Author: Selene Romanov
Title: 3:56am
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I own none of OTH.
Summary: Haley gets a little scare. The rest of the gang looks for her.
** Good Girl: This is a 'different' perspective of Haley, I don't believe in promoting beauty on the outside or that it is more important than inner beauty. I'm simply trying to convey a different kind of Haley that we haven't seen. That's all. Thanks for your review. I appreciate any and all feedback.
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3:43 am
Lifting a flap of the tent, Haley peeked outside, eyes gritty with sleep. Twinkling stars glowed in the night sky. A full moon nestled at the pinnacle of its nightly ascent. Pausing to take in all the beauty that she commonly ignored. Haley tipped her head back and took a deep breath.
A rustle of the bushes in the distance interrupted her focus. There's no wind, probably just a rabbit. Haley shrugged her shoulders reached back into the tent, grabbed her sneakers and a flashlight. A sudden urge to pee consumed her mind.
Pushing back thick branches of a weeping willow that was in her way. Haley wandered out of sight, a flickering fire silhouetted two tents and a dying fire. A dark shadow briefly was visible as it followed Haley's path.
Perfect, now I can make my move. After tonight, she'll never be the same…………………… The shadow moved after Haley, swiftly and silently. A hunter hunting its prey.
3:51 am
Nathan awoke out of a deep sleep involving a dream rich with detail about Haley and their latest encounter. This time in a broom closet, if only it was the truth. Reaching over for Haley, he was surprised to come up with nothing more than a blanket. Where is she?
Pushing back his blanket, Nathan got out of his bed and lifted the flap. He stepped out in the night air, crisp and cold. Seeing that the fire was about to die, he stoked it up with the few pieces of kindling that were left.
He walked back to the tent, her sneakers and flashlight are gone. Not a good time to explore, she must've gone to look for a bush, why didn't she wake me up? Feeling slightly left out, Nathan looked around the edge of the clearing, for any signs of Haley.
3:56 am
Breathing a sigh of relief, Haley pulled her sweatpants up and picked up her flashlight. Now which way was camp?
So close, almost mine, never his. The dark shadow moved closer, closing in on its prey. As he moved closer to her, a branch cracked under his weight.
Haley heard a branch break behind her. Slowly turning around, she saw a shadowy figure a few yards behind her. It started to run towards her. Letting out a bloodcurdling scream, Haley ran into the woods, in the opposite direction from the camp. Pushing branches out of her face, Haley dropped her flashlight and veered off the path. Her stalker followed in gleeful anticipation.
4:02 am
Breathing in and out, slow and deep. Nathan froze, every muscle in his body turned to stone when he heard a bloodcurdling scream. Haley.
Lucas ran out of his tent, a pair of sweatpants all he wore. Peyton and Brooke scrambled out after him, both clad in scanty nightwear.
"I woke up about ten minutes ago and Haley was gone, I assumed she'd gone to look for a bush………..and I was stocking up the fire and I heard a scream………..I'm going to look for Haley." Nathan stormed into the woods, with his flashlight.
"Wait." Luke stopped him. Running back to his tent, he tossed Peyton and Brooke a sweater each. "Okay, Peyton with Nathan, Brooke you come with me. We'll each cover one side of the sight and meet back here in twenty minutes. If you hear any more noise, move towards it." Dragging a squealing Brooke with him, he disappeared into the foliage.
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Read on for Part 2.………………
