Cupid's Consequence

Part Three: Nightmares

Her eyes glowed a distinct crimson color, setting a blood red shadow on the walls. I felt myself gasp as a pair of hands wrapped themselves around my ankles. They pulled. I struggled. The girl watched with a smile creeping up onto her lips as if she was entertained. The ground rumbled over my screams and by this point, there was no way out. The darkness was circling me like a pack of wild dogs waiting to grab me at any given opportunity. 

"You should know not to break the rules, Muna." The sugar coated voice said, her words dripping with sarcasm. She was laughing. 

I attempted to run although I knew it would be almost impossible. Almost. My ankle fought free of the hand that clung to my leg with desperation. My heart ached. There was something holding me back, something keeping me from escaping. I focused my eyes on the black fog that surrounded the ground. 

"Muna. Please help me." 

I knelt down and began clawing at the thick blanket of mist, ignoring the chorus of laughter buzzing in the air. I had to do something. My hand threw itself beneath the black clouds and began fumbling with an arm, a hand, anything. I waited patiently for a response until eventually a hand captured mine.  

"Muna, please." I fixated my eyes on the fuzz of darkness until my eyes finally came into focus. The image of a face became apparent, making me struggle even more in a battle to pull the body up. Suddenly, I realized. I could recognize that face from anywhere. . . 

I bolted upright in my bed, gasping for air. My eyes searched rapidly through the shadows of my bedroom as a bead of sweat trickled from my forehead. Studying the shadows, I looked for a pair of glowing red eyes peering through the darkness. Everything remained normal; gloomy and silent. I relaxed my shaking hands from the bed sheets. My breathing began to steady itself before returning to a relatively normal pace. 

After a double check, I finally touched my feet to the bitter hardwood flooring and padded over to my window. Phew. 

Opening my curtains, I could almost feel the icy winds that were battering the glass. It was a gloomy day, much to my dismay. For a moment, I stood and admired the view from my bedroom window. The tips of the snowy mountains were towering over the trees and peaking into the sunrise, so much that the sun was almost split into two orange crescents. Surprisingly the snow had held off for today, and I could finally see the long stretch of grass that resided at the back of the house. I'd almost forgotten it existed over the wintertime. 

I yawned. Just as I was about to close my curtains and return back to my bed, I saw something moving in the corner of my eye. Flinching a little, I wondered whether I was still dreaming or not. I refrained from pinching myself and watched whilst the figure crept through the garden. It looked like more of a shadow than an actual person, probably due to the fact it was clothed in nothing but black material. Maybe it was the Grim Reaper, finally coming to pronounce my death, or maybe it was a zombie, and I'd actually just woken up to a post-apocalyptic world without even realizing. Either way, my future was looking pretty bleak. 

Suddenly, the silhouette turned, revealing a face beneath the hood. 

If the Grim Reaper was coming in the form of Tris Amoretto, I sure wasn't scared in the slightest. 

Cracking the window open slightly, I peered down at him. "What the hell are you doing, Tris?" 

He stood awkwardly with his hands swinging by his side. "If you want to let me in, that would be cool too." 

"I thought we made a deal that you weren't allowed to stalk me? But, okay. Give me a second." I rolled my eyes sarcastically before closing my curtains over again. Dashing towards my wardrobe, I pulled on a pair of jeans and a shirt so I could at least look mildly presentable. I hadn't exactly made a good first impression with the cotton cupcake pajamas I had wore to bed the day before.