Beyond the Yard

Dinnertime
"So, how do you like it here, Hazel?" Kendra's Grandfather asked.

I looked up from my food. "It's amazing, Mr. Sorenson!" I marveled.

"Thank you, dear!" Mrs. Sorenson said.

"Just call us Stan and Ruth from now on, okay?" Kendra's grandfather said.

I nodded and went back to my food. Tonight, we were eating steak and mashed potatoes. The food was amazing! The steak was tender and juicy and became more flavorful with each bite. The mashed potatoes were soft and creamy and looked like little clouds on a plate. I licked my lips with a satisfied look on my face.

"Compliments to the chef," I said my mouth watering.

"You're welcome," said Ruth with a big, wrinkly smile spreading across her face.

After I finally ate the last scrap of steak, I put my dish in the sink and walked towards the door.

"Hey where are you going?" Seth asked.

"Oh I was just going to go to the yard to watch the butterflies," I lied.

"Don't go out for too long, alright?" Ruth called after me as I walked out the door.

Finally! I could go to the forest! I had waited for so long I thought I was going to explode! I quickly dashed to the edge of the yard.

"Don't worry, I'll be back soon," I whispered as if Ruth or someone else was there.

I stared at the forest ahead of me. Here I go. I dashed in and jumped over a couple of bushes before I stopped to take it all in. There were butterflies everywhere! The trees where a beautiful green, the bushes were full of berries. It's breathtaking! I began to trot through the shrubbery to see if I could find a neat little clearing or tree. I passed by a couple of trees that I climbed but not too high because I was just a little afraid of heights.

As I climbed down one tree, I saw noticed two goats hiding behind a bush. Not wanting to scare them away, I slowly approached them.

"Hi there. My name is Hazel Patterson," I said calmly to attract the two creatures.

They stepped out from behind the bush and shied a little closer. Wow, I've never seen real goats before!

"Aren't you two cute," I said getting closer.

The two goats suddenly froze and galloped away out of sight. I smacked my forehead and my face flushed with embarrassment. I felt pretty stupid talking to a pair of goats.

Curious of where the goats ran off to, I walked off in the direction they went. I didn't get much luck in finding them, though. Nothing very interesting happened for a while and I decided to turn back.

But suddenly, in the distance, I saw what look like a hedge. I quickly ran up to it and looked around. There's no entrance. Having no other choice I crawled under the hedge. When I came up on the other side, my mouth hung open in awe. In the middle of the clearing, there was a dark, foggy lake with a boathouse on the far side. In the center of the lake stood a small island. Surrounding the lake were a circle of white gazebos. What in the world is this doing here? I walked to the nearest gazebo and found a bowl of pinkish liquid inside. Is that punch? I didn't think so, but I was curious to what it tasted like. I bent down and sniffed it. It had a salty and sweet aroma. Kind of like the ocean. I slowly raised the bowl to my lips and took a sip of it. Ugh! It tasted horrible. I dumped the nasty liquid out on the grass. I quickly ran down to the lake, refilled the bowl with water, and guzzled it all down. I trudged over to the gazebo and set down the bowl.

I felt light-headed. Maybe I should go back. I quickly walked to the hedge and crawled under it. Slowly walking back to the house, I thought about how I should never drink strange liquids again. My head started throbbing, and I groaned. This isn't good. I have to get back. I broke into a run and the throbbing increased tenfold.

"Aaaahhhh!" I cried out in pain.

What is happening to me? I ran faster, not caring about the throbbing. My vision started to blur as tears streamed down my face.

"Make it stop!" I screamed in agony.

I could see the lights of the house now. I can make it.

"I can make it, I can make it, I can make it…," I whispered to myself barely able speak now.

I burst into the yard. I was almost to the porch. 15 feet…10 feet…5 feet. I tripped and slammed my head hard on the ground.

"Ugh," I moaned.

I heard the door swing open and a scream.

"Hazel! Hazel! Hazel, can you hear me?" a female voice cried.

I tried to keep myself awake, but it was no use. I stopped my efforts as the world faded into black and all was silent.

PLEASE READ!

Hey readers, for those of you that know what just happened to Hazel, I know I made this super dramatic and this did not occur in the book. But it would be really boring if I didn't write this, and I hope you agree. Please write a review if you didn't like this dramatic chapter and I will make it less dramatic. I hope you enjoyed! XD