Nightmare (Natalie)

All I can think of is running, I can hear it coming behind me, giving chase like any predatory animal would do if they sensed easy prey. I know it’s catching me, the heavy footsteps following in my wake. I scan the wilderness looking for a way to escape this nightmare, but there’s nothing, no tree high enough, no branch long enough. My only hope is to keep running. Flashing back to seconds earlier, the look on my best friend’s face as the beast appeared from the shadows of the trees is all I can see. We were in the mountains camping for our summer vacation, enjoying our time away from school. When this summer ends, I will be going into senior year, getting ready for college and life ahead. Now everything has changed. Alexandria and I were just sitting on the logs that surround the flickering flames of the fire. We were roasting marshmallows and enjoying our freedom away from home. When it emerged. Alexandria saw it first.

At first it looked like a bear, but it was too big. Then it stepped out of the shadows allowing full view of its body. Its body a dark charcoal colour, with gigantic paws the size of small tyres. As it took a step forward, the claws that come out had to be at least 20cm long. Slowly I lifted my head to get a better look at its face, when suddenly it let out a blood curdling roar that blew Alexandria off her feet, and causes me to crumple to the ground. I looked up from my position and find that the beasts face represents a reptilian face, like the sort of thing teachers refer to as dinosaurs. Like the way they looked or would have looked like if they were still alive. Its darkness of its skin was like a night absent of the moon and stars, its eyes the only colour that can be seen on the hideous creature.

The eyes were hypnotic. As the scarlet red eyes stare at me, I realise this is a creature I have never seen before. The amount of times I have come into the Aurelian Spires by myself searching for creatures like this I have never found one quite so frightening. This time I have no weapon, no way of protecting myself, let alone my friend. So I did the only thing I could do to protect her. I got up and ran. This is where I am now, running for my life hoping beyond hope that Alexandria packs up and leaves. Behind me I can hear her calling my name

“Natalie, Nat can you hear me?” there’s a short pause before she says

“I’m going for help, please be okay!” I continue running, I don’t know how long or how far I have ran, but I keep going. I can’t give up, not with my whole life ahead. Suddenly the moonlight guiding my path disappears and I am surrounded in darkness. With no knowledge of which way to go, I hit something hard and I black out.

The next thing I know I wake up screaming in my bed, I shiver uncontrollably as the dried sweat makes my hair stick to my head. The sheets tangled at the foot of the bed, but my heart beat is already slowing because I’m at home safe and secure from any of those monsters out there in the woods. It was just a nightmare. In all the 17 years of my life, that would have to be the scariest nightmare I have ever had. I know I can’t go back to sleep after having a nightmare like that, so I get my phone out and check the time, its 2 in the morning I still have 5 hours until I have to get up. What am I going to do? I figure I could try calling Alexandria, she doesn’t like to sleep. So probably has a form of insomnia. After the first dial tone she picks up with a cheery

“Good morning Nat, what’s happening?” I have no idea, how she can be wide-awake right now. She probably has her boyfriend over. His name is Aaron, the relationship name I have given them is the double As. In a nice voice I reply

“Just had the scariest nightmare of my life. Why are you awake at 2 in the morning?” If I had of called anyone else, they would have ripped my head off for calling at such an ungodly hour.

“Oh, you poor baby, its okay it was just a nightmare.”

She purrs. There’s a short pause before she says
“Aaron is over and we are watching horror movies, my

parents are away for the week so they don’t know and Aaron’s parents think he’s at a friend’s house. Anyway must go, there is a movie waiting for me, and sleep waiting for you. Bye.” Well that was a bit abrupt, but I suppose it is 2 in the morning.

“Okay, bye.” Then she hangs up and I’m left in my bedroom, alone.

My eyes try to adjust to the darkness but my mind keeps thinking of the nightmare and I feel like something is watching me. I keep wondering if monsters like that are real, but I rule that out because it sounds so stupid. While I sit here in the darkness of my bedroom my heartbeat slows down and I am able to close my eyes without jumping at every noise I hear. I lay my head back against my soft feathery pillows and hope I will dream better dreams before morning or no dreams at all would be nice. As my breathing slows, my heart rate settles and my eyelids slowly droop as sleep draws be back into its embrace, the memory of the nightmare slowly disappears as well.