Editor’s Note: This is the 1st chapter in Gwen Catalano’s original creative writing story that will be published periodically in The Johnny Green
Chapter 1
It’s October. I walk across my yard to the woods in the back. The autumn leaves crunch beneath my feet with every step. I love this time of year. The cool, crisp air blows across your cheeks like in winter when the top layer of snow turns to ice, and harsh winds come bringing the newest layer of ice crystals flying across the frozen layer. All the trees are vibrant with fall colors. Making them look like their own piece of artwork.
Halloween is coming soon, so people have all of their decorations out. Things that can jump out at you, skeletons, zombies, pumpkins, witches, ghosts, scarecrows, and almost anything related to fall or Halloween.
This is the most dangerous time of year to be walking around the woods alone, with all the pre-Halloween pranks going on, and hunting season. My parents always forbid me to go alone, but when they leave me home alone, I can’t resist. The woods is more of a home to me. No one can pick on me or yell at me. It’s my sanctuary, my safe place. It’s like a guy’s man-cave, or a religious persons church.
I walk into the woods, knowing the danger that lies ahead of me. I don’t care. Like other people at this time of year, I hunt too. I always have my bow, and arrow by my side. Loaded and ready to go.
When I was little, my daddy brought me back here every day for two months until we had finally built me a tree house. It’s the last thing I have close to him. He died from cancer when I was seven. Since then, my mom has remarried and had my little brother, Chris. He is five, and someday, when he can understand what happened to my daddy without asking questions, I’ll show him my tree house and it can become, not only me, and my daddy’s secret place, but his too.
My name is Courtney, I am 15 years old and I am very smart, and talented, though no one at home, or at school can see it. I have two best friends, Victoria, and Dakota. I have long bleach blonde (almost white) hair, florescent orange eyes, my height is 5’2, and I weigh 105 pounds. When I was born, My hair and eye color where the same as they are now. The doctors, and nurses had never seen a child like me. They questioned what was wrong with me until one man finally stood up and said something.
No one had a clue who he was. Not even the police. He walked over to me, looked me straight in the eyes (This is what I’ve been told anyway), said that I would have terrible luck until the age of seven, then a terrible tragedy would occur, my life would be a little better, but not ,much until the age of 15, another terrible tragedy would happen then I’d have a great, prosperous life, if I was able to overcome the tragedy. The scariest part about all of this is, so far, everything he has said has come true. Now I just have to wait with anxiety, and see what will happen this year and see if what the strange man said about my life after 15 is true. The thing that scares me, is how he said only “If I overcome the tragedy.”
I’m sitting up in my tree house cuddled in my dad’s old blanket eating Oreos when I hear a twig right below me snap. I quickly grab my bow and arrow, and look down. No one’s there. I figure it’s just an animal, and go back to eating. Just then, someone says my name. I feel a cold sharp pain on my spine then I’m not sitting in my tree house, but standing in a forest of flames, smoke filling my lungs, and a boy about my age standing right next to me.
