Sunday June 21, 2025

Everything hurts.

I should've never gone into the woods tonight. My body feels like hot lava burning at my skin. I was told when I was younger that I had a strange high tolerance for pain, especially at the age five. But this, this is on a whole new level.

My mom and dad are probably worrying about me, because I haven't gotten back yet from my nightly walks in the woods. I always walk through here. There is just something surreal to me to watch the forest come alive at night. I guess after a while you get us to it and never suspect the inevitable.

I never would have thought, in the last five years I've walked this wood, I'd be in such a predicament.

So, I lay here on the forest floor, questioning my choice to come here tonight, wishing that I never left the comforts of my room. Lots of horrible things flood my mind, things that I didn't want to think about. So, I shove them in the deepest part of my consciousness.

I think positive, like how my seventeenth birthday is in one week, and my mom and I planned ongoing shopping, then going to the movies.

I stare up at the sky. The full moon shines brightly against my chocolate-colored skin. I wonder if the moon is laughing at me, at my stupidity.

My legs burns where the wolf bit me. There is a massive ugly gash that continues to bleed, soaking the surrounding grass. Another wound is present on the side of my head, when I fell and hit it on a rock. It surprised me I didn't pass out right away.

If someone finds me, if I somehow survive this; I vow to never walk alone in the woods again. My little nightly adventures are officially over.

I close my eyes, hoping the pain running up my body from the bite would stop, that this is all just a joke.

No such luck. The pain is still there and seems to get worse each minute. Sweat and mud sticks to my body, making my clothes stick to me like a second skin.

Great, this is how I die

Tears slip down my cheek, mixing in with the sweat and dirt. The wind blows drying them, but not before more slip.

Don't cry Aliyah, I'm here now. I will guide you through your transition.

"Who's there?" I speak out loud into the open air, my voice dry as sandpaper. I didn't see or hear anyone approach me.

Now I've officially gone crazy. I guess death does that to a person.

You aren't crazy, Aliyah, and you will not die. Not on my watch. All I need you to do is to let go. Can you do that for me, Aliyah?

I open eyes and stare up at the moon. It hasn't moved, but it seems to have brightened.

"Let go? Let go of what?" I ask the mysterious female voice.

I need you to close your eyes and think of your favorite place to be. I need you to clear your mind, Aliyah, let yourself relax.

"Why?" I ask, wincing as the pain spreading through my body worsens. Thinking about my favorite place to be is the last thing on my mind right now, but I can't help thinking about the time my parents took me on my first camping trip.

Remembering the memory makes me smile even though it hurt to do so. I smile at the moon as the memory replays itself.

That's right, Aliyah, just let go. You don't have to worry about anything. It'll be all over when you wake up.

I close my eyes, following the strange voice's instructions, letting go of my body. A cool sensation travels across my skin, dousing the hot lava feeling I was experiencing moments ago.

Thank you, Aliyah. I will save us both now. You may rest, child.

I sigh, falling into a deep sleep.