outside and continued to run. Nowhere to go, nowhere to hide, watch out world… Don't get too close to me… I bite…