Seventh Street

October 9th, 2009

We begin walking behind Ebana’s house and into the backyard, passing the pool and greenhouse, before finally reaching a dark, dingy forest full of tall trees and exotic animals believed to be extinct.

Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!

The sound of our shoes cracking against fallen leaves and sticks echoed throughout the forest.

Woooooosh~ Wooooooosh~

The chilling wind blows through our bodies, causing the hairs on our skins to stand up and dance with each breeze.

“D-dude, when’d it get so cold outside?!” said Charlie, shivering like a rattlesnake’s tail.

“I-I have no idea?” said Ebana. Her pale, freckled nose became a deep dragonfruit red. “B-but we’re almost there.”

“A-about time, my feet were killing me!” complained Celeno.

“It hasn’t even been that long, Celeno.” I say. “Only 10 minutes.”

“It sure feels like it’s been hours!”

As I open my mouth to retaliate, I feel a dreading presence deep in my gut. The once easy breeze now felt overbearing, and thick enough to cut Tungsten with ease. As we inch closer and closer to the street, the air gets heavier and heavier, making it harder to breathe. No one else looked affected though? They’re either really good actors, or don’t feel anything at all.

We walk a few more steps before the air becomes light again, making it easier to breathe. I take the longest inhale and exhale with all my might.

“Up ahead! Look!” shouted Ebana.

We look ahead into the darkened distance, spotting something tall….and motionless, yet waving at us?

“W-what the hell is that…?” said Celeno, gripping Charlie’s shoulder.

“I have no clue… but we should totally go see!” said Charlie, booking it towards the exit of the forest.

“Hey! Wait!” Ebana and I say as we chase after Charlie, Celeno following closely behind.

As we chase after Charlie, we approach a street full of abandoned houses, buildings, and restaurants. Sprinting, we officially reach the street we’ve been looking for. I pop my head up and look at the dangling street sign…

(7TH STREET) in big, bold letters. I feel a sudden pit in my stomach. I wondered what my mom was doing, or if my dad had come home yet.

My friends creep up behind me, equally admiring the scenery around them.

“Dude, this place is awesome!” said Charlie, pulling out his camera.

Ebana clenches my arm as we all walk down the empty road, looking around at each and every broken house.

As I turn my head to look towards my left, I notice a figure standing in the doorway of an abandoned church. It extended its hand, as if gesturing me to follow it before turning on its heel and walking deeper into the church. I decided to ignore the strange interaction and turn to laugh it off with my friends.

“Heh…you guys saw that too, right? So freaky—”

I turn my head to face them. However, there was no one in sight! Not even Ebana, who was gripping my arm like a falcon gripping its prey! I began to panic and frantically search for them, shouting, hoping to get a response.

“CHARLIE?! EBANA?! CELENO?! ANYONE? GUYS, PLEASE, THIS ISN’T FUNNY!” I shout, tearing up as I frantically run up the street. In a wild fit of panic, I began to scream, hoping to get a response from anyone!

Minutes later, I wander through the seemingly endless street as my stamina fades, clenching my jacket close together to warm myself up as I wonder…. where did they go? Did they secretly leave me because I was against coming here in the first place?! No, that can’t be it… maybe they just went to take a group bathroom break? But why would they leave me? They KNOW groups should never split up in scary situations!

I check my watch, 9:34 exactly; at this time, I’d be laying in bed after a long homework session, or bothering my parents for no particular reason. Man, I miss home, why’d I have to go exploring with my friends instead of staying in my warm bed? Why’d I have to lie to my mom and tell her I was going to the arcade with them?! I know why, because I worry too much! I worry too much about my friends leaving me alone on this Earth. I’m scared they’ll run off somewhere and get themselves killed if I’m not there to protect them! I guess tonight that fear finally came true, huh? Worried too much for them to explore this place on their own, but not worried enough to talk them out of this whole mission. I guess that’s my fault.

Kaaaaaseyyyyy~

“Huh? Who’s that? Is that you, Ebana?” I say hopefully.

Kaaaaaseyyyyy~

The voice whispers ever loudly. I turn my head towards the voice, spotting the figure of a woman standing in the window of a house, waving me in. For some reason, something told my body to follow the voice, so I did just that. I make my way towards the window of the house, hoping to see Ebana and my friends relaxing on the couch, hoping this is one big prank and we’ll leave together to attend school next week!

However, as I approach the window, I see a familiar face, one that’s not Ebana’s, but the lifeless human husk of a woman who went missing in our town recently. She greets me with a big smile on her dry face, María Tereno…. yea, that’s her name. If I recall, she went missing at the reports of the height of activity on seventh street, to think she’d be here, staring at me with her eyeless sockets and deformed body.

I scream as I take in her appearance and turn on my heel to run away, praying I find an escape route.

Pant! Pant! Pant!

As I dash through the empty streets, a thick fog of air takes over my lungs. My knees began to buckle and my vision went as black as night. The last thing I remember feeling was the cold asphalt on my skin as my body went limp, finally leaving this world. As I lay there on the pavement, I reflect on my life , and the people I met. Celeno, Charlie, Ebana, mom, dad, and even Katrina, even though my life ended on such short notice, I’m glad to have spent my life with them.

Riiiiiinngggg!

I hear a loud ringing in my ear as I draw my final breath.

Minutes later, I hear another ring, a louder one?

RIIIIINNGGGGG!

I see a white glow as my eyes begin to open. That’s weird? My body doesn’t feel the same.

In my vision, I am awakened by the feeling of skin and a white board. I try my best to understand what is written on it, but something’s not allowing me to read the words. They all look like jumbled up characters to me? I do, however, manage to make out the numbers written on it:

October 9th, 1993

Then I see a name written next to it:

Elena Dahl

Have I been…reborn in the past?!