The Girl Who Ran

 The Girl Who Ran

            Her heart pounded and her breath poured from her lips raggedly, turning to smoke when it met the air. Through the park she ran, over bridges and under tunnels. Her reflection glowed in puddles and manmade lakes. The city seemed so far away, the lights casting a distant glow above the treetops. The gentle blaze seemed to outshine the stars. Keep pushing, she told herself. You’re faster than it.

            Soft footsteps sounded behind her. They maintained an even pace, never drawing closer than they needed to, as if taunting her. The girl dared look over her shoulder, but saw nothing besides the shaky darkness.

            A homeless man looked up as she sprinted by. He was sprawled out on a bench, and licked his lips as she approached. He stood, trying to block her path, his eyes hungry and dark. “Evenin', miss. Why don’t ya take a rest?” She kept running without acknowledging him. He reached out to grab her wrist. She spun away and he missed. “Come back here!” he yelled, but she had a head start.

            “Oy! Where's your manners?” he yelled, but the girl was had already disappeared.

            The park faded away and she sprinted down city blocks, never slowing down. She didn’t read the street signs but recognized the towering structures around her. Strings of lights were strung from the lampposts and Christmas wreaths dangled from the buildings, days late. Shoppers clogged the sidewalks, caught up in the bright city lights.

She caught glimpses of it from the corner of her eye in the store windows. It was so close. She blew past the shoppers and more than one cursed at her as she bumped against them.

She raced down an empty alley, sending water from an early rain flying. She dared not look back again, afraid she would trip and fall. The noise of the city blocked out any signs of it, but she wasn’t fooled. She turned a hard left and darted onto a street. Horns blared behind her, but she didn’t slow her pace. She kept running, right into the plaza. Bodies clogged the concrete and she dodged them with skill. Eventually, she was surrounded by people on all sides, just a single girl in the center of the square. She bent over, resting her hands on her knees, trying to send air back to her lungs.

            People bumped into her, too distracted to apologize. Lights lit up the square so brightly it felt like the middle of the day. The center was a mass of neon signs, confetti, and balloons. The music was deafening and she could barely hear the blood pounding in her ears. It was almost impossible to spot any given person in the pulsing crowd, but she wasn’t safe. Not here, not anywhere.

            There. A shadow lurking in the crowd. It was reflected off sunglasses, glowing signs, and shining balloons. How had it found her? She could feel her eyes grow wide and her heartbeat quicken. She walked over to a couple, locked in a slobbery embrace. “Can you see it?” she cried.

The couple briefly broke apart, studying her like she had lost her mind. “See what?” the woman asked.

“Her!” the girl exclaimed, pointing at the crowd. The woman looked confused. “She right there, look! Watching me, staring with those awful green eyes.”

The woman shook his head. “There’s no one there, little girl, no one can hurt you here. You’re just seeing things.” She turned his attention back to her boyfriend, but she clutched her sleeve. “Please tell me you see her!” she begged.

She shook her off, disgusted. “Get away from me, freak.”

The girl dashed deeper into the crowd, fighter her way to the front of the crowd, where the music thundered loudest off the skyscrapers. “Help me!” she wailed, weaving around partiers, but her voice was lost in the throng. “Please, someone help me!”