Friday Flash Fiction

“Just ignore it. There’s no one there.” Her over-active imagination played havoc on her mind. Glancing into the forest every few steps, Lara had the eerie sensation that someone was watching her. It had her paranoid. The utter darkness that made up the surrounding forest was suffocating and her stride widened while she walked along the highway.

But what if it’s a something instead? She frowned as she thought the last and gave another look to her right before taking a deep breath to try and calm herself. “There’s no such thing as the boogieman. Now stop scaring yourself and get a grip.”

The clicking of her heels on the pavement was the only sound Lara had heard for the last thirty minutes and she concentrated on the sound to try and distract her mind. The air was stale and stagnant with the smells drifting from the forest as she walked the yellow line along the edge of the road. A full moon lit her way on the deserted highway as she looked for someone to help her and she was grateful for its light. The road was lit well, but seeing the unfortunate choice of shoes she had made earlier that morning, it was a small comfort. Her business pumps had already forced a blister on her left foot, the pain of it was noticed with every step she took. The constant clicking of her heels seemed to echo around her but the noise was a distraction. It helped to keep her mind off of things she’d rather not think about.

Her drive back to the place she’d spent her childhood had been uneventful until now. Miles of back roads had gone unnoticed and she drove through every small town without any thought other than getting her grandparents affairs in order and getting back home. She had just crossed the Georgia line over into South Carolina when her car had lunged forward and sputtered before it finally gave a hissing squeal and died.

Ten minutes of looking under the hood, for what, she had no clue, had done nothing but smear grease on her hands and caused a string of curses to escape her lips before she kicked the front of the car out of frustration. It was just her luck. Things had not been going well for her the past two months, why would today be any different?

The area she had found herself stranded in was as ghostly as they came. Not a single car had passed her on the road as she drove, and the last town she’d been through was over twenty miles back. So, she did the only thing she could do. She set off walking to find help. It seemed like the logical thing to do at first but now, as she walked the darkened highway, she had the odd sensation of being watched.

Her fear of the unknown caused a frightened laugh to break the silence around her before she stopped and stared into the forest.