Page 40 of Scream For Me
I hold my breath, waiting for a sound to give up his location so I can run in the opposite direction. Rain drips from the branches overhead, each drop hitting the forest floor with a dull patter that mirrors the frantic thudding of my heart. My ears strain for anything out of place. Any sound that will tell me where he is.
A twig snaps somewhere to my left. My entire body jerks. I press my hand over my mouth before a gasp can escape, my fingers smearing mud and debris across my face. My lungs burn from holding the breath in, but I don’t dare let it out.
If he hears…
Another whistle cuts through the trees. Closer this time. Slower. Like he already knows exactly where I am, and he’s taunting me. He’s a viper, and I’m caught in his pit.
My muscles scream as I stay curled behind the tree, my calves trembling from the chill and the run. I count my breaths in my head, trying to keep them silent.
One.
Two.
Three.
Wait… that third breath wasn’t mine.
Before I can rise to my feet, pain explodes across my scalp as I’m tugged upwards by my hair. I scream. I thrash. I kick. But it’s no use because the second I open my eyes, I see him.
“What did I tell you, princess? You can’t run from me. I’ll always find you,” he sneers as his pitch-black eyes roam down my body. My dress is so torn from the forest—there’s little he can’t see.
I thrash and kick again, my knee connecting with his abdomen, but he doesn’t even react.
“Shhh, you know I don’t like it when we fight,” he coos, taking my face in both hands and petting my hair, scattering kisses over my forehead. He pulls back with a look of sympathy on his face.
I know better than to think it’s real.
“You’ll need to be punished for this. You know the rules.” His voice is sickly sweet as he continues to pet me.
My body goes rigid in anticipation. He turns me around, my back pressing into his chest, his warm body doing nothing to ease the chill deep in my bones. I feel his breath on my neck as he twists my nipple. I cry out in pain. The sound echoes through the aether.
He laughs. “I’m going to have so much fun with you tonight, princess.”
He rummages through his jacket pocket with his free hand. I glimpse the syringe seconds before the sharp sting in my neck.
Then—nothing.
My torso lifts from my mattress, and my eyes shoot open, stinging from the morning sun peeking through the curtains. My heart hammers in my chest as my eyes adjust to my surroundings. The chill from the forest is gone, replaced by something firm and springy. I look around and ease out a breath.
Bed, desk, dresser, record player. I’m home. I’m safe.
My chest heaves as if I’ve been running for miles. For a moment, I can still feel his hand in my hair. There’s a phantom burn across my scalp, making my fingers twitch as if I should be clawing it away. But there’s nothing there—just tangled sheets and the pale morning light creeping across my ceiling.
I drag my hands down my face, forcing myself to breathe slower. In through my nose. Out through my mouth. Self-Care 101. It works eventually, as my body grows limp and I flop back into my bed, ignoring the cold, damp layer of sweat coating my sheets. I’ve had a rough couple of days—is it any wonder that I’ve reverted to fucking night terrors? It’s been a few months since my last one. I thought I was doing better, but I guess my brain had other plans.
After far too long lying in my own sweat, I flip my legs over the side of the bed and pad towards the shower. The warm water eases my muscles and I let out a sigh with the tingly sensation. I stand there longer than necessary, letting the water fall over my head until it starts to run cooler. Steam fills the small bathroom, fogging the mirror and softening the edges of everything around me.
No forest. No rain. No whistle. Just the steam in my bathroom and the faint hum of the pipes in the walls.
Eventually, the water turns cold, and I’m forced to shut off the shower. I wrap a towel around myself and head into the kitchen. I hum to myself as I place the coffee filter in the machine. The rhythmic sound of grinding coffee adds an accidental symphony to my hum.
Losing myself in this black hole,
The static shifts, I feel the change,
I move, but I’m under your pull,
But I’m out of range.
