“So, this is the thing: Katina cannot go back to her house anymore, and the treehouse she’s currently using lacks shelter,” Zoe announced, clearly thinking about how to deal with the situation. Chloe was thinking too.
Right now, I have three options: Firstly, I can go back to my aunt’s house and get punished, but I’ll have better shelter, a stable food source, and sure transport to school after the holiday. I can also stay in the treehouse, but with a lack of resources. The best option in my head so far is to stay with Chloe or Zoe, where I’ll have all the resources and transportation I need.
“Zoe, there’s another option,” I mewed nervously, fearing they would refuse to take me in.
“Spit it out, sis,” said Zoe, suddenly brightened.
“I, um, can stay in one of your houses and, um, wait until school starts.”
“I wish I could take you in, but my mama probably won’t agree; she’s quite strict about this,” Chloe whispered sorrowfully in the breezy garden of her house.
“I can take you in!” Zoe advised happily, even a little hysterically. “Though I have to ask Mum for permission.” She smiled at me cheerfully, really not her style.
“Okay…” Hesitant, I wondered if it was okay to mention that Zoe wasn’t really acting like herself.
“What?” Zoe was back to her normal self.
“Nothing!” I acted normal.
“‘K then, I’ll ask my mum about this,” Zoe replied.
“Thanks, bud,” I added gratefully.
The sun was hidden behind a thick cloud as I walked quickly back to the treehouse. It looked like it was going to rain soon, and I started to jog.
“Sss… Sss…”
Suddenly, I heard a small, smooth sound that was like some wind dragging across the wet meadow. I looked back but saw nothing but a forest of trees and grayish grass. I turned my head back and continued jogging slowly. It’s just some wind, I told myself.
“Sss… Sss.” The sound came again, but louder, like a snake hissing.
I swung my head again and still saw nothing. A chill ran down my spine; this can’t be anything good. I started to run a little faster because I was scared.
“SSS! SSS!” The sliding sound was now deafening, and I saw a dozen snarling black heads poking up from the tall grass. I screamed, horrified. As I scrambled to the treehouse, these black and shiny pen-like things—or animals—were no longer hiding: the forest ground was now swarming with them, dyeing the floor a dark color and oozing with ink-like sticky liquid. I could almost see the treehouse now, just behind that dry ground—
I ran furiously toward the tree, but then I noticed something surprising: the wall of black lines was slowing down quite a bit. Just in case those things came any closer, I climbed up the treehouse and folded up the ladder. Now I finally had time to examine these things more closely.
Those shades of black were actually tons of snakes squirming for their lives. Like a disgusting artwork, they twirled on the earth canvas, and the swollen branches were the brushes. Light reflected off their shiny black scales, gleaming under the darkened leaves. I could also spot some yellow dots, which were their eyes, hissing at me angrily. The darkened ground seemed to be whimpering despite the fact that this sticky liquid could not be the healthiest drink. I shivered. What on EARTH are these? Where did they come from? When will they leave me alone?
The air was filled with weird scents that smelled like gasoline as the snakes moved closer. I gulped down a mouthful of curiosity as I looked to the other side and saw another heavy mark of ink. I was surrounded by them.
Fear clawed at my heart when I heard a loud pitch of sound as the treehouse seemed to be shaking. But all of a sudden, the snakes retreated and disappeared into the woods, leaving washes of venom behind as the sound ended.
Relief turned my fear scale down a lot as my heavy breathing filled the air. The woods darkened quite a bit, but nothing else was wrong as the sun appeared through the gaps between the trees.
After a while, my heart started pounding again because I heard a trail of footsteps crushing into the crispy leaves. I immediately flung myself into the pillows when I heard an annoyed shout right below my treehouse.
“Katina Crown! Come down and let’s get going! We don’t have a whole afternoon to waste!”
“Wha—Coming!” I replied loudly.
As I slid down from the rope ladder, I saw Zoe’s confused face covered in sweat.
“You look like you’ve walked in the rain!” I teased.
“It’s from running—Kat, have you seen a bunch of black snakes?” she asked desperately, panting a little.
“Yes! They’re terrifying,” I said shakily.
“Okay,” Zoe started leading me out of the forest and to her house. “Okay—so my foot was bitten by one of them.”
I jerked toward the front and gasped, “What happened?”
“I was just taking a walk in the woods, thinking about life—THIS ISN’T THE POINT! When I tripped and fell. I felt a bit of pain in my left foot when I got up and found my trainer soaked with blood before I saw a black snake slipping into the grass. I had a hard time making it home.”
“Now look,” I sighed.
The sky darkened with the ground when we both made it to Zoe’s house.
“I’ve heard your story, my dear,” purred Mrs. Quinn pitifully. In the bright house of hers, she squatted in front of me, her hand on my shoulders.
“Mum, can I take Kat to my room? She’s tired,” said Zoe.
I opened my mouth to protest, but Zoe cast a look at me, and I immediately understood: private talking time.
As I arrived at Zoe’s room, I saw Zoe’s piercing gray gaze looking at me.
“I’ve been researching the weather in Leafbrook,” she said proudly.
“Cool. Is that your summer homework? From your mom?” I teased playfully.
She cast a look at me again, and that instantly shut me up. She cut straight into her topic: “Nowadays, the rain in Leafbrook is increasing by 10 centimeters.”
“That’s a lot,” I interrupted.
“Yes, yes—just a side comment, the rain seems to be drying so fast: it dries in 4 hours. But it seems not that simple.”
She continued, “The rain also made an interesting foundation: it created some round objects.”
“How do you know?” I asked curiously.
“Hush. So, it turns out to be snake eggs that hatch in 6 hours.”
“How do you—”
“Katina!”
“Sorry,” I grumbled, “but—”
Zoe cut me off: “Anyway, I think this is the reason why there are a lot of snakes around recently.”
“That’s good,” I praised. Zoe feels happy when I praise her, yet we all do.
“Girls, time for bed!” I heard Mrs. Quinn call from downstairs.
“Okay, Mum!” replied Zoe loudly.
Despite the fact that the sofa was the only place I could sleep, I went down to the living room and lay down on it. But as the clock ticked, my eyes stared unblinking into the stormy sky outside the floor window.
What will tomorrow bring? I thought as my mind blurred…
I fell into a weird dream: Chloe’s phone was constantly ringing, and when I tried to turn it off, it suddenly hissed and turned into one of the snakes—but a gigantic one. I screamed and ran as the huge creature chased me before I started to fall right into a hole. The feeling was sickening, and I woke up to find sweat all over my body and Zoe’s worried eyes.
“You were twitching in your sleep. Bad dreams?” she whispered gently, her gray eyes meeting mine.
“Yes. I dreamed of one of the snakes… but it was huge. It was chasing me,” I admitted, embarrassed; nightmares, in my opinion, were childish.
“I’ve had a similar dream. How about we gossip?” Zoe suggested; it was still midnight now.
“Sure, Emily-Rose said that Zach liked Chloe…” I reported.
“Who? Zachery Wilson? The science teacher’s son? Liked Chloe?”
“She said that she once bumped into them, and she swore that she saw Zach blush.”
“Cool. Do you know that the librarian is going to retire after this holiday? He’s old enough,” Zoe replied.
“No offense, but that’s lovely. He is the grumpiest teacher in the school,” I smiled.
“Also, Kathrine will be leaving after the new term; she’s going to Kendall Academy,” Zoe added desperately.
“That’s nice—wait, did you say Kendall Academy?” I exclaimed, suddenly aware—I had heard that Charlotte went there.
“Yeah, it’s one of the best middle schools in the city! How do you not know about it?” she demanded with an undying obsession. Her eyes shone, and her mouth curled into a shallow smile. For no reason, Zoe looked weird—creepy—in the dying moonlight through the window. Her silvery blonde hair twisted, and her eyes—I’m not sure, but I thought I caught a glimpse of yellow light in her gray pupils.
A lightning bolt crashed down from the wicked, storm-filled sky as Zoe forced an ominous chuckle. My mouth went dry; the girl in front of me now smiled madly with an empty gaze staring into nowhere.
“…Zoe? Are you—” I breathed as Zoe’s eyes turned an angry yellow, her silvery blonde hair turning black.
“Me?” She made a weak smile. “I’m perfectly fine. Why are you looking scared? Don’t be afraid. Did you hear that thunder? It’s so loud…” she purred in the sweetest, softest voice.
Zoe seemed to be turning crazier than ever: she was now whispering some words. My heart raced like a wild bird in a cage, bumping against my ribcage hard. I gasped now, watching Zoe go completely lost. I didn’t know what to do, but my mind automatically made me yell out a name: “Mrs. Quinn!”
“What?” I heard a sleepy voice dragging from the hall. “What is the matter?”
“Please—just come!” I shouted hopelessly.
A trail of footsteps came from the kitchen. I turned my eyes to see Mrs. Quinn padding into the living room.
The woman’s eyes widened when she looked further. I looked back and found Zoe on her knees, falling down.
“Zoe!” Mrs. Quinn kneeled down beside Zoe’s still body. She shook Zoe’s shoulders madly as I plunged onto Chloe’s phone.
The ambulance soon arrived with flashes of blinding blue and red lights. I watched them pull Zoe’s lifeless (hopefully not) body onto the white van. Of course, I had to go with Mrs. Quinn; she wouldn’t let me stay here alone.
The trip remained silent and busy as the ambulance raced to the hospital. I watched numbly as those white-clothed men and women hurried toward Zoe and pushed her into a room.
Mrs. Quinn was pacing outside the door while I just sat there, staring at my feet. After a while, which seemed like a century long, a sturdy man with sleek brown hair and a mustache slowly walked out of the room and called us in. He quickly introduced himself: he was called Dr. Hooter, the head of the Valleybrook hospital.
Such an “Owl-y” name, my mind popped up as the man half-led, half-pulled Mrs. Quinn into the room as I followed desperately.
The room was pure white except for the many tubes. On one of the beds lay Zoe, so pale that you couldn’t tell she was there if you didn’t look closely. These tubes were all connected to Zoe’s weak body without a tangle. The room was filled with tiny chatter from some official-looking people, who were all looking at Zoe with their ears pressed against another’s mouth.
“Your daughter’s now out of the danger zone but unconscious,” explained Dr. Hooter, who leaned more closely to Mrs. Quinn, “but she seems to be suffering from some special type of venom that breaks into her brain. We’re not sure why she has changed hair and eye color.” He took a glance toward me.
“Maybe, um, your daughter’s friend can go back to her home now?” the man advised.
“No, she’s from one of my friends, but he left her here because he had to go to the city for a month or two,” whispered Mrs. Quinn. She’s such a good liar—in a good way.
“Alright, then; but your daughter was in some pretty serious nervous system trouble, so she has to stay in for… I’m not really sure,” Dr. Hooter admitted as he scratched his head.
“It’s… fine.” The mother buried her beautiful face in her chest.
The night remained silent.
