Hey guys! You won't believe hat happened with me... I got into Emerson college - Boston! OMG. I can't fucking believe that! I'm so thrilled. It's like known for having USA's one of the best journalism program! I feel like this is the happiest moment of my life! Any Boston residents out there? Do let me know what is your city and this college like.

Though from Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us... "Everything is Better in Boston" XD

As promised, here is the next chapter. TRIGGER WARNING IF YOU'RE SQUEAMISH. Finals are coming up. I'm gonna be busy next month, so trying to write as much of the story as possible.

17

Anastasia

This was insanity.

No one knew that better than me.

They protested, whined, begged, cursed and threatened me to not do it.

But they didn't knew that my instincts have always been right. Always protected me.

The moment the idea had struck me, I just knew it was going to work.

Maybe it wasn't going to be easy. Maybe I will get in danger, get hurt. But I was sure I will be standing at the other side of the woods if we went through this plan.

I just needed to find that will to step into the horrorland.

I had to do this and do it quickly.

Anytime now Christian would say 'fuck it' and come barging over to me and steal me away, making sure I never endangered my life again.

It wasn't really fair of me to use peer pressure on him like. If the situation had been reversed and I would've been forced to agree to D doing something like this, I'd be fucking livid by now.

But he had to understand that he didn't know this place. Not that I knew it any better now that it has been totally changed, still I at the least had some inkling of knowledge about it.

I knew what to expect. I had survived this before, I will survive it again.

Taking one last deep breath, I began to step forward.

"Wait." Christian's voice stopped me.

Dammit I knew I should've been quicker! Now he'll think of something to prevent me from doing this or turn all caveman and abduct me.

The latter possibility didn't sound so bad. Rather tempting actually.

Focus, Ana.

Right.

"What now?" I asked nonchalantly.

"I'll go with you."

"No. You'll not."

"It's not up to you."

"Christian, you don't know what you're dealing with."

"Neither do you."

Damn him for hitting the nail. None of us knew what we were doing. We were all doomed before we ever planned to start the battle.

He shot me a challenging smirk. I could tell the wheels were spinning fast inside his head. Which was never a good thing for me when I was about to do something reckless.

Such as tackling the woods full of man-eating trees. That didn't look like trees anymore.

"Why don't we take a vote for this, Ana? Since it worked so well five minutes ago, hmm?" His cheerful voice dripped with sarcasm.

Looking at other he spoke again. "What do you all think?"

"Come on C, you're wasting time. I need you as back up. If things go wrong you need to stand alert to act promptly."

Brandon coughed. "I think he'll be able to act quicker if if he goes with you."

Jose joined him. "He's right Ana. You'll have better chance of coming out unharmed. Let Christian go with you."

I turned to my girls with pleading eyes.

"Sorry Ana, but I side with Brand and Jose on this." Emily said sympathetically.

"No issues from my side either." Mia brought both her hands up in a surrendering posture.

Damn!

Christian smiled smugly. "Let's go then, shall we?"

One hand holding a new burning torch (since the last one extinguished) he held out his hand for me.

I knew when to pick my battles and this wasn't the one I wanted to fight.

Therefore, without any other sign of protest I thrust my hand in his wishing my palm grew spikes I dread of fingers.

The nails were not the perfect substitute but they worked as Christian glared at me when my nails dug deep in his skin. Almost to the point of breaking the skin, though I stopped before it would bleed.

Together we stepped in the new, strange and horrific dystopia. Walking a few steps until we finally reached in sight of the first torn up tree, only a few feet away from its reach.

Silence had never been so loud.

No one moved. No one breathed. Our friends stood at the starting if the woods, watching our movement as the enraptured spectators.

My hand shook silently in Christian, my muscles tensing as I waited for the tree to suddenly come to life and attack us.

Seconds went by. Maybe minutes.

Nothing happened.

A heavy sigh of relief left Christian's lips as he attempted a smile. "I think it's all good, babe. Whatever happened here, must have killed those trees."

He frowned looking at my still tensed posture. "Loosen up, Ana. It's fine. All good."

Turning to our friends he shouted. "Clear!"

One word being shouted, disturbing the delicate balance between silence and the sleeping beats was all it took to wake them up.

A branch shot out faster than the speed of light, striking in the direction where Christian's loud voice had come from.

His neck.

"C, WATCH OUT!" I screamed as I pushed him to the ground. The branch followed its new source of sound, hunting in my direction.

In a blink of an eye, Christian had me wrapped in his arm rolling rapidly until we reached back to the safety, where our friends stood.

Without missing a beat, Jose took a single step forward, throwing his torch with full force at the jerking tree. Within minutes, it was on fire, shaking furiously as to save it self from the dying heat.

We all stood stunned, watching the flames engulf the monster until only thing visible was yellow and orange sparks.

A warm hand cupped my cheek, dragging my eyes away from the burning scene.

"You okay, Ana?" Christian asked with concern in his eyes.

I nodded. "You?"

"I'm fine. What the hell happened there?"

"The noise. When you shouted, I think it became aware of us. The branches went in the direction where the sounds came from."

"But when you guys went in silently nothing happened." Mia spoke, standing behind us. "That means as long as we are silent, this could work."

"Or we can light up the whole woods, wait till the trees die and then go on." Brandon suggested.

"But the last time too there was fire. They certainly did not die in it. What gives they will die now?" Emily argued.

I cleared my throat. "Well, this was the first tree. The fire didn't start until we were almost at the other end of the woods. Maybe a few in the start escaped?"

"We still can not start a forest fire unless it's extremely necessary." Jose came and sat next to me. "It might alert them."

He was right. I hadn't thought of that. "So what next?"

Christian replied,"Let's go back. Consider all our options of what we know till now, then come back."

I scowled at him. "Why are you so intent on going back? Don't you want to rescue your brother?"

He stiffened beside me. His features hardening into a deadly glare. "I meant go back to our campsite and think it through. Everything doesn't have to done impulsively, Anastasia."

Oops!

Before I could muster an apology for snapping at him, Mia interrupted.

"I don't think there is anything to think or plan. It's not like we can find a way to kill these trees or make some new kind of weapons in just a few hours. We know we have to take chances on walking the way silently. I don't want to stay here any longer than necessary anyway, so not sure about you guys but I'm going in."

With that she started making her back to the hell Christian and I had just narrowly escaped. Her face pale, scared yet firm and determined.

I realized the place was finally getting to her. She was freaking out and maybe in time she might suffer from a break down.

So far she been fearless, strong and fighting back at every instant, without a single complaint.

But being here for too long was too much for her. I didn't blame her.

This place was carnivorous. It slowly ate you whole until nothing was left inside you.

Before I or anyone else could try to reason with her, she was already stepping into the Brooke Woods.

Letting out a harsh curse, I picked up my knives back and followed her back into the woods.

Her fire torch was almost trembling in her petite hands. I almost took it myself but one look at flames dancing so near my skin threatened black spots in my vision.

An angry hiss made me look back only to find out Christian and Jose following us in a line.

Judging from Christian's expression he did not look happy about this immediate plan at all. But unfortunately, (or maybe fortunately) he couldn't express his anger regarding it until he had a death wish.

After a murmured conversation, Emily and Brandon joined our queue as well while Mia leaded our squad further into the woods.

We were down to three lit torches now, as Jose had used his to attack the first tree where Christian's torch died when I pushed him to the ground, causing him to lose his grip on it.

Silently, sealing our lips and almost holding our breaths, we made our way with utter quietness.

We were playing with our lives, taunting the beats while stepping in their home as they slept. One move wrong, one word spoken a little too loud, one breath taken in wrong direction and we all would be losing our lives.

I stepped over a rock that gave away under my weight, slipping to its side while taking my foot, followed by my body to a harsh landing.

My shriek almost rolled out of my tongue when a hand covered my mouth while the other hand jumped at my waist to break my fall.

The automatic scream, muffled tightly by the hand sounded deaf to even my own ears.

Relief spread through my body as Christian settled me in the upright position, dropping a soundless kiss to my temple.

It was his way of letting me know that although he was not happy with this impulsive act, he would protect me at no cost. My heart swelled at his discreet message.

Our silent walk continued for an hour or so. Since we all were not running and walking with extreme care, trying not to trip or fall, it was taking us much longer than the last time.

But we were lucky that things were now calmed and we just had to silently cross the woods. It could have been much worse.

I shouldn't have thought that.

We were more than halfway through, none of us had utter a single word so far, intent on being alive.

And then, it all exploded.

Starting with a simple sneeze.

Something as simple and natural as a sneeze.

But this was Mia's sneeze we were talking about. There was nothing sophisticated about it.

Unable to control, she let out a humongous sneeze that I'd be surprised if people back in our dimension wouldn't have heard it.

The irritation in her nasal cavity caused her to loose her balance as she tripped over a rock and went down screaming.

Under any other circumstances, it would have been a normal, even a hilarious incident. But we were in the Brooke. Nothing done here was normal or funny. And everything, everything had its consequences.

Mia's sneeze Ana up the terrifying monsters all around us as the vibrations echoed in the silence. While she landed with a scream, several deadly branches followed the noise she had made a second ago, attacking at the person who was just behind her.

Me.

It all happened too fast, but for me it was like I was watching it in a slow motion. Entranced.

Christian pulled me to the ground with him but he was too late. Two branches grabbed at me. One coiling around my arm while the other slithered around my thigh.

The next second I was airborne.

My scream got stuck into my throat. Pure terror washing over me. I didn't dare breathe.

The branches continued jerking me. Brining my body in their direction, ready to devour me as their meal.

Only the were jerking me in to different directions.

It slowly dawned upon me that what was happening with me was worse than becoming a meal to one of these horrific creatures.

I was being made a meal for two. Two different trees were fighting for me.

Kyle.

His death played in my mind, making me sick. I didn't want to die like that. I won't.

It was the most undignified and horrendous way to die. Not to mention what would happen to others if they saw me going that way.

Jose would hollow out again. Emily would have a break down and Brandon would be devastated. Mia wouldn't survive this, blaming herself that her sneezing caused this. She loved me too much to watch me die here, like this.

And Christian...

This would kill him.

It would kill them all. And not in just figurative sense. Being here in the Brooke, they will slowly die or worse, become their captive again.

I couldn't let that happen. I have to protect them. I have to destroy the Brooke. I have to save Christopher and other innocent souls.

Awakening with a new strength that my will provided me, I blinked myself out of the trance. My body making me aware of my free arm that was still holding Christian's throwing knife.

Without wasting another second, I brought my arm, with full velocity, down to the branch wrapped at my wrist. Attacking it viciously.

As my senses came into play, stepping out of the dazed state, a loud disturbing cacophony reached my ears.

The sound was so distressing, filled with irritating anguish and clear evil. It took me a moment to understand where it was coming from.

The trees.

Not only were they alive, they were also... screaming. Like creatures banished from hell who have been hungry for a decade.

And I was going to satiate hunger of at least two of them.

"ANA!"

Christian's fearful scream traveled across the dissonance of the living woods.

The only reason he would do something this stupid, attracting these creatures towards himself was if he had lost his mind in fear.

Which usually happened when I was in deep, deep shit.

Which meant I was in deep, deep shit.

The jerking became stronger. Their pull now hurting my trapped limbs.

I worked faster, desperate to get free of the branches' hold. My wrist was bleeding, no doubt my thigh was too.

A sudden mass of flames erupted in a tree nearby, the fire consuming it whole as the branch around my wrist became lose.

Someone had lit one of the trees that were holding me bound.

God, bless the soul.

I easily cut down the now dead branch, freeing myself from its deadly grasp.

Only to be now fully pulled to the tree that had its branch tied at my thigh.

This time I couldn't hold back my terrorizing shriek.

"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!"

My voice came out in full force as if it was my last time opening my throat, letting my vocal cords be in use for the last time.

The next second, I was caught up in the tree, the sibling branches coming out to hold me more firmly, stab me, tear me apart.

And this time the fire couldn't save me. Unless I get burnt along with the tree.

My instincts took a hold of me. I twisted and turned, avoiding the twigs and limbs narrowly as I simultaneously worked on cutting the branch at my thigh.

A sharp offshoot stabbed me deep in my leg. I could feel it at the crack of my bone. Breathing through the pain became too hard. My palpitations grew stronger, indefinite. My vision blurring through the tears.

Yet my body continued working on freeing itself. My survival stimuli taking the best of me. Despite the scratches and the stabbing pain I continued cutting at my thigh, twisting and dodging the branches striking at my vital organs.

A reckless idea struck me and without thinking I acted on it, desperate to get free.

Taking aim at the one coiled tightly around my thigh, I impaled the knife forcefully at the branch. Puncturing it through its wooden body and into my thigh.

I gritted my teeth through the pain and twisted the knife. Effectively killed the branch and injuring myself furthermore.

But it worked and the twig lost its hold on me. I was free.

Not wasting another breath, I leaped down from the tree. The vicious limbs coming after me but not being able to reach me in time.

The tree had been taller than I thought. For a second I was frozen in the air, looking at the wild chaos around me.

I had no idea what has happened to others, if they were safe, if they were even here or not.

And suddenly nothing else mattered except the agony that raged within in my body as I landed with a thud, face-forward on the hard ground.

My vision tunneled into gray and red. spots, my mind turned off, my body working on its own as I dragged myself to a recently burning tree.

The fire and its engulfing flame so near to my face was the last sight, before the paralyzing fear and the blinding pain took over me.

Shutting off my body and making me go...

...blank.

Wheeww! That was a close call for Ana huh? What happened to Christian and others, though? Are they alright? Find out in the next chapter. Will be updating it in first week of April.

DO NOT FORGET TO REVIEW GUYS!

And do let me know your theories and speculations for what you think would happen to them in the Brooke. Your insight helps me a lot in writing the story XD

Love ya all,

Kaishi Springs xoxo