Unknown Woman

The sharp, sterile scent of bleach was the first thing that hit me.

Then came the rhythmic, annoying beep... beep... beep of a heart monitor. I blinked hard, squinting against the harsh fluorescent lights above.

A hospital room.

My mind spun in circles. I couldn't remember a single thing about how I ended up here. The last vivid memory I had was the suffocating darkness of the forest, the terrifying smoke warrior, and the girl who saved me.

As I tried to shift my weight, a movement by my bedside caught my eye.

My mom was slumped over in an uncomfortable plastic chair, her head resting awkwardly against the edge of my mattress. She looked completely drained, dark circles bruising the skin under her eyes. She must have been up all night watching over me.

The moment I tried to prop myself up on my elbows, her eyes snapped open.

"Hey, hey, stop! Put your body back down right now, Felix C. Wesley!" she barked, her voice cracking with a mix of sheer panic and relief as she pushed my shoulders back into the pillows. "Don't you dare try to sit up. You almost gave me a heart attack! Just lie still while I call the nurse."

Before she could press the call button, I weakly grabbed her sleeve. My throat felt like it was coated in sandpaper. "Mom... why am I in the hospital? I know I was in the forest when I lost consciousness."

Tears instantly welled up in her eyes, her relief flashing into sharp anger. "Do you have any idea how worried I was?! I told you to come home early! It was already pitch black outside and you still weren't back. Thank God I called the police, and thank God someone saw you walking into those forest. What on earth were you even doing there?!"

Before I could answer, the door swung open.

A doctor and a nurse walked in to check my vitals. As the doctor shone a penlight into my eyes, the memory suddenly flashed in my mind so vividly it made my heart race. I was a brave guy, and I wasn't going to hide the truth out of fear. I had to report what happened.

"There was a monster," I blurted out, my voice tight but firm. "It was ten feet tall, made of smoke. It was about to kill me. But then this woman appeared out of nowhere. She saved me."

The room went dead silent.

The doctor stopped moving. The nurse paused. My mom just stared at me, her face turning pale. The look on all of their faces made it painfully clear, they thought I had lost my mind.

"Son... are you okay?" My mom placed a trembling hand against my forehead, looking up at the medical staff with desperation. "Did you hit your head too hard? Is he going crazy? Doctor, please help my son. I think the impact from his fall did something to his brain."

The doctor gave my mother a reassuring, pitying smile. "Ma'am, your son’s scans are completely clear. There's no permanent physical damage. I think he just needs rest for the time being. Severe stress and exhaustion can make the mind play cruel tricks on us."

"Trauma."

That’s what they were chalking it up to.

Frustration boiled inside me. I was a varsity player, tough and clear headed–I knew the difference between a dream and reality. But who would believe a guy who claimed he saw a literal monster?

Defeated, I stared up at the ceiling, letting their voices fade into the background. I just needed to rest. If playing along with their diagnosis got me out of here faster, then I would pretend I was fine.

Seven weeks later, I was officially discharged.

My body had recovered, but my mind was still trapped back in those woods. No matter how hard I tried to shake it, I couldn't forget the terrifying growl of the creature, or the ethereal face of the woman who saved my life.

Was it real? Or was I actually going crazy?

But reality didn't care about my existential crisis.

Today was my first day at a brand new school. We had moved to this town to start over with a fresh start, and I had to play the part of a normal, functioning teenager.

When I stepped through the doors of my new classroom, the room was buzzing with loud laughter, overlapping conversations, and chaotic energy. For a split second, a tiny spark of hope flared in my chest. Maybe my new life wouldn't be so bad after all.

Then, the teacher walked in.

"Quiet down, class!" she yelled, slamming a textbook onto the podium. "We have a new student joining us today."

Instantly, the laughter died. Every single head turned in unison, and suddenly, thirty pairs of eyes were locked dead onto me. The silence was suffocating.

I took a deep breath, squaring my shoulders and pulling myself up to my full height. I wasn't going to let a room full of strangers intimidate me.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Felix C. Wesley. I'm new here. My family just moved to the area, and I'm looking forward to starting a new life with all of you."

The second I finished speaking, the whispers started. Students leaned across their desks, murmuring to their friends, sizing me up from head to toe. I kept my face completely blank, refusing to let them see me sweat.

"Felix, go ahead and take the empty seat at the back," the teacher instructed, pointing toward the far corner of the room.

I walked down the aisle, keeping my posture straight and confident, and sank into the desk right next to the window. To escape the suffocating stares, I turned my attention outside.

Right outside the glass stood a massive, sweeping willow tree, its long branches dancing gently in the wind. Nestled safely between the leaves was a small bird's nest, the faint, sweet sound of chirping barely cutting through the teacher's drone. Looking at those wild, tangled branches, my mind immediately drifted right back to the woods.

Back to her.

Tap, tap.

The sound of knuckles rapping against wood abruptly shattered my thoughts.

I blinked, tearing my gaze away from the window. The guy sitting at the desk next to mine was leaning over the small gap between our tables, a friendly, easygoing smirk on his face as he offered his hand.

"Hi, nice to meet you. My name is Lukas," he whispered, shaking my hand. "I heard you're the new guy. I hope you find our school comfortable."

Suddenly, a low voice hissed from the next row over. "Shhh! Be quiet, Lukas. If Ma'am sees the two of you chatting, you're both dead," she warned, giving us a sharp, cautionary glare.

"Oh, don't mind her," Lukas whispered back to me, throwing a teasing smirk in her direction. "She's just like that because she never gets any attention."

"You are so dead, Lukas!" she whispered fiercely, her eyes burning with anger.

Thwack!

A piece of flying chalk zoomed across the room, aiming perfectly for Lukas. It was Ms. Pace.

"Lukas! Go to the principal's office right now!" she barked.

The girl next to me instantly flashed a triumphant smirk. As Lukas stood up to leave, she caught his eye and silently mouthed three words to him: "Serves you right."

Lukas shot her a cold glare before trudging out the door toward the principal's office.

Soon after, the bell rang. It was finally lunch break, and the classroom cleared out as everyone headed for the cafeteria. The girl next to me stood up and extended a friendly smile, completely dropping her angry act.

"Hey, I'm Elene," she introduced herself. "Lukas and I are actually close friends. Come on, we'll show you around the school."

Walking down the hallway, I smiled quietly. Despite the chaotic start, I had a feeling these two were going to be the first classmates I'd genuinely interact with this school year. Still, I couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for my new desk mate. While Elene and I were walking around, poor Lukas was stuck dealing with a brutal punishment writing a five-page, back-to-back essay explaining his behavior in the classroom.

'That sucks," I thought to myself.

Eventually, we grabbed our food and sat down at a table. As I watched the other students laughing and chatting around us, my mind drifted right back to the suffocating darkness of those woods. The mystery was burning a hole in my chest, and I couldn't hold it in any longer.

I looked across the table at Elene.

"Hey, Elene..." I hesitated for a second, then leaned in. "Do you know anything about the forest around here?"