Shadows of Darkness

Chapter 1- Hiding in the shadows

Night has a solace, it accepts everyone with open arms….everyone that could not find their place in the brightness of the day.

I inhaled a deep breath filling my lungs with the fresh air, trying to block the sounds that were making the floor vibrate beneath my feet.

There was dull blue light in the room contrary to the brightness on the other side of the door. I moved my eyes to see the LED light on the corners of the ceiling.

The room had a bed in the middle from which I decided to stay away. I was not even halfway done scanning the room when a knock on the door startled me.

I did not move from my spot, hoping the person would go away.

"Open the damn door, I know you are inside."

Closing my eyes one more time I inhaled a deep breath through my nose and exhaled it through my mouth before putting on a calm and collective smile.

Strolling towards the door, I turned the doorknob taking some extra time, and opened the door to meet the unpleased walnut brown eyes staring straight into mine.

“Hi?” my small voice was barely audible with all the music coming from the background.

“You can not hide in this room forever,” the music was doing nothing to drown Edana’s voice.

“I was doing that perfectly until you found me,” I knew she did not hear a word but knew well what I could have said.

She put a hand on her waist and moved her index finger in a circle, “C’mon, I did not bring you here so that you can sulk in a room alone.”

I let out a sigh, thinking about all the scenarios that could happen if I walked out of that door.

Disaster.

I ran a hand on the skirt of my dull emerald dress to smoothen out the invisible creases. The dress was simple, it reached just below my knees and had full sleeves, it was probably not right for the place but I could not find anything in a hurry. After what happened a few minutes earlier I was not sure if I wanted to return.

Giving me one hard stare Eddie pushed me inside and closed the door with one hand, “Look Celeste, I love you but you are being a party pooper right now. You can not live your life by hiding in the shadows. Come outside, get drunk, and wake up tomorrow with a bad hangover.”

“I just fell in front of almost a hundred people,” I grumbled under my breath.

“And you think they will remember that?” Eddie raised her perfectly arched thick brows, “sweety, they don’t care.”

I searched for something in her eyes…something that could give me the same confidence that Eddie had in every part of her body. She checked her reflection in the tiny mirror that was resting on the top of a table and ran her fingers through the curls of her sandy blonder hair.

She smacked her hot pink lips and once again turned her smokey eyes in my direction, “Keep that chin up and come with me.”

I did not move.

Before I could reply, the door opened. For a brief second my breath got stuck in my throat but I let out a breath of relief when I realized who it was.

“Eddie, what have we talked about forcing people to do something they don’t want to do?”

Neon came and threw his arm on Eddie’s shoulder pulling her closer to him while holding a red cup in front of me. I looked between the cup and him skeptically.

“It’s not alcohol,” Neon gave a warm smile. There was something about his big hazel eyes that always made me feel comfortable in his presence. He was like a big teddy bear, he appeared intimidating because of his huge frame but in reality, he was a big softie from the inside. Like me, he was not a fan of such things but always came to them anyway to accompany his girlfriend.

Without thinking twice, I gulped almost the entire contents without caring about the taste.

Eddie pushed Neon’s glasses back with her index finger to which he frowned.

I looked away from them feeling awkward standing there and took another small sip of the sweet liquid.

"Celeste, are you okay?" Neon was staring at me with a serious look on his face.

I put on my best smile, hoping it would not look creepy, and nodded. None of them looked convinced.

"Look, guys, I am fine. You both don't have to babysit me all night. I will join you guys in a minute as well."

"Are you sure?" Eddie touched my wrist with her cold long fingers and gave it a squeeze.

"I have to find Ben," Neon said suddenly while reading something from his phone. His eyes were still glued to his phone but he quickly pressed his lips on Eddie's cheek knowing well how much she hated his beard. She pushed him away but the small smile on her lips was enough to tell anyone what she really felt.

"If you don't feel comfortable, we'll leave but at least give it a try. Who knows what your control freak…"

"Eddie," I sighed.

"Fine," she rolled her eyes, "I am not saying anything."

Instead of replying, I linked our arms together, a smile made its way to Eddie's lips.

The door opened and instantly the smell of alcohol mixed with a bunch of body odors hit me. I tried my best not to give any reaction that could show my discomfort and kept a smile on my face.

The urge to lower my eyes whenever someone made eye contact with me was making it hard to walk properly but I tried my best not to mess anything this time and embarrass myself.

But Eddie was right, no one was paying attention to anyone else as we passed a couple who were busy doing the things that should be done behind the bedroom door.

As we started getting closer to the main crowded area something kept brewing inside my heart, it was difficult to explain, it felt like I had to get out of here and be somewhere else. I was feeling sweat rolling down my neck but I knew it was not because of the crowd. The crowd made me feel uneasy but it was never like this.

Taking some short breaths, I clutched my beating heart. I could no longer hear the music that was hurting my ears a little while ago.

I stopped walking.

Eddie paused with a concerned look to make sure I was fine. I forced a smile and took out my phone, ‘I have to make a call, I will be back in a minute.’

I showed her the text to which she nodded even though she did not look convinced but I had to get out of that room.

I could not stay inside and I could not make Eddie ruin her night for me.

“Excuse me,” I kept trying not to bump into someone on my way but it was not easy considering no one could hear my voice and more importantly no one was sober enough to care.

Finally, after a never-ending maze, I was outside the main door.

Inhaling a deep breath of fresh air, I started walking. My feet were moving on their own, I was just on the road with no destination in mind. The cold wind kept hitting me on the face as I moved further. The path was deserted with not even a single insect on the way. That’s when it hit me.

Where was I going?

I was out of my trance-like state and looked around to find myself standing in front of an empty park.

What was I doing here?

I checked my phone to see a text from Eddie, ‘Where are you?’

I felt guilty and quickly texted her back, ‘I decided to take a stroll in the neighborhood, don’t worry I am fine.’

‘Where are you?’ Eddie texted me back almost immediately.

I tapped my fingers on the back side of my phone wondering if I should tell her the truth or go back to the party.

‘I am near the park.’

It was the only park in the surrounding, I was pretty sure she would understand the location.

‘WTF? Wait there we are coming to pick you up.’

Reading her text, I instantly put my thumb near my lips but stopped before I started biting the nail.

Having no other option, I went inside the park and sat down on a bench under the street light.

The temperature was dropping with time, I hugged myself to provide some warmth. The empty park with nothing but swings and no children playing on them was creeping me out for some reason.

I started tapping my fingers on my arms as I kept my eyes on the road.

Instead of sitting alone and waiting, I decided to walk back hoping it would save me from making scenarios in my head. I stood up and was about to take a step when a small sound that sounded like a grunt fell into my ears.

I did not move.

After the long 10 seconds, another sound pierced through the silence. It sounded like someone was in pain.

I hugged myself more tightly and looked around.

The sound of something falling entered my ears this time and I could not stop myself from moving in that direction.

I knew it was a bad idea but like a magnet, I was being pulled to that place.

The clicking sound of my heels hitting the road echoed in the area. I tried to take light steps to stop some of the sounds.

Another narrow path appeared in front of my eyes, the sound was coming from there.

I dug my nails into the fabric of my dress and continued walking but the scene in front of my eyes made me wish I had ignored the sound and kept walking away from the park.