I should have known something was wrong when the coffee cups vanished and trees surrounded me.

I took a step back in confusion, wet leaves crunching under my shoe instead of the smoothness of the coffee shop’s tiles. The world was dark and ominous as if something was lurking beneath the shadows, watching me intensely. I heard the tiny scurrying of animals and the screech of cicadas. That was the only sound of the night. Everything seemed so peaceful and still, yet inside, I felt panic slowly consuming me. 

All I could feel was a numbing pain around my thighs. I frantically searched my body for my phone but came up empty-handed. As if my situation wasn’t any more hopeless, I had no way to contact the outside world. My breath quickened. My stomach churned. And I had a throbbing headache that seemed to be spreading to my shoulders. 

The cicadas seemed to be getting louder. They were taunting me about how unequivocally screwed I was. 

The woods stretched in every direction. Every time I blinked, the trees grew more vast and the dark grew more pitch black. I knew I had no choice, but to stay in one spot. I had no idea what danger could be waiting for me.

I slumped against a tree in defeat and looked up. The moonlight cut through the trees a lot better when you were lying on the ground. The moon loomed over a few hanging branches, waving slowly as if they were telling me “this was the way out.”

All I could remember was Stephanie’s golden smile and the taste of chai lingering on my tongue. I was sure I was in some sort of lucid dream. If I opened my eyes, I’d be on my warm bed surrounded by pillows.  

So why couldn’t I wake up?

I forced myself to take a seat on the grass. As I crouched down at a patch of leaves, my eyes were suddenly blinded by something bright. The small amount of light somehow captured something shiny. 

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Against my better judgment, I picked it up. I eyed the item suspiciously. It was a golden bangle. There was something inscribed on it, but it was difficult to read. 

I raised the bracelet in the air, hoping it would become more visible. The initial ‘S’ was printed in bold letters. It reminded me of Stephanie’s gold jewelry she used to wear up and down her arms.

In fact, I think it belonged to her. 

Stephanie’s bangle was cold and wet. There were tiny diamond-shaped gems on either side of her initials, and a pattern of the infinity sign stretched to meet at the center. There was a dark-colored liquid blocking the rest of the print. I tried to smear it off, but it seemed to get worse. 

And that’s when it hit me; the metallic, rancid smell of blood. I didn’t know how I didn’t catch it earlier. The god-awful odor, the sticky texture-- It was something I hoped not to remember. The more I wiped it off her bangle, the worse it seemed to get. 

My body became more and more stiff as the blood began to overtake more of my dry skin. I took heavy breaths. There was no end to the liquid. The stench was so strong that I suppressed the urge to gag. 

My eyes stung with tears. All rationale had left my mind. I was mindlessly searching for something, literally anything that could explain the gut-wrenching feeling I had. 

“Stephanie?” I called out. 

 I knew it was futile, but nothing could comfort me until I heard her response. My voice was low and husky, yet powerful against the cicadas. The forest gave me nothing in response. I should’ve expected it. 

I placed my palms flat on the floor and continued to circle my hands.I brushed against piles of leaves and what seemed like pools of blood, but I kept searching. She had to be somewhere here. I smiled, relieved when I latched onto a warm body part. 

“Stephanie,” I repeated, this time I was more hopeful. 

Somehow I knew it was her. I was sure she was alive. I just saw her sitting across from me, enjoying a warm coffee. Her torso felt like it was drenched in blood. The cicadas’ haunting voices were silent. I rustled through the grass to search for the rest of her. 

Suddenly, I felt a finger.

I tightened my grip on it in an attempt to shake her awake. 

“Can you hear me, Stephanie?” My voice was unsure, but I still expected a response. She was here, right next to me. How could she not respond? 

I yanked her hand in desperation, in an attempt to lift her up. 

What I didn’t expect was for it to fall to the floor and for her remaining bangles to come crashing to the floor. 

I let out an ear-shattering scream.

Stephanie was dead.