Alone

The project work lengthened more than I thought. It was past 9 at night and I'm pedaling my bicycle to my home. "I should've called the cab, ", I thought as a pushed the pedal with great efforts to climb the hill. "Just a little more and then there's the slope."

It was the first week of the march and the temperature was still around 6-5 degree Celsius. It was cold, but I wore layers of clothing and on top of that I was riding a bike. Though it was just past 9 pm, the road I took earlier thinking it'd be a short cut, now seemed like an endless journey. I took a shortcut from Sudberg pond which goes through shrubs and bushes. They've installed road lamps on a certain distance sufficient to get enough light. Only the narrow pathway had been brightened, the surrounding was dark. I took this road many times, and that's why it wasn't much deal for me. (At least that's what I convinced myself!)

Only the hill was remaining. Once I climbed it down, then I'd take a tram from the station located there and would've reached home in 5 min. Yeah, I was thinking about using tram because of enough with the bike.

Suddenly, something flew through my eyes and I lost balance for a moment. I pressed the brakes immediately and stopped. I winked my eyes and looked at my surrounding. 'Must be a fly', that's what I thought at that time. I rode the bike again and as I was about to pedal again, I heard a scream. Kind of like a sound of an animal. I turned back and tried to look in the darkness. I felt my heart beating fast. 'Calm down.', I tried to convince myself and started pedaling. 'Almost reached at the top…', before even this thought gets completed into my mind something jumped in front of my bike from the dark. Some kind of creature?? I pressed both the brakes suddenly.

"Krr…"

I looked ahead. It was the head of a deer and… Lot of blood… Such a hideous scene it was! My heart started racing heavily. I felt something ominous. My instincts told me to run away. I took a bike and rode down the hill as fast as I could. All I wanted at that time was to run away from it as far as possible. As soon as I reached the bottom, I took the left turn and rode towards my home, forgetting my plans of taking the tram. Tiredness? What was that? I didn't feel it at that time. I didn't even sense the cold temperature around me.

"Beep!", I saw a car coming towards me with its headlight blinking, signaling me to stop. I stopped my bike immediately. The car stopped, and she came out of it.

'Ve...Vero..nica!', My lips trembled.

"J", She came running towards me. "What are you doing here this late?", she asked.

"Aa?", I was in a little daze. My heart was still racing from the incident back then.

"Jacob?", Veronica touched her hand to mine. "You're freaking cold!", She screamed as she touched my right wrist. "Come on! Let us drop you at home.", She almost pushed me in the backseat of her car.

"My… my bike…", Before even I finished my sentence, I saw her putting my bike in the boot of her car.

"Have this!", The man on the driver seat handled me a woolen shawl. I looked at him and recognized him immediately. It was Xavier. Veronica's elder brother. I took the shawl and said, "Thank you."

"You would've been dead if we didn't find you soon.", Veronica said fixing her seat belt.

I looked at her from the backseat and remembered what I saw. "You saw?", I asked subconsciously.

"Am? Saw what?", Veronica turned her face to me and ask. By then Xavier had started the car.

I waited for a moment. 'Will she trust me if I told her what I just saw?', I was thinking. 'Or will she think of me as a scardy cat? Will it be alright if I tell her?'

"Yeah we saw how frightened you were.", Immediately Veronica's voice came even before I can say anything. I looked at her. She was laughing. "Oh come on J, why did you come from this road then if you were so afraid of darkness?"

"I'm not", I said.

She laughed again. Whenever she laughs, her eyes crinkle at the corners, and that looked very cute. I was just looking at her face and forgot what happened a few minutes ago. My heartfelt at ease. If I'd have no work and she'd be in front of me every day, I'd watch her actions all day. Unknowingly, a smile must've spread across my face because Veronica asked, "What are you laughing about?"

I regained my composure and nodded as nothing. She turned to the front and talked with her brother something. I rest my back and started observing her from behind.

"What were you doing there?", The question came from Xavier.

"Oh, I went to Jamie's home for the project and were on my way to the home. It was a shortcut.", I replied.

"Don't use such shortcuts. They can be dangerous you know.", Xavier warned.

"And use cab next time.", He added.

I nodded my head and get out of the car as it reached my home.

"Come in and let's have a coffee.", I bent down and invite the siblings home.

"Some other time bud. We are in a hurry.", Veronica said. She was fixing her makeup by then. 'Must be Friday partying.', I thought.

"Thank you for the ride.", I extended my hand to Xavier. He reached out too and shake hands with me. I smiled and took a few steps behind. They drove their car off. As their car disappeared, I turned back and walked towards home, refreshing my memory of Veronica today. The way she ran toward me and held my hand.

'Oh my god!'

I was blushing even with the thought.

'The hand! I'm not going to wash my hand.'

In the moment of thought, I lifted my right hand to open my palm.

'Blood?!!', I was puzzled. There were few stains of blood on my palm. I turned back to see the car but it was disappeared long back and I was there, standing alone on the road to somewhere I didn't even know by then.