Gifting Season

It felt like I was about to get bitten in the neck all over again. 

Like, the feeling of anticipation was the same, the weight, the tension, only except this time I hadn't the faintest clue what to expect in the coming moments… and with my eyes clamped shut, every little thing I'd hear outside my world of darkness could had me expecting pretty much anything. 

The wind's whistling note breeze past my ears, and if it wasn't just an act of overactive thoughts, it also sounded a little louder—the way it rustled the trees, ruffled my hair… ahh… maybe just a little peek wouldn't hurt. 

"Don't open your eyes," Irene said, her voice practically booming in my head, and for all I knew, she could seriously be in there too with how she read my intent like an open book the very second I even thought of it. "Or go ahead if you're that impatient—spoil the surprise. You know, I worked very hard on this. But if that doesn't matter all that much to you, then—"