Free Escape by Sheritta Bitikofer

slithered through the forest. The ground was still quilted by a blanket of mist that rose above their ankles. With every step, the fog swirled around their legs as if they were wading through the shallows on a beach.
                “She was tired,” Connor replied. Amelia could still detect the potent taste of resentment in his tone. It was clear that he didn’t want to travel with her just as much as she didn’t want to be in this world at all.
                They walked for what seemed like hours, not speaking a word to one another. Amelia hated the silence, but felt that talking would only make matters worse. Like ripping off a band aide, she just wanted to get this painful experience over with.
                She purposefully positioned herself behind Connor instead of at his side. She didn’t want to be entranced by his piercing eyes like she was before. Just thinking about what happened in the kitchen earlier sent shockwaves down her spine and made her skin flush.
                All around, Amelia could hear the calls of strange birds and chirping of insects. A light wind rustled the branches that arched over the path, making them quiver and scratch against their neighbors. The heady scent of bark and weeds filled her nostrils, but occasionally she could catch the delicious aroma of whatever cologne or deodorant Connor wore. She had smelt it several times when she had gotten close enough to him and it aided in the affect that he had upon her. The thought entered her mind if this world even had such modern commodities as perfume or cologne.
                Amelia was at least thankful that the moon was still shining bright enough to light their way, despite the dark wisps of clouds that floated across it. She did notice, however, that the moon hadn’t moved at all. It was fixed in the same spot in the night sky. It was like no time had passed at all.
                She wondered if any time had passed in her world. She wondered if her parents were home already and if they had seen the packet from Princeton still sitting on the dining table. Would they notice? Did they care? If they had noticed and cared then why hadn’t they woken her up yet? She so wanted to be woken up. She was tired of being in this nightmare. She hated the darkness, the monsters and the crazy vividness of this dream.
                Perhaps, if the monsters were more pleasant, she wouldn’t mind it so much. Amelia looked up to Connor’s broad, rigid back and wished that he had been kinder to her. There was something about him that pulled at the corners of her heart. It was a peculiar longing to understand him, to know him and be accepted by him. He put up such a wall that it seemed not even Esmeralda could penetrate.
                Before she could stop herself, Amelia spoke. “Why do you hate me so much?”
                Connor froze in his steps and turned to face her. His eyes were cold and his expressions stony. “Because you’re everything I hate.”
                Amelia blinked, feeling like that should have made sense. But all she felt was that she had just been insulted for something that wasn’t even her fault. “What do you mean? What have I done?”
                “This isn’t your world.” Connor’s lips curled with contempt as he growled out each word. “You don’t belong here.”
                “You don’t think I know that? It’s not my fault that I’m in this nightmare. If I had a choice, I wouldn’t be stuck here.” Amelia’s voice grew shrill as she tried to defend herself against this man’s inexplicable rage.
                “If it were my decision, you would have been left in that burrow to die or be eaten.”
                Amelia felt even more hurt by his words. “How can you wish me dead like that? You don’t even know me.”
                “I know your kind.