Whispers Of The Mist

'Run! Run! Don't stop!' I chanted to myself as I ran and ran through the dark, dense woods. I was panting, my eyes squinting, and trying to see through the mist. I was cold. It was so cold that I felt it even though I was sprinting. No! It was freezing.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

My heart was beating so fast that it felt like I'd go into cardiac arrest.

'Don't stop! You have to get away.

A surge of panic engulfed me—an overwhelming need to flee from an elusive threat. I couldn't define what I was escaping, yet an instinctive certainty pulsed through my very core. Struggling to catch a glimpse of the source, I attempted to glance back, only to find my body unyielding, imprisoned by an inability to act of my own volition.

I was panting and scared, and my head was flooded with so much confusion and questions. I ran through the woods until I was in front of a big pool of water. Wait! It's a lake. I felt trapped, like I had been cornered. I felt the energy of whatever was chasing me get closer and closer.

"Come here, hide!" I heard a big voice from my right call out to me. I looked around, and I saw an old cabin. It stood alone, its walls caving. . I quickly ran towards it, hoping I could get away from the mysterious thing chasing me. Going inside that cabin was the only safe choice I had, and I don't know why or how I knew that.

Arriving at the cabin, I eagerly reached for the door handle, only to be met with resistance. It wouldn't be open! The door remained resolutely shut, refusing to yield to my efforts. Amidst the chilling night, the wind's mournful howls echoed, intertwining with an overwhelming sense of foreboding that permeated every fibre of my being.

'Oh no! Oh no!' I cried in my thoughts. Why won't this door just open up!? My heart was racing, tears streaming down my face.

Snap!

I froze! Someone or something was coming my way. My body stopped moving, even though I desperately wanted it to move.

"Where are you?" said the voice of something I couldn't see, despite the fact that it was so close to me that I felt its breath on my face.

My chest was pumping up and down, and I wanted to scream for help. Why couldn't I move?

"You can't keep me away forever," it said. The coldness in the tone of that statement sent shivers down my spine. It sounded so certain, and that scared me.

I let out a huge, wrenching scream that echoed across the darkness of the woods.

"Serene!" someone shouted from inside the cabin behind me. My back was leaning on the door, facing the direction of that monstrous voice belonging to a mysterious figure.

"Serene! Serene, wake up!"

I gasped, the door behind me swung open, and I felt myself stumble and fall onto the floor of the cabin, and the door immediately slammed shut. I felt that whatever was behind that door wouldn't be able to find me.

"You're having a nightmare," said a voice from above me. I was startled, and that made me realise that I had my eyes shut this whole time.

"Shh, I'm here, baby; you're safe now." The voice was soothing.

My eyelids trembled apart, and a bright light flooded my vision. A reflexive hiss escaped my lips as I instinctively attempted to shield my eyes with my left hand, only to be met with a jolt of agony that surged from my chest, coursing relentlessly through the intricate web of my arm's veins.

"Ahhhhhh!" I screamed. I didn't even realise that sound came out of my mouth until I felt a gentle hand hold my. The person holding my hand gave me a little squeeze of assurance.

"Somebody dim the lights," a deed-husky voice hushed to someone else in the room.

My eyes opened up some more as the lights dimmed. I adjusted myself a bit before tempting myself to tilt my head to the right, wanting to see the people in this room with me.

My eyes were foggy at first. Slowly, my vision cleared up, and I felt disoriented and groggy, the sterile hospital scent assaulting my senses. I noticed a woman seated in a chair beside my bed, her presence casting a calming aura over the sterile room. Her eyes, a deep and thoughtful shade of hazel, locked onto mine with a mixture of concern and relief. Strands of chestnut hair framed her face, falling gracefully over her shoulders. A subtle, reassuring smile played at the corners of her lips, as if she knew the weight of the world I had just emerged from.

She wore a simple yet elegant blouse, a testament to her understated confidence. With gentle grace, she pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear and leaned forward, her voice a soft melody as she spoke words of comfort. Her presence felt like a lifeline in the midst of confusion, a guiding star in my disoriented state.

In that moment, her appearance was a blend of warmth, care, and strength—a picture of compassion that helped ease the uncertainty of my awakening.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, her voice sounding familiar.

'I know this voice,'

"You had us worried sick. We thought we'd lost you," she added, reaching out her hand and touching my cheek. She gently caressed my face, immediately triggering a memory. A memory so gruesome and cold. I realised that this was the same woman who had found me at the very moment I thought would be my last. After that, a ton of memories and questions came flooding into my head and hit me like a brick.

Everything started feeling new and foreign. I started realising that I didn't know these people. Heck, I didn't even know myself. I started panicking, and my head raced. I looked around and realised that it wasn't just me and the woman in the room; there were a bunch of other people here with us. To say I was scared would be an understatement. My eyes started going back and forth, scanning every face in the room as if to see if they posed any threat to me.

The man must've noticed because she started telling everyone to clear the room, and everyone left with their heads bowed down as if they were scared to make eye contact. It was myself, the man, and the lady on my bedside who left the room. I calmed down a bit, although I was still reluctant.

"Serene," he beamed, his voice sounding firm and carrying authority. I turned my head to look at him. His face was hovering above me. He looked almost majestic. He had deep brown-black eyes, his jet black curly hair coming down to his face slightly. His shaved beard grows out to meet his sideburns with utmost precision. His strong jaw clenched tightly, as if he were under a lot of stress.

"Do you remember what happened? Do you know why you're here?" He asked.

"Jimmy, give the poor girl some time to respond," she said, turning her head to me.

'Jimmy. The woman must be Diane, then' I recalled.

"Baby, how are you feeling?" She asked, staring at me, her gaze piercing through my soul. I felt like she could read my

The way she was looking at me.

My lips moved, but I couldn't talk. Water. I needed water.I licked my dry lips.

"Water," I croaked

The woman picked up a glass of water that was on the side tables closer to her.

"Here, drink," she said, placing the glass of water on my lips and slightly lifting my head off the pillow. I gulped the water down my throat immediately, feeling refreshed. I sighed a sigh of relief.

"Who are you?" I asked, gaining myself an exchange of looks of confusion between the pair in my room.

"Honey, I'm your mother." Her expression changed from confusion to concern. "And this is your uncle Jimmy," she said, taking her eyes from mine and landing them on Jimmy. He looked dumbfounded for a short second and then nodded his head knowingly.

"Do you not remember us?" I just stared back at her, my face emotionless, confirming her suspension.

"Serene,'" he said, locking his eyes on mine.

"I'm not Serene," I replied angrily. I don't know why, but that just aroused anger in me.

"Yes, you are.You're my daughter, Serene. I named you," said the woman on theverge of tears.

"Honey, you were in a traumatic incident; that might explain the memory loss."

"What happened to me?" I asked.

"Even though we can't tell you in full details, we do know that the night before your 21st birthday, after dinner, you started complaining about a terrible headache. It had gotten so bad that you couldn't even finish your food, and it was your favourite dish. You went to get water in the kitchen, and after a few minutes you weren't coming back, so I went to check on you." She paused as if she were catching her breath for whatever she was going to say next.

"I got to the kitchen, and you weren't there. The back door was opened, so I assumed you had gotten out to get some air. But you were nowhere to be found. I started panicking, and I called your uncle while Dylan went to check upstairs. You were gone with no trace. We decided to check the woods behind our house, and the further we went in, we started noticing disturbances in the bushes surrounding the area. It looked like something had been dragged across the ground. And we got deeper and deeper in, following a fresh trail of blood. The more we followed, the more scary it got. Fearing the worst, Dylan turned back and went to get the car and go right around the woods. Eventually, we found your body, lifeless, with a huge stab wound on your chest. Panic started flooding in. We couldn't get you to speak or to move, and we just knew that we would lose you. We quickly put you in the car and came with you to the hospital, where you fell into a coma for one week."

To say I was baffled would be an understatement. The story just didn't sit right with me. I had so many questions. Who would want to stab me? Was I taken from the house, or did they go into the woods myself, and I happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time? Or was this targeted? Are these people really my parents? Is my name really serene? My mind was clouded and foggy. I couldn't fathom any of this information.

The confusion and scepticism must've displayed across my face because Jimmy stretched out his hand and gestured for me to mine on his. He slowly helped me out of bed and towards the bathroom. There was a small round mirror implanted on the walls. Reflections of Jimmy and myself stared back at us. I stared for a while, studying my futures that I didn't remember. My skin was pale, as if life had been robbed out of me. I had reddish-brown hair that fell past my shoulders. My eyes twinkled—big, doe eyes. The irises are a beautiful golden colour. Slowly, I raised my hand up to touch myself as if to feel if I were real. My eyes eventually fell to the reflection of Jimmy, who was watching me, letting me take everything in.

"Look," he said, taking out a modest string of photographs, and among them was an image capturing me alongside the woman who had been by my bedside, a man, and a young girl of around 8 years old. This girl had an uncanny resemblance to me, with her fiery red hair, gleaming golden eyes, and a pointed nose. An immediate connection tugged at my heart—a magnetic attraction to her that seemed to transcend the confines of the photograph, as if an unspoken force were beckoning to her from within the image.

'Maybe it's because we look alike,' I thought

could see Jimmy at the back as if he had not wanted to be part of the picture.

"We're a family, Serene. That's your older brother Dylan," he pointed. "And your little sister, Amilia," he added. "They're waiting for you in the lobby. We've been worried about you. We've missed you."

A subtle relaxation washed over my body, bringing a sense of reassurance. However, a sense of disorientation lingered—a nagging feeling that something crucial was missing.

'Go to her!' a voice said somewhere in the room. I turned my heart to see who said that, but there was just me and Jimmy in the bathroom, and he was just smiling at me.

"What?" I asked him to see if he said something. "Go to who?" I added.

Jimmy was confused. "What do you mean?!"

What! Who said that if Jimmy didn't? And why am I the only one who heard it?

"Come, the doctors will check you out, and we can finally take you home."