He couldn't move. Wherever he was, Andrew had no control of his feet. He was standing, but every time he blinked, his vision went from a burning house to a snowy grave. One minute, he was alone with the flames; the next, he was around faceless figures. Eventually, with enough blinks, he remained at the grave. The blank stares were the same, except for one. He recognized the young man on the side, with dried tears on his cheeks as he looked at one of the headstones. The one written… that can't be right. The lettering started with a M, but he couldn't read the rest.

Suddenly, the young man turned to Andrew. It was like looking in a mirror until the man's tuxedo faded into linen clothing. The cawing of the birds and murmurs of people stopped as he spoke. "Save her."

Andrew tried to step away as he approached, but it was as if his feet were frozen to the ground. "What-what the hell are you talking about?" Then, the young man launched himself at Andrew, grasping his wrists with two deathly pale hands, feeling as though he was trying to rip the appendage off. "Get off of me!" Two voids of darkness, where eyes should've been, stared back at him with black blood dripping from the mouth.

"SAVE HER!"

A gush of air abruptly seized him. When people dream about falling and hitting the ground, ironically, it brings them back to life. Andrew's vision started to get more precise. John was kneeling in front of him, probably examining him for injuries, with Taylor in the background, her phone raised up, trying to get a signal. She was asked where Daniel was, but the professor didn't know.

"What happened?" He asked when he felt like he could speak again. He could feel his head pounding from something.

"The bus crashed, turned over, and nearly got us all killed," John answered. "But with how you seem, I think we're all okay. But let me make sure you don't have a mild concussion. What's your name?"

"Andrew Roberts."

"How old are you?"

"18."

"Who am I?"

"Professor John."

"How do we know each other?"

"I'm a college student in your class."

"Yes. We were on our way to a field trip. Sadly, a bus crash wasn't part of this curriculum." The older man joked but cleared his throat when it left an awkward atmosphere.

"Though Melissa isn't-" Saying her name started his heart. He couldn't see his little sister anywhere. "Melissa!" He began to sit up but immediately regretted it when he felt the ache in his limbs.

"Don't worry; I'm sure she hasn't gone far," John reassured him, trying to get Andrew to lay back. "Now that we know you only have a couple of bumps and bruises, we can go look for her."

"We need to look for Daniel too! He could be hurt." Taylor added as she gave up trying to find a signal on her phone.

John approached her. "Look, we were just in a bus crash. We're running on adrenaline, so we need to take a moment to breathe. Daniel, Melissa, and Angela won't want us running in circles. Okay?" Taking a deep breath, Taylor nodded.

"ANDREW!"

He recognized his little sister's voice instantly. Ignoring the pain, he got to his feet and jogged to the front of the trio. "Melissa! Where are you?"

There was nothing down the road, but suddenly, the bushes shuffled, and Melissa emerged from them. Once she saw Andrew, she screamed his name and ran to him. He gathered her into his arms, letting out the heavy breath he was holding. "Thank God." Once he reminded himself that she was alive, he let go and looked over her for injuries. "Are you hurt? What happened?"

"I-I…I don't know!" She panicked. "I woke up in the woods. And I could hear these voices, so I thought I wasn't alone. Then I saw the girl-"

"What girl?" John joined in, and he and Taylor came behind Andrew.

Melissa's green eyes widened briefly, probably forgetting that more people were on the bus with them. Andrew could tell she was trying to talk, but she still wasn't used to talking freely to his classmates and professor. "It's okay, Meli. Take a deep breath." He instructed her, placing his hands on her shoulder to ground her.

She listened, and he felt her tense shoulders drop. "The girl that…was in front…the one the bus avoided. She was right in front of me, just laughing."

"The bus driver!" John suddenly interrupted. "Alright, I think we all need to start looking for the others. We need to keep clear heads."

While the man was right, he wanted to hear what Melissa had to say. Maybe she'll have more to say once they start moving. Andrew stood up and offered Melissa his hand, which she quickly took. He can't imagine the fear going around her mind right now. After all, his anxiety was causing some of his symptoms to act up, but he pushed them down for her. He had to be the reassurance she needed.

The group walked over to the bus. John noticed its back tilting down as if hanging on a ledge. Going over, the man began to call out, "Daniel, are you there?"

"John?!" A voice called from below. The group looked over and saw Daniel and Angela at the bottom, both looking unharmed. Daniel's eyes went to Taylor, and he let out a laugh. "Boy, are we glad to see you!"

"Daniel! Thank God you're alright." Taylor announced with a smile.

Angela raised her hand. "I'm alright too, thanks for asking. Nothing I couldn't handle." She said sarcastically. Andrew noticed Taylor rolling her eyes at that.

After Daniel asked the professor what caused the crash, Melissa appeared behind her brother to get a better look. "Melissa! You okay, little lady?"

"Uh, yeah. Just freaked out right now." She answered timidly.

"Aren't we all?" Daniel joked, and Andrew was relieved to see a shy smile appear from the girl. "Say, is the bus driver okay?"

"I don't think he's up here," Andrew answered, turning to Melissa and asking if she saw him in the woods. When she shook her head, he turned back to his two classmates. "Maybe he's down there somewhere with you. Think you could keep an eye out?"

"I highly doubt he's even-" Angela stopped her sentence when she saw Melissa as if remembering that she couldn't bring down the current mood with her theory. After a moment, she continued. "Sure, I saw a path nearby when I woke up. Daniel and I will head that way to see if we can find him and meet back with you on the road."

"Great, sounds like a plan!" John called back. He turned back to his group and clapped his hands together. "Okay, who's ready to do some character-building exercise?"

Taylor rolled her eyes again as she walked ahead. "I swear, by the end of this, he'll be making dad puns. Anyway, why don't we stay with the bus? They'll be coming down the road anyway."

John took a breath before looking at her. "Look, it's late, and we'll most likely be here for hours. The bus can't even open because of the damage. If we head for town with the others, we can find a stable place to wait for help with a roof over our heads. Besides," He gestured to Melissa. "We need to find her a place to rest."

When Taylor glanced at the girl, Melissa hid behind Andrew. Her brother placed a hand on her head. "She's right, Meli. Let's find a place that's safe for you."

Melissa glanced at him with an unsure look. "For all of us."

He hated it when she noticed he wanted to protect her above himself. But arguing was no use; she was just as stubborn as he was. "For all of us." He repeated reassuringly.

Nodding, Melissa grabbed his hand, ready to follow the group.

As they walked, Andrew began to see something about Taylor that he hadn't fully processed. "Oh my God. Taylor, you're neck!"

"What about it?" Taylor stopped walking and placed her hand on her neck. Her fingers brushed over the bumpy, burnt skin, and the charcoal-like color didn't fade. Andrew couldn't tell if it looked like something strangled her or something burned her. "What the hell?! I don't remember getting this."

"Easy! Maybe you got it during the crash." John said.

"How?! The bus didn't catch on fire! And this weird black stuff won't come off, so it's not even dirt or smoke." Taylor responded as she began to rub at her neck aggressively. Still, nothing came off, and the mark remained wrapped.

"Maybe the town has a hospital. Or even a doctor. They can look at it." Andrew suggested. "Let's keep moving, and someone can help you."

Taylor took a shaky, deep breath. "I guess you're right."

Melissa walked around Andrew and slowly approached Taylor. "I think it makes you look cool, Taylor. Almost like a tattoo."

Taylor was startled by that. Even Andrew was. Only hours ago (he assumed it was that timeframe; his phone was long dead so that he couldn't tell the time) did both siblings agree that they were terrible at socializing. Maybe this experience is forming a new self-confidence in Melissa that Andrew didn't know about until now. "You think so?" Taylor finally asked.

"Mmhmm!" Melissa nodded again before backing up and grabbing Andrew's hand again.

"Hey, I see a sign up ahead!" John interrupted, bringing everyone's attention to his flashlight up ahead.

The sign was faded and old, but the bright-colored frames and lettering were still visible. But there was a word in graffiti that covered one of the spaces. "Welcome to Little ABANDON Hope!"

"This town is called Little Hope?" Melissa questioned.

"Or what it used to be." Andrew clarified. He heard of Little Hope. He heard about it in his history class, but the subject was not coming to him, probably because of his hit to the head. Either way, this wasn't the good sign that they needed right now, quite literally.

"Damn teenagers. They'll never appreciate the landmarks of our past." John grumbled as they continued past the sign. "Little Hope is a historical place. You two should be learning about it right now."

"Easy, Einstein." Taylor mused, skipping ahead of the older man. "I've got a friend named Siri on speed dial to outsmart you."

"And where is your smart friend now? Signal-less, wasn't it?"

Andrew quickly covered Melissa's eyes as the redhead flipped off their professor, though he was failing to hide his own grin.

They reunited with Daniel and Angela soon after, separated by the town's fence. Melissa began to feel uneasy as Taylor and her boyfriend used a crowbar to open the gate. The kind of feeling she would feel sometimes when she was at school. Eyes watching her from a distance.

She turned around (Andrew was talking amongst the group, so he didn't notice her). There was nothing there, but she continued to search among the woods. It couldn't be the little girl she had seen before. She did not indicate she was shy like Melissa, not with that laugh. So she wouldn't be one to hide and watch. No, this time, it felt like someone different was observing them.

A branch broke nearby, which gave her all the confirmation she needed. "Andrew!" She tugged her brother's arm. He quickly got her attention. "Someone's watching us!" She whispered, pointing to the area of the woods that began making noise. She knew Andrew had heard it, too, and his body stiffened.

Andrew nodded and stood in front of her protectively. "Hey! Whoever you are, come on out! We know you're there!" He demanded, loud enough to interrupt the group's conversation.

After a few seconds, something emerged from the dark. Everyone instantly recognized their bus driver, who was clearly alive and clearly scared.