Louise Runs Away

It was January 19th, right in the middle of winter. Cold snow fell from the cloudy sky and landed on the ground below the girl.. She shivered, partly from the cold, and partly with anticipation. Louise pulled her green coat tightly around her shoulders, her heart thundering inside her chest. Pom pom, pom pum. She felt blood rush to her head and rubbed her temples, her fingers half-frozen—she had forgotten her mittens at home.

She was standing in a little clearing within a large forest. Tall pine trees surrounded her, their dull green leaves bending under the small piles of snow that had fallen upon them. Louise looked forward, where a long dirt path weaved through the trees. She could see the smallest light at the end of it, like a little firefly. 

She lifted her left hand to her mouth and blew on it, trying to warm her fingers, but her breath was sharp and cold and only made it worse. Louise shoved her hands into her pockets, clutching at the folds of cloth and digging her nails into the fabric. She was still too cold. 

This was a mistake. She shouldn’t have come here.

As Louise's mother always said, "strange things happens to those who leave at night." She should have listened to her. But she didn't.

Despite her nervousness of being out alone in the woods at night, anger was swarming through Louise's head. She was staying at her grandparents' house, supposedly for Christmas break. Her mother and father were supposed to bring her back home on New Year's Day. But they didn't.

Another promise broken.

"Sweet Louise," Mrs. Cord had said sadly on the telephone. But Louise wasn't fooled. She was just pretending, and she could detect excitement in her mother's voice. "Your father's business trip has extended for another eighteen days. We'll be staying in Italy until then. Have fun at grandma's!" And she hung up, just like that.

Mr. Cord, Louise's father, was a filmmaker. He had recently got a job in Italy, which was supposed to last a week. But now it was a month.

And his wife just had to go with him, didn't she? Mrs. Cord didn't care about her eight-year-old daughter, did she? She only wanted to stay in Rome with her husband, while Louise was stuck inside her grandparents' house.

Louise had been counting the days. On the day before her parents were going to finally pick her up (which was today) they extended it for another month.

Louise had had enough. She was running away. Where she was going she had no idea, but she needed to get away. Needed to get away from her mushy grandparents that treated her like a baby. Needed to get away from her nonexistent parents. Ugh.

Except now she was lost in the woods and had no idea where to go. With nobody to guide her, and no phone (she was too little, her mother said) she would have to find the way herself.

Sad, angry and fearful of the darkness that was slowly creeping between the trees, she plunged on through the woods.

She didn't know how far she had walked before Louise found the cabin. She was on the verge of settling down in the snow to sleep when she saw smoke coming out from the tops of the trees. Thinking that someone had built a campfire, she followed the smoke.

It wasn't a campfire. It was a little house.

A wall of pine trees half-surrounded the cabin, which was made of a very dark wood. Two windows were inserted into each wall, all made of clear glass. The door was also made of wood, though this time of a lighter color, and supported a brass doorknob in the shape of an animal's head. The smoke that Louise had followed was pouring out of a small chimney attached to the roof, though the amount of smog coming out was more than it should have been.

She should have taken it as a warning. But she didn't.

Louise let out the smallest sigh of relief. Maybe the people who lived in this house would have a phone to call her grandma and grandpa. Why had she run away in the first place, anyway?

She ran up to the closest window and eagerly peered in. She saw a cozy-looking living room, with plush sofas and a fluffy carpet, all crowded around a welcoming fireplace. There was a family, too, all seated along the couches. There was a mother, father, sister, brother and baby. All were wearing matching smiles and warm looks in their eyes.

It looked like the most complete family Louise had ever seen, and she felt empty just looking at it. She felt the sudden, strange urge to start crying as she watched the mother pick up her son and cradle him in her arms, kissing the top of his head.

There was no time for dilly dally, Louise knew. She brushed the first tears from her eyes and walked up to the door, knocking on it. Almost immediately the door opened, the mother looking at her with a gentle smile. "Why, hello you sweet girl!" She exclaimed excitedly. "And what's a beautiful little creature like you doing out here?"

Louise, flattered by the comments, smiled as sweetly as she could and said, "I'm lost, Ma'am." She bowed her head, looking tearfully sad. "I ran away from my house."

The woman put on a sympathetic face. "Aww, honey, why did you do that?" She placed a hand on Louise's shoulder. "My name is Mommy," she said with another smile. "Why won't you come in?" Mommy stepped back.

Louise thought that "Mommy" was a strange name. Or maybe it wasn't her real name, and she was so used to being called that by her children that she said it by accident. Regardless, Louise said nothing and stepped into the cabin.

All at once, everything went black.

The comfy sofas disappeared, and the rug turned into an old cloth. The fire grew unnaturally large, burning with what looked like hatred and anger. All eight windows were shattered and boarded up, just like that. Louise didn't even see it happen; the transformation was so quick.

Her heart pounded in her chest. It was so dark. She could see nothing but the bright glow of the fire, though the flame didn't illuminate the rest of the house. A strong scent of rotten fish reached Louise's nose, and she whimpered. What was happening? Where did the family go?

"Ma'am?" Louise put her hands through the air. "Ma'am, where did you go? Why is it so dark?"

The poor girl turned around, thinking she heard something. The woman, Mommy, was nowhere to be seen.

Fear overtook Louise. A strange howling noise filled the air, like the sound of a dying dog.

"You ran away..." A hissing voice said. "People who run away don't come back... hissssssss..."

Louise screamed and bolted for the door. It wouldn't open. Tears poured down her face as the hissing grew nearer. The fish stench got stronger, and she wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"I won't die!" Louise shouted. "I WILL NOT DIE!" Filled with new strength, she kicked the door open, feeling the fresh breeze on her face. She was free. She was utterly and completely free.

Louise ran. And ran. And ran.

Did she reach home?

I don't know.