The Woods - A Short Story

The car sits on an abandoned back road. There is a light drizzle that is fogging up the air. I awaken to the sound of thunder in the distance. I come out of my heroin induced coma to a darkening sky. The day is closing to an end. Sitting up in the front seat, I wipe the saliva from my chin. I remove the band from my arm and hide the needle under the seat. Fixing my hair in the mirror, I wonder how long I was out. Noticing the car keys are missing, I start searching around in the dim light, feeling with my hand to locate them. Moving my hand across the leather seat and finally to the floor under my feet, I locate them. Inserting the key into the ignition, I turn the engine on with little effort. I find the switch for the headlights and turn them on to see.

I guess I need to turn around and find my way back out.

I put the car in drive, in order to attempt a u-turn on the narrow dirt road and press the gas pedal with my right foot. The car jerks forward, but moves no further than an inch. There is a slapping sound in the rear of the vehicle. I change the car into reverse, but it only moves another inch and then the sound of mud and gravel hitting the underside of the car starts again.

I’m an idiot.

Stepping out of the vehicle, I notice the ground is soggy under foot and a chill brushes my face. I walk to the rear of the vehicle and see that the car is paralyzed and covered in the mud and muck. Its rear tires have sank into the ground, leaving no way out.

I look around searching for my bearings, but it is no use. I’m lost and the hundreds of pine trees offer no help. Standing outside the vehicle, shivering from my lack of layers, I check my cell phone. No signal.

Great. What do I do now?

Grabbing the few possessions I have in the vehicle, I start walking back down the road, the way from which I came. I reach into my bag and grab a cigarette from the pack. After retrieving the lighter from my pocket, I light my Marlboro. I breathe in the vapors, holding them in my lungs, until finally releasing them when I can’t hold it in any longer. Normally, having a smoke helps to calm my nerves. Today, it does not. I’m lost in the woods and the thought of death looms in the back of my mind.

When will it happen? How will it happen? Will I die from thirst, lack of food, a wild animal or hypothermia? Or, worst of all, heroin withdrawal? I don’t want to know the answer and one option does not sound better or less painful than the rest.

The mud has started to cover the hem of my jeans and my feet are cold and wet in the flats that I wear. I continue to bring the cigarette back and forth to my lips, while I come up with a plan to stay alive.

I feel absolutely hopeless. The negative thoughts come flooding into my mind making me want to give up. All I wanted, was to find a quiet place where I couldn’t be disturbed. A place I could let loose without the trouble of the police. I’ve really done it now.

I walk in silence as I finish the cigarette, tossing it carelessly to the ground.

No! I won’t go out this way. This is not the end! All I have to do is follow the road back the way I came. Once I get to the main road I can find some help.

I continue to move under the canopy of trees following the turns in the road. Other than the rain, the woods are silent. The animals must be seeking shelter from the rain. In the distance, the sky lights up as lightning spirals across the sky. The electric waves in the sky, cast shadows in the woods, making the dark crevasses even darker.

I walk to the edge of the woods to watch, waiting for the next flash in the sky. Staring at a spot in particular, as the next flash hits the sky, I see a glint of light in the darkness. I keep watching as the bumps on my arm rise, causing the hairs to stand. Another flash. The glint of light is closer, only it’s not just one, it’s two. An unbreakable chill runs through my body starting at my head. I’m rooted to the spot, too afraid to move. Another flash, it’s even closer. This time the sky stays lit long enough for me to see it blink.

Run.

My fear becomes my motivation. I pick my feet up and start to move swiftly back down the road. Too scared to look behind, I focus on nothing else except moving forward.

Don’t look back. Just keep going.

My focus breaks into a million pieces as I hear breathing, no panting, from behind me. Tears start streaming down my cheeks as I yell at the creature, “Leave me alone!” It closes in behind me as I start to run out of energy. I can feel my body slowing down and the panic ensues as I try to keep moving. My left leg is hit from the side and I fall face first onto the spongy, wet ground. I grab and scratch at the ground in front of me, trying to pull myself from its grip. My elbows burn as they rub furiously across the rough terrain and my ankle aches from the claw digging in. I try kicking at its face, but it only over takes me more. I’m losing.

A second claw presses down on my back, preventing me from moving any further. A weight is pressed on me like I’ve never felt. I manage to look over my shoulder, only to let out a scream as I watch a bear open its mouth and place it over my face. The bones in my face crunch under the pressure and the feeling in my legs fade as the pressure on my back increases. I can feel the ground beneath me start to move as I’m dragged towards the woods. The rest of the feeling in my body disappears and my sight goes dark.