The Lady of the Forest

The Lady of the Forest

Nehal Abdel Tawab

I don't know how it all happened, or what brought me here. All I know is that I'm stuck here now, and there's nothing I can do to get out. I also know that it's my entire fault that this happened and that I should've just listened to what they said and took the safer way. But what can I say? I'm as hard-minded as a rock. At this moment, all I'm hoping for is for everyone to stay safe because I couldn't bear the thought of my friends getting hurt because of one of my stupid moves.

It's funny how the events of a story go. One minute the characters are laughing and the other minute they're dead. And this is what had happened that day—one big plot twist—only no one is dead…yet.

Only three hours ago, my friends and I were gathered around the bonfire, telling stories and jokes, laughing together, and enjoying each other's company. They are the closest people to me, and each one of them is like a sibling to me. I always feel happy when we're together no matter what we're doing. They take up a huge part of me, and I can't imagine a life without them in it.

"Ok, listen to this: My dad calls 911 and yells, 'Please come quickly! Kailey is pregnant and her labor started now, it’s really intense!'," Joe started telling another one of his funny stories, impersonating his dad hilariously. "The operator asks, 'Is this her first child?', and Dad replies, 'No, stupid, this is her husband!'"

Everybody cracked up and a fit of laughter filled the air. I laughed hard that tears started to fill my eyes, so I wiped them away, still giggling a little. Joe is the jokester of the group, and he almost always manages to make us laugh even in our darkest times.

The conversation shifted to telling childhood stories and sharing memories. Listening to every story, I felt like it was all just yesterday when we first met. I remember every memory and every moment we shared, and it makes me feel quite nostalgic.

A few seconds of silence fell upon us, and I rested my head on my best friend's shoulder. There was a unique smile stretched across each one's face, and it made me smile even broader knowing that they were just as happy as I was being here.

Amidst all the quietness and stillness of the place, a shrieking sound echoed in the abandoned forest. We all sat up straight, alerted by the sound that could not be mistaken for anything else but a woman's scream. I looked around my circle of friends to see everyone's shocked expressions.

"Did everyone hear that?" I asked just to make sure my ears didn't fool me.

"Yeah," Megan said, sounding hesitant herself.

"It sounded like a scream," Caleb frowned at me, and I nodded in agreement.

We sat in utter silence, contemplating what happened. It's like we were waiting for some sort of confirmation, something to just assure us that what we heard was real. And we got it. Another shriek reverberated in the forest, and it was so loud that I thought I saw the trees shake with the noise.

"That's it!" Sharon exclaimed, standing up on her feet, "We have to get out of here."

"No, we can't just leave," I retorted.

"That's right. We need to call the police first," Joe said. "Then we drive away immediately."

"Aren't we going to check where this is coming from?" I asked.

"Are you crazy?" Megan gripped both my shoulders and looked me in the eyes as she says, "Whoever that was is probably dead by now. Do you want to be next?"

Of course, that was a question that needed no answer, but I answered it anyway, "No, but we're not sure if she's dead. All we know is that somebody's in trouble, and we may be able to do something to help."

"Right! Like calling the police," Joe suggested again. No one was really listening to him; they're either focused on calming their nerves or staring at me for an answer. A moment later, I found all eyes on me, looking expectantly as I let my mind think of it.

As much as I've tried thinking of it in their way, I couldn't bring myself to believe that the only thing we can do is "just leave". Even calling the police wouldn’t have been efficient, considering we were in the middle of a forest, and it would’ve taken the cops a long time to reach us. So I came to a decision, "I'm going to see what it is."

Megan's hands fell off my shoulders, and she shook her head, "You must be out of your mind."

I shrugged my shoulders, silently telling them that I won't change my mind. I tend to be persistent at times, and my friends are the best people to know that. Megan sighed in resignation and surprised me by saying, "Then I'm coming with you."

"What?"

"I can't let you go by yourself."

I smiled, reminding myself that Megan is just as stubborn as me, if not more. Maybe that's why we're best friends.

We walked deeper into the forest, the noises of our friends getting enveloped by silence the farther we walk away till we can't hear them anymore. We used our phones as flashlights to light a path to go through. We didn't know where we were headed, but we were hoping to find anything that can count as a hint to what or who that was.

Megan was clung to me the whole time, wrapping both her hands around my left arm tightly as I lead the way. I thought I saw something next to a log before I walk towards it to inspect it, leaving Megan behind, much to her disagreement.

Suddenly, I felt like I stepped on air and fell into a pit on the ground. My head started pounding so hard and I could hear my name being yelled, but only faintly. My vision blurred for a few seconds that I felt momentarily blind. My body was numb, but only for a very brief while, before the pain burst in my body, spreading to every muscle and every bone like a plague. Despite all this, I never thought the hole was that deep till my vision cleared and I was able to see how far Megan's face was now above me.

"Are you okay," Megan asked worriedly.

"I'm…fine." It was hard to speak after the impact.

I saw her do something on her phone, wave it a little in the air, and then curse silently. "I can't get a signal," she informed me, her tears evident even from down here. "I'll go call them quickly, and I'll be back, I promise. Just don’t move."

I gave her an incredulous look. “How can I possibly move?” I asked, trying to lighten up the mood a little bit, but she didn't even smile.

I waited and waited in darkness, but I didn't know what I was waiting for—was it friends’ help or another scream? It felt like a long time has passed of just me thinking and wondering, and now, my head was starting to spin a little.

I don't know how it all happened, or what brought me here. All I know is that I'm stuck here now, and there's nothing I can do to get out. I also know that it's my entire fault that this happened and that I should've just listened to what they said and took the safer way. But what can I say? I'm just risky like that. At this moment, all I'm hoping for is for everyone to stay safe because I couldn't bear the thought of my friends getting hurt because of one of my stupid moves.

What felt like an hour passed before I hear people calling my name. I recognize only a few of them, while the rest only sounded like unfamiliar men.

"Guys," I call back, "I'm right here!"

"I found her! She's here! I found her!" Sharon declares.

I'm then brought up by two strong policemen and examined by a pair of paramedics. They only find a couple of bruises, but nothing serious. We're later questioned by the police about anything unusual in the forest. I tell them about the screams and ask them if they've found anything—a body, maybe—but they say there was nothing strange in the forest. They say that maybe we were hallucinating, or perhaps a little sleep-deprived, and we’ve simply imagined things.

My friends nod, and I nod along with them, yet knowing very well what I've heard. In any other situation, I still would've done the same thing; I wouldn't have just left it behind. That scream was real, and it sounded like someone was in desperate need of help. There was a lady in the forest, behind one of the tall trees, crying for somebody to help her. I am sure of it. 

And yet, I am not able to do anything about it.

Amongst all the commotion of the investigation and of everybody comforting everybody, I am taken over by guilt. I can’t bring myself to believe that there wasn’t anyone out there, struggling for their life.

“Megan, you heard the screams, too, didn’t you?” I ask.

“Honey, you heard the police—” Megan furrows her eyebrows in concern—“there’s no one out there.”

“Then what was that sound?”

“Well, we did have a little too much to drink.” She suggests, shrugging her shoulder.

“Sharon?”

“I didn’t hear anything,” Sharon says, loading the truck with our things.

“Excuse me,” I exclaim, “Weren’t you the one who jumped up from your place in surprise when you heard the scream?”

“I did?” Sharon raises an uncertain eyebrow.

“What the—“

“Kids, it’s time for you to go back home,” a policeman interrupts. “What were you thinking of when coming to an abandoned forest in the middle of the night? I swear kids are unpredictable.”

“Sorry, officer.”

“Excuse me, sir,” I approach the officer. “Are you sure you didn’t find anyone in the forest.”

He sighs. “Young lady, for the 100^th time, there was no one in the forest beside you, five. We sent out search dogs and officers to find anyone, but there was nothing. I won’t lie to you, kid, so stop asking me, will you?”

“Can you calm down now?” Megan offers a warm hug. I don’t realize I was shivering in a cold sweat until I feel the warmth of her arms around me.

There was no one. The officers assured me. We were just drunk and sleep-deprived. I didn’t need to overthink it too much. There was no one in the forest beside us.

And as I wrap myself in my warm blanket in the cold night back at home, I decide that I wouldn’t think about it again. I just need to sleep, so I force myself to shut my eyes and think of the happy times we spent around the bonfire before all chaos started. I try to recall the sound of my friends’ laughter and the beaming look on their faces.

However, through the night, all I hear is a piercing scream ringing in my head, about to burst my eardrums; and all I see is a silhouette that reaches its hand to me, and as its hand comes closer to my face, the screams get louder and louder till my ears bleed. And when it speaks to me, I hear only one thing:

“It’s your fault.”                                       

- End -