The Girl Who Ran, The Forest That Waits

IV

"THE FIRST RETURN"

SOPHIE'S POV

My heart thundered like a trapped bird against my ribs as Grace slid into the booth, casting long shadows under the cafe's dim sconces. Midnight snack? Alora's film project? My mind scrambled to catch up, its usual lightning-fast circuits sluggish from the lingering terror of the woods.

"Oh, hey, Grace!" Lucas greeted, his voice warm and welcoming, a stark contrast to the icy grip of fear twisting my insides. "Late-night cravings calling?"

"Not quite," Grace chuckled, her eyes twinkling like misplaced stars in the artificial light. "Actually, post-exam Alora commissioned me to scout the perfect location for our film project. You know, something with... abundant trees. Indahag was the perfect match"

"Trees," Grace said, the word hanging in the air like a whispered spell. The humid air clung to me like a shroud, laced with the cloying scent of decaying leaves and damp earth. Sunlight, pale and filtered, speared through the twisted canopy, casting grotesque shadows that writhed and danced. Branches, gnarled and knotted, reached out like skeletal fingers, clawing at the sky. And then, from the depths of the woods, a ripple of sound, chilling and primal, like laughter scraped from bone. My heart hammered against my ribs, a trapped bird frantic for escape.

"Indahag?" Lucas echoed, concern creasing his forehead. "Isn't that a bit off the beaten path?"

Grace, oblivious to the storm brewing within me, shrugged nonchalantly. "Not really. And, hey, Sophie?" she turned, her smile as bright as the neon sign outside, "Think it'll fit the bill?"

The question struck me like a rogue wave, pulling me back into the churning sea of my own anxieties. My hands clenched into fists, nails digging into soft palms. Could I even bear to utter the name of that macabre place, let alone imagine setting foot there thinking that it might be the placed Joyce and I encountered horrifying things?

"Sophie?" Lucas's voice, tinged with worry, tugged me back from the brink. His brown eyes, usually alight with amusement, held a searching intensity that made my stomach clench tighter.

I forced a smile, the taste of ash clinging to my tongue. "Huh? Oh, yeah. Indahag. It... sure." The words felt foreign, each syllable scraped raw against my throat.

"Great!" Lucas's relief was palpable, washing over the café like a summer sunbeam. "Alright then, Grace, spill the beans! Call time, meet-up point, the lowdown?"

As they launched into details, excitement crackling in their voices, a bitter seed of something unidentifiable took root in my chest. Was it jealousy? Envy? No, those felt too simplistic, too petty. It was something deeper, something tangled with the phantom echoes of the woods and the gnawing fear that whispered secrets beneath my skin.

Watching them, their laughter intertwining like warm vines in the air, a part of me, the part that had always believed in sunshine and sunflowers, wanted to bask in their shared joy. But another part, the one cloaked in the shadows of Indahag's nightmare, recoiled, pulling me away with unseen chains.

I was caught in a tug-of-war, pulled between the comfort of Lucas's familiar presence and the terrifying allure of the unknown. And as the café buzzed around me, the aroma of coffee and pastry blending with the hushed murmur of secrets, I knew this was just the beginning. The battleground, whether it was Indahag's dark woods or the tangled maze of my own emotions, was waiting. And I, Sophie, with my heart a fragile compass spinning wildly, had to choose my path.

LUCAS' POV

Sophie's back hunched, a shadow even in the cafe's soft glow. It mirrored her earlier morning mood, and my concern gnawed at me. "Sophie?" I asked gently

She startled, blinking back to the present, and offered a shaky smile. I knew it was a façade, but pushing her wouldn't help. Some burdens, she carried alone, and all I could do was watch over her, silent guardian to her battles.