Hey guys, I don't even know if anyone reads my stories… but whatever, I like to write.

Chapter 3

The Dream

I was with my friends at the park. There was a warm glow around anything, and for a second, I thought

that this was real life. That I had never been…. Kidnapped? I don't know… But sadly, I could tell that this

was a dream. That my friends were just an illusion my mind had created. I was sitting on the emerald

green grass, and the sky was so clear…. I looked around and recognized my friends. There they were…

they seemed so real… I saw Lauren, Morgan, and Megan… Tiffany, Nick, and Ben… And so many others...

A tear fell from my eye, and it seemed so real… There were my friends, and I loved them… and they

loved me… We were all sitting together, and we were all laughing. We talked and talked with one

another. I was so happy. Joey, another friend, turned to me. "Why are you crying?" he asked

"Nothing, it's nothing," I stated. "I'm just happy to see you guys, and I'm gonna miss you all so much"

"What are you talking about?" asked Lauren.

"I-I just…. You see…" I stopped. Just then, the sky turned black. We all looked up to see many dark

clouds beginning to roll in. "That's strange," exclaimed Morgan.

"We're gonna have to leave," Ben sighed. "It'll probably rain."

"What a shame…." I whispered as another tear trickled down my check.

"Dahlia, what is up with you?" asked Nick. Everyone started to get up and pack up the stuff they had

brought. I looked around. Oh my god. Everything was turning black, pitch black. I turned around and

looked at the forest. I was horrified by what I saw. "MEGAN, LOOK OUT!" I screeched. But it was already

too late. Out from the woods a huge, death black hand reached out, and grabbed her. Megan screamed

and began to cry. So was I. "HELP ME, HELP!" she cried. "PLEASE HELP ME!" The hand squeezed her and

she melted into this silver goo. "MEGAN, NO!" I yelled. Then all of these black hands came up from

under the ground and started pulling my friends under. They all had these terrible, horrified looks on

their faces. Waterfalls, streaming from their eyes. "HELP US DAHLIA," they all shouted at once. "HELP

US…"

"NO!" I screamed. "NO, NO, NO! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! NO!"

"FIGHT FOR US, DAHLIA!" they screamed. "WE THOUGHT YOU LOVED US!"

"I DO, I DO!" I wailed. "I PROMISE I DO!" My knees buckled and I fell to the ground. The black hands

wrapped around them stopped, and stood still. All my friends stared at me, they still had this tormented

look on their faces. Is it over? Are they okay? I looked up and stared at each and every one of my

friends. "Are you guys okay?" I whispered. The hands immediately squeezed their bodies. They

screamed. I screamed. The deathly hands pulled them down into the ground. This was a terrible dream,

but it felt so real! I didn't even have time to say goodbye! I heavily sobbed and another hand came up

from the ground. It grabbed my body, and I almost wanted to be taken into the ground by these hands.

I wanted to see my friends… Snap out of it, Dahlia! This is a dream this is a dream! The hands squeezed

me tight and pulled me into the moist soil.

I immediately woke up, though I kept my eyes closed. I

don't know what's going on. I felt all sweaty and gross… ew. My heart felt so empty, I just watched my

friends "die". I mean, I know they are all okay in real life, but still… Wait Dahlia, snap out of it! Okay.

Deep breaths. I need to focus on what is happening right now. I tried to sit up but I felt a hand on my

chest. It's the man! He's going to kill me! I opened my eyes and started throwing my hands

everywhere and kicking. "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU FILTHY ROTTEN THING!" I screeched. I felt the

hands push harder on my chest. "It's okay, I won't hurt you" a voice told me. "You're safe, I won't hurt you"

"I WILL NOT DIE! NOT TODAY, HO HO HO! GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME AND LETS FIGHT FOR REAL! YOU…"

but I stopped immediately. I focused on my surroundings and felt kinda embarrassed. There was a light

with bugs swarming it directly above my head. I was on a hard floor, and I was covered in sweat, dirt,

blood, and some glass shards. I was surrounded by some kids who were about my age. I saw two girls

and a man. One of the girls had bleach blond hair and tan skin. She looked at me with concern and she

was holding a cool cloth on my forehead. The other girl had both hands on my chest holding me down.

She had a dirty t-shirt on and a green jacket. Her hair was spiky black and she looked at me like I was

some sort of creature. Then I looked at the man. I nearly had a heart attack because he was a….. But I'd

only heard of those things in books and….. He's a centaur. He had a white coat and a brown, scruffy

beard. "She looks like she belongs in the trash," said the girl with the black hair.

"Thalia!" lectured the man. "You know you shouldn't say that, and she's awake too! She heard you" You

bet I did. "Thalia, is that really necessary?" the blonde asked. She looked at me. "It's okay, your safe."

I looked at everyone one more time and passed out.