WLB/Sit with Sarah

From Create Your Own Story

Eh, whatever chances you have with Jennifer won't be lost by not sitting next to her for an hour-long bus ride. You drop your backpack down in the aisle, taking a seat next to Sarah.

"A wise decision, sir. Sure, Jennifer is alone, but I'm me and you know you can't resist me." She laughs, nudging you with her elbow.

She reaches into her bag and pulls out her iPod, starting up a movie for the two of you to watch. Midway through the ride, however, the battery dies.

"Ah, hell... I'm sorry Jack." She frowns, putting the iPod back into her pocket.

"Nah, it's cool. I've seen it before." You laugh, reaching across her shoulder with your right arm and giving her a friendly - and nothing more - hug. She smiles and turns her attention to the landscape outside of the window. You're not sure if she knows you can see her blushing in the slight reflection, and you turn away to give her a moment. On a whim, you look back to Jessica. She's fallen asleep, resting her head on the window. Sarah taps you on your shoulder, breaking your gaze on the sleeping girl.

"Y-you heard about Megan Carter... right?" Sarah says with a hint of nervousness.

"Yeah, the girl who killed her friend, Vanessa, and then herself last night, right?" You reply, turning to her as you do so to see that she's still facing the window.

"Yeah, her. I know one of Vanessa's friends. She's in my English class. Emily Prescott." She continues to keep her eyes locked on the scenery outside.

"Shit... how's she holding up? I mean... it's gotta be tough."

"That's what I would think too. She just sat there today. Didn't say anything. Someone asked her about it and she just broke down completely, dropping her head to the desk and crying for six minutes straight. The teacher helped her down to the office after that. But... the strangest thing about it, Jack... the part that scared me about her reaction... she's a tough girl. Really damn tough. Excuse the cliché, but she's tough as nails. Really. Her parents got divorced in middle school and she never cried in front of anyone about it. But then... to just see her break down like that... I don't know. It just-"

Suddenly, a bang comes from the back of the bus as it jumps into the air. A few kids scream, startled by the sudden jolt. You glance back, checking on Jennifer. Her head lurches forward and hits the seat in front of her, hard, and her hands fly up as a reaction. Sarah gasps, and wraps her arms around you, the sudden shock of the bump scaring the color from her face. The random bump, coupled with the shock from seeing Prescott break down must have really taken a toll on her. "Y'know, for a Friday..." you think, "...this is really turning out pretty shitty so far."

Everything is oddly silent for a moment, and the driver comes on through the PA.

"Sorry guys, that was just a bit of a bump, nothing to be worried about. Tire couldn't have blown out, I would have noticed that by now. I think we just hit a hell of a bump or a skunk or... or somethin'. But, uh, from here on out, it's just smooooooth sailin'. Th' caves are in visible distance, and I think we should get there in about ten minutes." He turns off the PA and it crackles out. Sarah still grips your arm, her skin a deathly white. She looks up at you and you realize that when the bus hit... whatever it hit, you had instinctively pulled her towards you in defense. Patting her back and trying to play it off while remaining cool, you check back on Jennifer, only to see that she's already gone back to sleep.

With the caves rapidly coming up, your teacher stands up and leans against the seat to brace herself. She starts to tell your class about the caves and their estimated age, along with local legend that something lives deep, deep inside the heart of the cave. She laughs and dismisses it as nothing more than an urban legend before describing the crystalline formations that you'll all be looking at today. Sarah finally lets go of you and eases back into her seat.

Finally, the bus starts to slow as it reaches the entrance of the cave. You look out the window. The mouth of the cave is big, at least a mile wide and twice as high. Sarah turns to you.

"Jack, I don't like this place. Something feels... off. It has all day. When we're in there, please stay with me, Jack. Don't wander off. Please. Promise me?"

"Yeah, I promise. Don't worry Sarah. I'm sure it's nothing, though. "

She smiles, and stands up. After you get up and let her out and into the line, something catches your eye. A glimpse outside. As you look, your vision is suddenly filled with images of dead bodies. Your classmates. All of them. Some are under piles of rocks, some are torn to pieces, and a few are damaged in a way you can't make out. It fades, and you are left staring blankly. Again, Sarah has to get your attention, putting her hand on your shoulder. You look back and see that her face is completely covered in blood. You scream and fall backwards into the seat, and she begins crawling up onto you.

Her empty eye sockets bleed profusely, and you listen helplessly as something other than Sarah speaks from her mouth.

"Help me, Jack." She says, her once soft but strong voice now replaced with a horrific screeching sound, as if a dying animal was attempting to imitate human speech. Her voice seems to echo over a metallic droning.

"Jack. It's in there. It's waiting." Her left hand reaches up and grips your chin-

"I look forward to seeing you, finally."

-using your own fear-based paralysis against you as she slowly slides her right hand into your mouth-

"Don't keep me waiting, Jack. Bring Sarah along, too."

-and into your throat, going down, down, down...

A sudden burst of strength comes through you, and you shove her off, screaming. The blood is gone from her face, and her voice has returned to normal.

"Jack! Good god, man! What the hell's wrong with you?!" Sarah shouts at you. You take a moment to regain your own composure before saying you'll tell her later. She accepts only because she sees how shaken up you are, and gives you a nervous smile, saying that you guys should probably hurry off the bus now. Following her, you grab your bag and step off the bus.