Darkening Nights

The two girls walked down the street, arms linked, smiles on their faces.

“Well, what should we do?” Ana asked.

“Oh, I don’t really care,” Sadie sighed. “I’m just glad to be out of that stuffy apartment.”

“Agreed,” Ana said. “It’s such a nice day out. Maybe we should just go on a nice long walk or go grab something to eat and head to the park? I can’t stand the thought of being inside for one more minute!”

Sadie nodded, and they went to go buy lunch. Afterward they walked to the park, eating along the way, enjoying the warm fall weather, the sun on their faces. They threw their trash away and sat on a bench, and talked for hours. The sun rose high in the sky, and then began to fall again, traveling back down towards the ground. The girls did not notice though. One talked, the other listened. They went and got ice cream, they went back to the bench. The day went on, and the sun began to set. As the sky darkened, both felt content, but for different reasons. The day was over, the day had been full. Night was coming, the darkness shrouding the park. Night was here, and yet the girls did not move. The moon rose, and then the day was over.

The girls parted ways.

Sadie shivered as she walked. The sunny autumn day had descended into a chilly night, and she longed for a sweater. She longed for her friend. She didn’t like being alone, and if Ana was here, she would forget about the cold and the dark and just be happy to have company.

But alone she walked, her shadow dragging out behind her, the only company she had. The walk home stretched on, the darkness clouding the view of her apartment. The buildings were dark around her. Why was there no light in the windows? Sadie didn’t know, and it didn’t matter anyway. She just wanted to get home, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders, her dog asleep beside her.

Sadie walked through the night.

Ana huffed as she walked. She had known they shouldn’t have stayed out so late, but Sadie hadn’t listened. As the day had faded into night, Ana felt more and more eager to get home. She wanted to get away, wanted to be alone. She hadn’t wanted to go out in the first place, but Sadie had insisted, and Ana wasn’t one to say no.

She regretted that decision now. She could have been at home all day, doing her work or buried in a book. But Sadie had begged. Oh, how she had begged. And it pained Ana to say yes, because the last thing she wanted to do was hang out with Sadie. The girl was nice, sure, but there was something about her that Ana didn’t like. That initial dislike had strengthened to a burning hatred.

I wish I had different friends, She thought. I wish I had a life.

Ana walked through the darkness.

The coldness was suffocating that night. It clogged the throats of those traveling through the night. Icy winds rushed down the streets, sliding down alleyways.

Both girls were shivering as they walked down the streets. Sadie’s hands were shoved deep down into her pockets, Ana’s teeth were chattering.

Somewhere in the night, one of the girls had taken a wrong turn, and somehow had wound up trailing her friend. She hurried to catch up, recognizing the figure in front of her, but her steps were muffled, and the other girl did not turn.

Instead of yelling, the girl trailing crept up behind her friend. Out of her pocket she pulled a knife. She tapped her friend’s shoulder, and as the girl turned, her eyes widened, landing on the knife glistening in the moonlight. She opened her mouth to scream, but it was too late. The knife had already been plunged into her abdomen, blood leaking around the edges. Both girls let out a sigh, one of death, one of life.

Both girls sank to the ground, and one did not get up again.

Sadie pulled the dagger from Ana’s stomach. The blood warmed her hands. Carefully, she cut through her former friend, and pulled out her heart, nerves dangling from it, dripping blood across Ana’s chest. A souvenir. She pressed her hands against the bloody hole. Ana’s eyes were up at the sky. She will be cold, Sadie thought. She will be very cold. She stood up. But I, she thought. I will be warm. From inside out. She smiled as she walked away. She didn’t fear the dark anymore. She didn’t feel alone. She had Ana with her. Ana would always be with her. She wouldn’t be alone again.

She walked away into the night.

The night was dark, and the night was cold. The moon disappeared behind a cloud, hiding from the gory scene beneath it. The red staining the ground looking a deep gray.

The whole world was colorless, and endless void of black.

And in that void lay Ana, dead and staring up at the night sky. Dark gray blood pooling around her body, her pale white face shining almost as the moon that remains hidden.

The coldness has found her. The freezing winds ruffle her lifeless hair, but she does not move. She does not shield herself from the breeze, does not cover her head, or tuck her hands into her pockets. She remains frozen in time, arms out lifelessly beside her, hair spread out in long luscious blonde waves, splattered with blood.

Maybe her soul yearns for her eyes to be closed. For the blood to be gone. For her body to rest.

Or maybe Ana has no soul. Maybe her soul is locked up in her heart, held by the clutches of the girl who killed her.

Her soul will not be freed. Her soul will be trapped, kept away, forever silent, forever in the dark.