I feel the cold air of the wind push my hair behind me as I trudge my way down the trail. I hear my friends not far behind me. We’re all covered with snow by this point.
“Hey guys, maybe we should turn back. It’s getting late and I don’t want to get sick.” I call out to them. I turn to look at them, only to find them looking at each other in concern. I trudge my way over to them, only to stop a couple feet away. A soft buzzing fills my ears and the sounds of nature start to disappear. What is going on? I try to speak, only to find that I can’t hear my voice. I look to my friends once again. We all share a look of worry, before huddling together in a circle. As I step closer to them, the buzzing gets slightly louder. We tried to communicate by facial expressions, but we all ended up confused.
After a while, I decide to follow the buzzing. We were not getting anywhere and I want to know where the sound is coming from. As I move, the sound either gets louder or softer. This reminds me of the ‘hot and cold’ game. I keep going until the sound is so loud I have to cover my ears.
In front of me, I find a brilliantly glowing square just floating in the middle of a clearing. All the snow around it is melted. As beautiful as it is, it gives me a sinking feeling in my gut. I shouldn’t be here. I turn to run the other way, but I’m blocked in by my friends. I try to call out to them once again, but all that can be heard is the buzzing. The look in their eyes tells me they aren’t going to move. Their eyes have all been turned a very pale version of what they were before. What’s happened to them? I back away, closer to the square. The closer I am to it, the more that feeling of panic grows. I turn away from my friends and sprint off into the woods, away from the square.
I don’t stop running until the buzzing is gone and I can hear my own footsteps in the snow. Who knew it’d be so hard to run in snowshoes? I take a moment to catch my breath and observe my surroundings. I’m not entirely sure where I am, but I know I’m further from the trails than that Square. I need to head home and figure out what’s going on. I head in the direction I think will take me home.
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After what felt like hours, but was probably only forty minutes or so, I find a familiar-looking trail. If I remember correctly, it should lead me home. Finally, I’m almost home. I hope my friends will be all right. The sun is almost setting, so I need to hurry if I want to make it home before nightfall.
Upon making it home, I quickly make sure all the doors are locked. What do I do? My friends are out there in the freezing cold with some weird square in the middle of nowhere and I just left them there! Before I can decide what to do, I hear the buzzing again. It was so soft that for a second I didn’t realize I could hear it again.
“Join me.” I heard a whisper. It was so soft I wasn’t sure if I really heard it or not. Until I heard it again. “Join me.” It was louder this time and I could hear the buzzing get louder. Panic sets in. What do I do? I can’t call the cops; they’ll think I’m crazy! I’m running out of time; it’s getting louder by the second. Soon, I hear a knocking on the windows. I rush upstairs, not sure where else I could go. I realize only afterwards that I’ve trapped myself. The only thing I can do now is to hide and hope that everything goes back to normal. I run into my room and shove myself into the closet, closing the doors behind me. The buzzing has gotten so loud that I can barely hear myself think. And then, nothing. I can’t hear anything. I can’t see anything anymore either; it’s all just black.
Suddenly, I hear a soft rhythmic beeping. I try to open my eyes, but they feel heavy. I start to see red through my eyelids, as if there’s a bright light behind them. I slowly opened my eyes, having to blink due to the lights. As I look around, I notice I’m in a bed with white sheets. Glancing around the room, I realize… I’m in a hospital.
Before I get the chance to question what happened, the door to the room and an older man in a white coat enters the room. He is holding a clipboard.
“Ah, you’re awake. You’re probably wondering what happened, yes?” He spoke calmly, as if he’s done this a thousand times. I nod my head, not feeling brave enough to speak up. “Well, you had an… accident when snowshoeing with some friends two years ago and you ended up in a coma.” He told me with a sympathetic look on his face. Two years? No.. That can’t be true. I remember going home and hiding in my closet. I was running from that square! “Now, I know it can be a lot to take in, but-” I stopped listening. I noticed something too important to listen anymore. His eyes… they’re glowing the same yellow as the square.