Natalie

Hey guys, so I'm trying to be spontaneous so today I'd try something new. How about a little story of the horror category? I call it Natalie. Enjoy

Natalie had been acting weird all week, I tried to get her to talk to me about it but she always waved aside the issue with a shrug. It was clear she wasn't herself, she hardly spoke to any of her friends anymore, and although she still let me hang around her, she never really opened up to me about what was happening. we had known each other and been friends right from the second grade, you could say I was her Bestfriend, but she meant more to me than that. I had had a crush on her for as long as I could remember, that was why I was the first to figure out that something was wrong.

On Wednesday night I got a call, and it was from Natalie, she had sounded rather perturbed. I could hear her breathing heavily into the receiver, and she barely made any sense, I kept asking her what was wrong, but all I could hear was a scared mumble. Then I heard a loud thud, then a scream. The scream came far away from the receiver but I could no longer hear her talking. There were three more loud thuds, and then her voice again. Still stuttering, she whispered "help". The phone cut off as I screamed her name.

Immediately I dialed 911 and gave them the address to her house and everything I had heard on the phone. The police were swift and were there in 5minutes. I had rushed out of my house Pajama's and all got on my bike and rode all the way there. As I pulled up to her driveway I could see the police leaving the house escorted by Natalie's mum and apologising for any inconveniences. I couldn't understand why there was no trouble or issue, she had clearly asked for help. I watched the police drive away in their car, and her mother going in with the door closed behind her, her face looked pale. Up the first floor, where Natalie's room was, the lights were on. She wasn't out with her mother, so she had to be in her room. I brought out my cellphone and was about to call her when my phone rang, " Natalie" just then as I picked I looked up at her room and saw her silhouette through the curtains, but she wasn't holding a phone, her voice continued

"Hello, I asked for your help. I didn't ask you to call anyone. You called the unworthy here"

"The un- what? I just called the cops, I had to, I was worried sick about you, what happened?" I said

"Well come in and find out, you're already here aren't you?"

I was taken aback. How did she know I was there? I hid behind the fence from the police and her mother, so how could she have known..

"How do you know that?" I asked

"Are you coming up or not? I'm scared" she cried

I looked up at her room, and there she still stood, behind the curtains, hands at her sides, there were things I couldn't explain, but I could not leave Natalie not when she needed me the most.

"Is your mum in the room?" I asked

"No.. I'm alone in here, I'm scared" she replied.

I decided my fears were irrational and I asked her how I could get up there.

"There's a ladder by the side of the house she said, that would do the trick"

She didn't sound scared, not at all as she did on the phone earlier, and a part of me thought that maybe she had finally fallen for me as I did her, I was trying to be positive when I sneaked into the yard and to the backyard and fetched the ladder. For a split second at the corner of my eye swore I was losing it but I saw a pair of red glowing eyes in the shadow belonging to a girl shaped figure. I blinked in horror and that was it, it wasn't there anymore. I chalked it all down to my previous fear that evening for Natalie's safety so I climbed up the ladder,and softly tapped on her window. She emerged in two seconds, she opened the window with a warm smile then stepped aside so I could climb in, as I did the ladder fell miserably to the ground but was cushioned by the soft lawn grass and didn't make too much of a sound.

I planted my feet on her soft rug, I hadn't been in her room since the 5th grade, she looked a bit peculiar, but all the same beautiful. Her pale looking skin which she had in school was gone and so were the dark circles around her eyes. She smiled at me in her rather short pj's and drew me into a hug, I felt a chill. Not a chill that you get when the love of your life pulls you into a bear hug, I felt a literal chill, because she felt cold.

"Jeez Natalie you're freezing" I said

She narrowed her eyes and said, I'm always cold"

"No you're not" I said under my breath.

He eyes fixed to mine she was smiling wider than I had ever seen her smile. And for a second I really wondered if she had fallen for me

"S- so what's the problem" I asked

"Oh yes" she said, almost suddenly realizing I came there due to fear of her safety.

"I haven't been myself in a while, and you're the only one that tickles our fancy, we like you" she said

"We???" I asked her

"Kidding you know I mean 'I' " she replied.

"Okay, I'm just happy you're okay"

I saw a look of fear suddenly come over her, and I concluded she's probably going through one of those mood things, or she's in a phase. I led her to her bed to sit down and I held her close telling her everything was going to be okay, she smiled once more and buried her head in my shoulder. Even though I Still felt a creepy vibe, I was happy I finally felt like a man that could protect her. She whispered to me

"Could you stay with me? St-stay over?"

"Sure I said".

She smiled and kissed my cheek, although this wasn't a new thing to me, as she has kissed me on the cheek a lot of times, it felt different. And I didn't know if I liked it. She held on to my arm and laid down on her side and I laid down beside her as she placed my arm around her waist.

" goodnight Nattie" I said, but I got no reply.

I tried to go to sleep but I had goosebumps all over my arms that wouldn't go away. I looked to the window where I saw the figure and then back to Natalie's head. I was afraid to move, I didn't want to startle her, and I wanted everything to be perfect as this was a big deal to me. I stayed awake for almost 30 minutes when it started getting colder, I shivered and I realised it was from her. I stood up to grab a blankie from the basket on the other side of her room, and when I got there I yawned a bit loudly it startled me, just then I heard a voice. I couldn't believe it though, because it was coming from the floor...

"Hello" the voice whispered. "Please help me"

Immediately I concluded it must have been someone who came in here to scare her and had hidden in there when the police arrived. I grabbed a baseball bat at the corner of the room, in was going to prove to Natalie that I was a man Who could protect her. With my heart beating fast I searched for a handle or latch to open up the floor board. And in a moment of courage I did, but nothing could have prepared me for what I saw, there she was pale, and with dark circles under her eyes

"Billy!" She yelped

"Na-natalie??"

"You shouldn't have come here. I should have known she would bait you here, she obviously wanted you, no wonder she allowed me hang out with no one but you at school, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you, she threatened to kill me... I don't know what she is.. She's the devil, she doesn't want anything good for you, run away as fast as you can!!!"