At first, I was surprisingly calmed. The night air whistled around me, filling me with peace instead of unease. It felt like I was in the daytime during a windy day, except much darker. It was even easier if I closed my eyes, though I had to open them when I almost tripped over a tree root.
"This is easy," I bragged out loud. "I actually kind of like taking walks at night." That was a lie, but I wanted to convince myself of that. "It feels so peaceful."
"It is," Amber agreed. "It feels like you're all alone with the night, as if the world is asleep except for you."
"Wow. Poetic, Amber," remarked Caroline. Amber stuck her tongue out at her.
As we continued through the camp, I tried to avoid looking at the night sky. Despite how at ease I felt, I was still wary of the sky spread out above me. I felt looking up at it would cause my stomach to fill with fear yet again.
"The stars are beautiful tonight, aren't they?" I heard Amber remark.
"I'll take your word for it," I quipped.
"Don't tell me you're too afraid to look at the sky," Caroline teased. I raised my head slightly and saw her head tilted upwards. "It really is beautiful. Hey, what's that constellation?"
"It looks like a castle to me," said Amber, squinting.
"I think it's a dinosaur," added Caroline.
I felt left out, but I didn't join them. I didn't think I had to, anyway. I could almost feel the stars shining down on me, making the back of my neck prickle. The unease was starting to set in.
Caroline must've noticed my unease, because she said, "Hey, why don't we head towards the baseball diamond?"
"A diamond?" Amber said, her gaze still focused on the sky. "No, I think it's a—"
"Let's just leave her," Caroline whispered loudly to me, grabbing my arm.
Amber heard that. "I'm coming!"
As we headed to the baseball field, it looked even more different under the starlight. The grass seemed to gleam, casting a pale silver glow over the entire field. It didn't look green, or even black. As we approached, I felt a sudden shudder go down my back. It made the back of my neck stand up from the coldness, almost like a warning, but I didn't retreat.
Once we were in the field, I felt the same feeling through my whole body, multiplied by a dozen. It filled me with both chilling cold and a strange kind of warmth, from the top to the bottom of my body. I closed my eyes and felt it washing down over me. It felt like the stars were raining – no, that they were beaming rays of light down, the same way the sun did. I felt it as much as I did the sunlight in the morning.
It wasn't a bad feeling. It was actually rather peaceful. I felt peace overtake me along with the strange feeling, almost giving me the urge to lie down on the field and doze off. It felt like a blanket being draped over me, almost like the gentle sunlight did during the daytime while I was sitting under a tree. But then, that feeling was replaced with sheer panic, and my eyes shot open.
It was just like in the story. Hadn't the boy felt the starlight as vividly as the sunlight as well? I gazed around the field, the beautiful sight seeming horrifying to me now. I felt a sudden urge to gaze up at the sky, but I fought it, keeping my eyes locked on the ground. The urge was too tempting, and my head began to tilt upwards. I forced it to snap down and closed my eyes shut. Then I tried to run out of the field with my eyes closed.
"Where are you going, Adelaide?" I barely felt someone grab my arm. The voice sounded calm and spacey. I could almost hear the laughter in it. I couldn't tell who it was.
"The fun's just starting," someone else added.
"No!" I cried, opening my eyes. Amber and Caroline were smiling at me, but something about it sent a shudder down my back (and I was sick of feeling those by now).
They seemed to snap to their senses as soon as my eyes snapped open. "You're not leaving now, are you?" Amber asked, tightening her grip on my arm.
"I think it's time to head back to the cabin," I managed to say, trying to focus on her gaze. I could tell she had been looking at the sky. There was something strange about her eyes, as if they were glassy and clouded over. "D... don't want to get in trouble with the counselors."
"You can't go yet," Caroline insisted, grabbing my other arm. She started giggling. I thrashed my arms frantically, but couldn't get them out of the girls' grip. They were staring at me with a hungry look in their eyes. It was horrifying, but there was also something... sad about it. Something desperate and lonely.
I cried out and shook my arms back and forth. Amber let go of one, but that didn't offer me any relief as she then placed her hand under my chin and tried to tilt it upwards, towards the bright night sky. I let out a cry as my head was turned towards the glistening sky...