"I watched them all in almost one night!" I exclaimed to Katrina the next day. "They're so awesome! I'm going to finish watching the rest of them today."
"I told you!" Katrina replied with a smile. "Did they give you nightmares?"
I scoffed. "Are you serious? No way! I don't scare that easily!"
I didn't admit that the videos had kept me up until three in the morning, laying there in my bed, frozen in paranoia.
I adjust the straps of my backpack so it hangs more comfortably on my shoulders. Deciding not to take the bus home today, I walk across my high school's baseball diamonds to the park that was right next to them. It was a quaint little park, with trails winding about through a forest, turning into a big loop. I enjoy walking here, looking around at the trees, breathing in the smell of nature.
I usually don't ride the bus home from school, if I can avoid it. My mom makes me take it in the morning, but sometimes I go against her will and walk to school, anyway. It isn't that I have anything against busses. It's that I have everything against the people who ride the bus. Specifically, my bus.
Missy Carson, the most popular girl at my school, happens to ride my bus, along with part of her little posse of posers. Missy is tall, slender, and has perfect skin. Her dark hair hangs down to her waist and lacks a single wave. Her blue eyes shine bright, and her teeth are whiter than paper. Her chest… well, let's just say that she's well endowed for a junior in high school. Oh, and she has the singing voice of an angel.
I, on the other hand, am of average height. My blonde hair is impossible to straighten, and I suffer from constant breakouts of acne. My legs resemble that of a boys'; I find shaving extremely tedious and unnecessary, because I don't ever wear clothes that reveal my bare legs. I have the breasts of a twelve year-old, and forget about perfect teeth.
You could say that Missy and I are polar opposites.
Anyway, back to the bus thing. I make a point of sitting in the very front seat for a reason. Missy and her friends always sit in the very back, so verbal abuse from her on the bus is minimal due to our separation. However, that doesn't stop her from throwing various items such as pencils, crumpled paper, and the occasional pudding cup, at my head. This is a usual occurrence: Picking on the freak nerd.
So, I choose to commute to and from school by walking or riding my bike, whenever it is possible. I always walk through the park, because the trail ends right across the street from my neighborhood.
This was one of my safe places, away from the bullies on the bus, and the bullies at school.
I take my headphones out and wind the cord around my iPod, then pocket the device, so I can listen to the birds and other various sounds. There are only a few people on the trail today. Maybe I'll walk the loop a few times before heading home.
Unwrapping a piece of gum, I pop it into my mouth and chew, savoring the minty flavor. A branch cracks in the forest to my right. I look, but see nothing out of the ordinary. I shrug and keep walking, taking note of the dark clouds gathering overhead. It will probably start to rain soon. Perhaps walking the loop once will do, for today.
I'm about halfway done with the loop before I hear footsteps coming up from behind me. I assume it's one of the joggers that frequent the trail, so I move over to one side so they can pass. They don't pass me, but I still hear the footsteps. I look over my shoulder, and see no one. Odd. Maybe they just went off on one of the rough unpaved trails that go deeper into the forest.
I suddenly get a very strange feeling. It's the feeling of being watched. I glance around me in all directions. No one is in sight. I still have the feeling. A few drops of rain fall onto my face, and I see the dark splotches of water beginning to dot the pavement of the trail.
At a steady jog, I make my way toward the end of the trail. I conclude that my feeling of paranoia is due to a lack of sleep and the ominous darkness of the rainclouds. The rainfall increases, and within a very short amount of time, it's pouring. I flip my hood up to shield my head from the water, when I get that feeling again.
I suddenly begin coughing for no reason. I stumble to my knees, hacking as if I was choking on something. I struggle to catch my breath, when I see something out of the corner of my eye. Glancing over in that direction, I see a man standing about six feet away from me. My hood blocks my line of sight, so I only see him from the knees down.
He is clothed in what looks like a black business suit, and his pale hands appear to hang down past his knees. Long arms, I note in my mind. I'm still practically hacking up a lung on the ground, and I still don't know why. I see the feet of the man walking toward me with an odd slowness. I figure that he's walking over to me to ask if I'm okay, but he's taking his own sweet time. Closer, closer…
My cell phone rings. I cough once more, and apparently the fit is over. Noticing my gum is now gone, I think that it's the cause of my choking. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I answer it.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Jamie!" It's Katrina.
"Hey, what's up?"
"Wanna come over to my house for a while to work on our group project for English? I was going to ask you after school, but you weren't over by the busses."
I clear my throat, which is now a bit dry and sore from all of the coughing. "Uh, sure. I'll be right over."
"Okay. See you soon!"
"See ya."
Click.
Realizing that I'm still on my knees, I stand shakily, clearing my throat again. I turn to my right to reassure the man in the business suit that I'm alright, but I stop short. He isn't there.
Nobody is.
