The teenager panicked, only, she didn't move yet. It was like she was trying to make a deal with the devil to beg for her life. The killer stood still, watching the darkness that swallowed the two girls up from just behind the small shrubs. They were caught, and she knew it.
The killer stared back at her, the silent of the night threatening to root her into the dirt if she stayed even longer. She had to get away, to run with Marie as fast as she could.
But the girl was stuck, she was terrified as death stalked forward with deliberate slow steps. The killer was doing it on purpose, some sick sort of joke where a predator would traumatize its prey before giving it the sweet release of death. Vinh didn't want death, she refused to let it take her away from Marie like this.
It stared back at her, giving the girl some sort of head start, she still had a chance.
The girl felt the burst of energy spur through her bones that sent invisible goosebumps along her skin. She didn't notice that at all, she focused all her attention on the new found purpose of surviving, both her and Marie.
The girl grabbed the child just as she turned and took off into the darkness. Marie understood immediately, gripping her hand that pulled her with such force that it felt like she would rip her arm right off. Vinh felt her blood pump in her ears, it was coursing right through her loud enough to block out the pounding steps following just behind her.
He was there, chasing after them with deep hard steps. Vinh tugged the girl to run by her side, forcing her knee that was burning from the inside to continue to explode and pool with the pumping blood through her. Vinh had to ignore the pain, ignore the urge to stop and stop the horrible pain.
She couldn't, she wasn't going to do that.
Marie was in the same place beside her, she let out small squeals, hearing the man about a foot from behind them. He was faster and much stronger, his hands alone could rip apart the girl's limbs that he might end up devouring. Vinh's thoughts only made her more energized, she was moving faster than Marie could try and keep up, the girl tripped over a few times but never landed on the ground.
They jumped and ducked away from the trees that seemed to try and stop them from their desperate escape for their lives. They pushed them back, hitting them into the killer's grasp. Vinh pushed back harder, the pain in her body was a numbing amount of pain that even the adrenaline couldn't take over.
It wasn't going to work. Running away was delaying the death just behind them.
Vinh turned to the side, making a sharp turn just in time to avoid the killer who crashed into a tree she used to swing away. The teenager grabbed onto Marie, pulling the girl up into her arms before jumping down a steep rocky slope. The older girl covered Marie the best she could, tumbling down the rocks that bashed into her body, breaking a few bones.
She rolled onto her side, tightening her hold on Marie who could only let out cries from her small body that was tossed around. Vinh couldn't wait, just when they ended up at the bottom of the slope next to a small pond with large rocks, Vinh had to stand up and continue running. He was not too far away, the man stood on top of the steep ledge, watching the girls before he too took a jump down.
Vinh let out a cry, her body feeling crushed and broken. Marie cried along with her, pulling away to try and push Vinh forward when her little eyes noticed the large man slide down the rocky slope much more gracefully.
He was getting closer!
Vinh bit her lips, causing blood to be tasted in her lips. She pulled herself up, trying hard to ignore the screaming her body casted from the harsh fall. She most definitely broke some ribs and her arm that crashed down first to break Marie's fall. Speaking of the child, she desperately pushed Vinh forward, feeling the limp girl's hand hang over her shoulder as she cried and cried while pulling her.
The child kept looking back, making Vinh do the same as they tried to run forward. They couldn't make it far, Vinh fell back over, taking Marie along with her who kept her hands glued to the older girl's sweater. Vinh wanted to push the child away, try and force the girl to continue without her, the teenager heard the slightest sounds from behind them of splashing water.
"NO!" Marie screamed out, shaking her head that flung tears from side to side.
Vinh pushed along with broken bones, her eyes looking back to watch the man who was sluggishly moving in the pond they avoided crashing into. The tall girl felt her skin grow an icy cold, freezing her body all the way up her arms that only made her broken bones below her skin scream once again.
The man was just playing with them.
He moved with a slow purpose, no real hurry or worry in his body language. He moved with a purpose, powerful that forced even the water to make way for him. It seemed like he was allowing the girls a beat to move forward before his slow movements were washed away with a rippling speed that he used to take off after them once again.
Vinh couldn't do this. She was slowing them down with the dumb decision that most certainly cost them their life.
No.
Vinh tightened her hand around Marie's just to her side. With a large amount of force power that ripped something inside of the girl's sensitive skin, she pushed along the way that sent a cry out from her bloody lips.
The child felt herself being pushed harshly away and into a nearby set of leaves. It was dark, but she could make a small poppy from the vines that grew big along the trees to trap the darkness she was suddenly pushed into. Marie moved over to where the push came from, meeting eyes with a soaken girl that looked to be on the brink of death.
Marie reached out, her mouth opening wide to only be shot with Vinh pulling her into a quick hug. "Don't make a sound. Stay here Marie," she pulled away, her eyes wide with a gentle softness escaping the scared and shaking mess of a girl. She gave a stern look that was pathetically covered up by tears and a shaking voice. "I love you."
The girl watched Vinh pull away, falling over herself with a small cry before she pulled her broken limbs back up and away. The darkness became bigger, covering up the once bright place Vinh stood in front of her, the warm comfort Marie had felt this whole time was ripped away. The sudden rush of the cold that hid in the dead of night sneaked up her arms causing fear to ripple through her.
Her eyes went wide, staring down with her closed fists that she could barely see in the darkness. She couldn't see anything, the only warmth she felt was the hot running tears trickling silently down her tense face.
The small girl moved ever so slightly, looking for any sort of light, any sort of comfort or presence of Vinh to welcome her from the darkness. Light did show, only right behind her of a blurry and black silhouette feet away from her.
Vinh moved as far away as she could make it before she crashed back into the dirt. It felt too much to even open her eyes, she wanted to keep them closed and just get it over with. But she was too close, Marie was still too close. Vinh kept her eyes sealed shut as she forced her body to move, biting her tongue so hard that it felt cut off. The girl moved forward, the darkness swarming her, biting and clawing at her insides until she was suddenly stopped.
Her eyes opened, white speckles of light shaking her head around with the urge to throw up her stomach numbing her insides. It was too dark, nothing was seen in front of her.
But she could feel it.
She could feel him.
The girl let her arms hang close to her side, she let her eyes drop. There was no use in keeping them open, she couldn't see anything in front of her.
The last amount of strength she used was in her knees, they shook, dropping her slightly down into the dirt that sounded light a shot. The man's footsteps came from all around her, the ringing in the girls' ears became louder, more deafening..
Vinh let out the last few cries from her closed lips, she felt both stupid and happy..
Feeling so weird as the steps that were rapidly becoming louder from the deafness of the darkness.
One.
Two..
She let out a smile, tears still running down through her closed eyes just as the sound stopped. Only, it wasn't silent anymore.
She could make out only the faintest of heavy breath just above her head that moved her bangs slightly away from her damp skin. Other than that, the ringing in her eyes cut off any other sound.
Even the sound of the thrust and snap of her own neck.
Marie watched, her eyes wide. The child's body was running cold, hearing the sound that turned the forest back into a silent existence. The large black figure reached out, his hands completely absorbing the small head of Vinh. He moved fast, the girl's body jolting forward from the harsh tug that bent her head that started off into the distance.
The small child's mouth was open, her lips cold with frost biting off her skin that tore into her flesh mercilessly. If only she could feel it. She couldn't feel anything..
Vinh's body smashed to the ground, her arms open wide to her side with her head turned to the dirt awkwardly. Marie didn't move, hearing the echoing silence being accompanied by the horrible monster kneeling down into the bush with his large hand sliding down Vinh's neck.
Marie wanted to move. To run over and fight off the man, to be with Vinh and feel her warmth.
Her comfort.
Sudden sounds from the air broke through the silent air with an obvious amount of purpose. The man jolted up, his head flinching over to the sound. His body reacted quickly, lifting from the ground and taking off in the trees that swallowed him in the darkness. That just left the teenager's motionless body laying in the dirt.
It also left the traumatized, broken child in the small poppy bush only a few feet away from the dead girl.
The sound was from the two boys that had managed to escape from the wolf in the same direction the girls had gone off to. He was right behind them, it should be easy to run into them.
Cameron felt Kim Seo's grip on his shoulder loosen, he fell over to the floor and away from Cameron who tried to grab him before he hit the floor. The older one let out a hiss from his teeth, looking down to his leg that had a large gash of teeth marks lining it.
"Fuck..!"
"Come on," Cameron went to his side, trying to help him back up. "We can't stay in one place, we gotta hurry."
"I can't walk with my legs like this..!" The boy growled out to him, glaring to his side while he pulled his leg out from under him. "I have to cut- the circulation off and cover the wound so I don't bleed out."
"It looks like it's already bleeding out…"
"Cameron!"
The young boy flinched, understanding the other was in a lot of pain and that he was no help with the words. Instead, he came over to his leg to look it over. "What do you need me to do?"
The older boy looked up at him, dumbfounded. Cameron kept his head down to the large cut, he felt his stomach turn from the amount of blood pool out from under them. "What do you need me to do?"
"What?"
Cameron looked up at him with a growl of annoyance. "I'm not just gonna sit here and do nothing. Tell me what to do to help."
The older boy felt both confused and slightly honored. I made him feel weird, seeing how Cameron was actually willing to help him. The whole time, he had been the one pulling the others up and to keep on running. Wiping away the blood and cleaning up the wounds. It felt weird to have someone else being the one to comfort, to help and heal. Either way, Kim Seo was too tired and too pained to fight back with it.
They had to hurry up and keep moving. "Alright, use this and pull it tightly around the cut. Cover the whole thing and pull it tightly."
"Isn't it going to hurt?"
"It already hurts." The boy shook his head, forcing the other to shut up. The older boy handed him a white piece of clothing, it wasn't too big which would cause trouble when trying to cover it up.
Cameron pushed it close into the wound, wrapping it around the bloody marks before he pulled it tightly. Kim Seo let out a hiss, biting his lip hard enough to draw blood. He held it in, feeling Cameron freeze slightly at the reaction. Kim Seo waved him on to continue, the boy did so hesitantly.
They had to speed this up, the girls were out there alone with the wolf still prowling around. Kim Seo had to fight through the pain, he had done it before, he could do it again. The group shouldn't be separated, it would cause them so much more damage than good. Kim Seo stood up, gripping onto the grass below him with the slightest pressure put on his leg.
"We can't stay, we have to keep going."
"It's not fully covered you idiot!" Cameron pushed him back down, causing the boy to thrash at him with annoyance.
"The longer we stay separated from them, the worse it will be..!" He shoved Cameron's hand away, pulling his body from the ground with teary eyes. "I-It's fine now. It's covered well enough."
"You stupid asshole." Cameron pushed his hand down, even with Kim Seo being injured, he still had lots of strength to avoid and push back at the other. It was too much, Cameron felt desperate and angry. The idiot was just as stubborn as him.
With a harsh push, Cameron had managed to knock Kim Seo back down with his whole weight. With his knees over his side and hands pressed down on the other boy's chest, Cameron ended up sitting over the older with his legs straddling the other's hips. "Stop fucking moving!"
The boy pushed the others hands away, huffing down with drained energy down at the other. The latter stopped, looking up at the warm body above him, his hands fell back to the grass, eyes never leaving the others piercing glare.
To Cameron's surprise, Kim Seo dropped his hands down to the dirt with his head looking off to the side. He stayed silent, only the speckling of dusky rose on his cheeks. Cameron understood why he was blushing, feeling their position made him feel both awkward and shameful. The only good thing it gave out was the warmth. The other person's body was cold, but when they touched, it blew up like a hot river bank.
It felt nice, but the emotions that came with it didn't.
Cameron moved off the other, ripping apart more of his sweater to cover up the rest of the others' injury. He tightened harshly, making the other stiffen. He kept his lips sealed and eyes shut while Cameron continued to cover up the injury all the way. When he finished, he finally sat up from the boy's lap to make sure the fabric was hung tightly and snug against his leg, he finally allowed the other to sit up.
The boy was hesitant, his eyes casted down to the dirt while Cameron stood to dust himself off. "Come on, don't we have to hurry?"
The other looked up to see Cameron's hand extended, a shy smile on his face. The taller felt odd, his own lips curled up into a smile that was filled with smugness. "Using my own words against me eh?" He reached out, allowing Cameron to weakly pull him from the ground.
Even with the creased look of pain in the boy's face, the smile never left. He wobbled over to his side, letting the other ground himself before he managed to stand and walk on his own. Cameron stayed close, his hand sometimes reaching out to make sure the other didn't fall back over.
"Do you remember where they went off to?" Kim Seo asked with a tilt of his head to the side
Cameron thought for a moment, he believed that the way he took with Kim Seo was the same direction the girls did. But they weren't there, with how much noise they made, it would cause them to come out and find them, but they didn't.
"Here, this is the direction they went."
"No one's here." The other observed, looking back over to Cameron, his expression matching the same fear riding up in his eyes. "They would have heard us and come out.."
"Let's keep on going," the other mentioned quickly.
The both continued forward, the anxiety in their features running a rampage on their emotions. They both felt it, they both knew it.. something was there, it was back and throwing them through a full force of a loophole. It was weirdly familiar to them, Kim Seo knew what the feeling was.
He pushed Cameron down slightly, low to the ground where they began to duck through the dark leaves all around them. With the dimming light, Kim Seo managed to maneuver the two around and over a few stones so they could be as far as away from the place that caused them so much fear. The older knew to stay close in the direction they were taking, but something was pulling him away from the path.
Cameron made a confused noise, grabbing the other's hand when he began to travel off from the straight line. "What are you doing?" He whispered to the other, the older one pulled back, forcing the other to follow hesitantly.
"Shh," he shushed him, refusing to explain.
Cameron's lips turned into a straight line, but he shut up and followed the other through the bushes and leaves. Where was he going? Cameron went lower to the ground, running his hands along the dirt, only to be pulled back up with Kim Seo. He opened his mouth, closing it immediately when the older boy was turned to him.
With their eyes locked together, they stood on their knees in the dirt hidden behind trunks and foliage as the sound of whispering leaves swishing around crawled along their skin. Kim Seo kept his eyes locked on Cameron's. The younger one knew why, the sound of the large figure stalking through the trees just a foot in front of them told him to stop.
Both of them refused to turn and see who it was.
Since they knew who it was.
The gruff, aggressive huffing from the man's throat told the boys all they needed to know. It was the killer, he was back in action, already hunting for them.
The realization came crawling up Kim Seo's skin, dread mixed with fear made his mouth open low, his eyes felt both sore and wet. The killer was walking away from where they were heading, where he felt Vinh had run off too…
For once, Kim Seo hoped to the unknown God he doesn't believe in, that he was wrong.