Midnight Prey

Chapter 6

Emma 

I haven’t been to the forest since my father was brutally killed deep inside the forest but today, I feel like something keeps calling out to me from within the forest. It pulls at the chords of my heart begging me to step into the dark abyss.

I stepped inside the forest and it was so black that I couldn’t even see in front of me. I let my eyes get adjusted to the blackness of the forest and blinked my way deep inside.

I stood in the middle with huge trees towering over my tiny body. I felt trapped and cornered. I took deep breaths to calm my erratic heartbeats. The wind brushed passed my hair, its whooshing sound caressing my earlobe. I felt a smile on my face. Peace. Now, I feel peaceful.

I spread my arms wide at my sides and with my eyes closed I twirled around. Once and then twice. A giggle escaped passed my mouth and I felt no pressure at the back of my head. No pain. No nightmares. Nothing. I was happy again and I wanted to capture this moment and store it away from all the problems and sorrows in my life.

Far away, I could hear the sound of a waterfall. I walked deeper into the forest to reach to the waterfall. There was a bend in the trees where a new path started and the closer I got, the more clearer I could hear the sound of water splashing and hitting the ground.

My eyes widened at the sight. The water looked like a crystal waterfall. The moonlight hit the water with its glow and it looked like a dream. ‘’Wow.’’ I muttered under my breath. That was all I could muster. I walked nearer to the edge of the path to look closer. I wanted to stay here for eternity. I had never left as peaceful as I felt in this moment.

I turned my head to my left and a gasp escaped my lips as I saw a man hunched near a huge rock with his back against it and his legs clad in denim jeans spread out in front of him. He had a leather journal in his lap and a pencil in his hands. His head was bowed down as he moved his pencil with gentle strokes against the page of the leather journal.

I was intrigued by him and I wanted to look at what had captured his attention. The small pieces of rocks crunched under my feet as I walked towards him. His head snapped to me and he extracted a small knife from his black cloak on the ground in a defensive move. He relaxed his stance as he saw it was me and not someone who he was expecting.

I felt my heartbeat increase as I recognized that he was the devilishly handsome man with magnificent eyes I saw in the bus that day. He stared at me with silent questioning eyes. ‘’What are you doing here?’’ his raspy and deep voice played tricks with my heart. I felt tongue-tied.

He raised an eyebrow waiting for an answer.

‘’I…I was just passing by when the waterfall captured my attention.’’ I stuttered.

Dammit Emma, when did you forget how to speak?

‘’It is quite a scenery isn’t it?’’ He asked with a smug look on his face. ‘’I often come here in search of peace. Have you ever tried diving down to the bottom of the waterfall? I am certain you haven’t.’’ He had a smirk on his face and that added to his already endearing charm.

‘’No, I haven’t. What’s it like?''

He leaned closer so that our noses touched and whispered, ‘’Like death.’’ I jerked my head back with alarm and looked at him in shock. He seemed unaffected by my reaction and leaned back against the rock with his eyes closed. He wasn’t smirking anymore. His face had a dark and brooding expression.

‘’Don’t you know that it is rude to stare at someone?’’ His sudden raspy voice made me jump in fright.

How did he know I was staring? He has his eye closed.

‘’I wasn’t staring at you. I was just observing you.’’ I scowled and sat back on the balls of my feet. A long silence stretched between us.

‘’So…’’ I tried to start a conversation.

‘’Shut up!’’ My mouth hung open at his rude comment and I wrinkled my nose in anger.

‘’Did you just…how dare you?’’ I stood up from the ground angrily and stomped away from his sight. I heard him whistle a tone as I walked away from him back to my house.

I returned back home and opened the front door only to see my mother sitting at the dining table. She had a picture frame in her hand. It was the picture of my father with his arm wrapped around my mother's waist. They looked so happy. Grinning from ear to ear. They were considered as the best couple and everyone adored them. The soft light from the kitchen intensified the pain in my mother's eyes. She shut her eyes tightly and hugged the picture frame close to her heart. My heart broke into tiny pieces at the sight and I turned away and walked out closing the front door behind me. 

I sat down on the front porch and looked up at the full moon. It shone so bright yet its shine did not lessen the burden that I felt and the sadness that my heart carried. 

Bella Mia!  

That is what my father used to call my mom, his voice laced with so much love and adoration. 

I miss him. I miss his warmth. I miss his loud boisterous laugh that caused his belly to dance along. 

He cupped my hands once and told me. My sweet daughter, life is too beautiful to be looked at with just a glance. Life must be lived to the fullest. Life is supposed to drown you and fill up your lungs with nothing but happiness. If life does not treat you right, don't fret about it. Life is a gamble. Let life flow you and take you to your destination.

A sad smile graced my lips as his memories flooded my brain. I lifted my hand to the sky and waved in hope that he is watching over us.

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