Journey

Chapter One

I awake from my slumber. That terrifying noise I heard could only be a scream.

"Layla? Layla? Layla!" I scream. My best friend doesn't respond, and this makes me worry even more. I can't see through the pouring rain and the fact that it is pitch black outside had a big factor in that as well.

"Layla where are you?! This isn't funny!" I cry out. I am probably waking everybody in a ten mile radius up, but I couldn't care less. I run through the trees, rain soaking my gray jacket and mud spraying all over my jeans as I sprint hard and fast through the wilderness.

I hear it again. The scream. My gut wrenches in horror as I recognize the sound instantly as Layla's. I pick back up sprinting again and run harder and faster than ever towards the sound.

"I'm coming, Lay!" I scream, rainwater pouring into my mouth. I spit it out and keep running.

"Phaedra! Phaedra! Help me!" Her voice has so much pain and fear in it that I can almost feel my heart physically break.

"I'm almost here, I'm coming!" I shout back, but no response. I just keep running and running until I stumble upon a large object and fall face first into a mud puddle. I spit out a chunk of dirt and turn around to look at what I just tripped over. When I see what it is, my mouth opens in horror.

There is Layla. A knife in her stomach and dried blood all over her shirt. Her eyes are open and staring at a horror that I will never know because she will never be able to speak of it again. My best friend is dead, and I couldn't save her.

Tears start spilling out of my eyes uncontrollably, racking my body with sobs. I hug Layla's body close to my own and weep and weep for what seems like forever. By the time I am all cried out, the rain has stopped, but the darkness is still lurking.

Who did this to her? What did she ever do to deserve this terrible fate? These thoughts run through my head as I try to recollect myself. Without the loud rain, the forest seems eerily quiet. Almost as if I can hear the wind whistle, and it sounds like somebody is making choked breaths beside me. I look down at Layla and realize that she is making those terrible sounds. She's still alive. There's still hope.

How she managed to hang on to her fragile life for this long, I have no clue. I gasp in realization and shout the name before I fully know what I'm doing.

"CHAD?" I scream. I know that I am very far away from our camp site where I awoke to find Layla missing, but I still had a small piece of hope in me. Chad had to hear me.

"CHAD PLEASE COME HERE!" I cry in desperation. Stupid. I am stupid. The person who did this to Layla will now be easily able to locate me as well, and that would destroy the entire purpose of this journey.

Ten agonizing seconds later, Chad's deep voice rings across the forest.

"PHAEDRA! WHERE ARE YOU?" I sigh in relief, but worry quickly fills my body again. Where AM I really? I spot a nearby stream.

"BY A STREAM! PLEASE CHAD, HURRY!" I respond, but I know he'll never find me. I am proven wrong, however, when I hear twigs snapping around me rapidly and Chad steps out into my little area.

He looks as handsome as ever. Wavy blonde hair, vibrant blue eyes. Shorts and a dark green t-shirt. But his beautiful face is filled with worry and fear and horror all at once.

"Layla?" He squeaks out. I nod, tears threatening to spill out of my eyes once more.

"She's...dead?" He says in a barely whisper.

"She's still breathing, but barely. Chad, we need a hospital." I say, my voice thick with tears and very hoarse. I let them fall down my cheeks now.

"Yeah we do, and we need to get Michael and Connor and Elise and Miranda and get out of here. Who did this is still lurking here. He could be around us right now. Come on, I'll get her." He's being surprisingly calm. Layla was his first love, she was everything to him. His sunshine, his happiness, and his newly pronounced fiancé, even though they were only the ripe age of 16.

Chad scoops up Layla and plants a kiss on her forehead. He then takes his jacket sleeve and wipes the tears from my cheeks.

"It'll be okay. We have just enough time to get her there." He assures, but then a horrifying thought pushes itself into my mind. Maybe he thinks I did this to her. After all, we were certain that the one who we were running from was far behind us, and nobody else was with her. Besides me. I was found with Layla's nearly dead body cradled in my arms.

"Chad, you know it wasn't me, right? I-I would n-never...she was...is my best friend. I couldn't just..." I burst out crying then, worse than before if that was even possible. So hard that I'm in coughing fits. You could swim in a pond of my tears. Chad pulls me close to him and nods his head in understanding. No, it's not a romantic gesture. It's definite he loves Layla. And I love him, but never in that way.

"Shh, I know. We all know who did this. We just need to learn that he's never gone when we think he is. Come on, we're getting closer to camp." He somehow gets me to move and soon enough we are back in the cave with sleeping bags laying all over the floor of it. All of my friends are staring in horror at the three of us. I notice just then that Layla's dried blood is still on my hands.