Trenton

I wake up later the next morning. A day of relaxation has help a lot. I feel well rested and happy, full of an inexpressible joy. I was the last one to wake up, and everyone had just finished eating breakfast. I announced that I was going on a morning jog, and Kathryn asked if she could join. I agreed and we took off. We stopped after running down the full length of the beach. We drank some water and decided to run in the forest. Palm trees turned into fir trees. After a couple minutes, a fog began to set in. Soon, it was so thick that we couldn’t see anything.

“What’s up with this fog?” Kathryn asks.

“I don’t know,” I reply, “but we should probably get out. “Stay by my side so we don’t get lost.” We walk for a couple minutes, but to no avail.

“Where are we?” I ask. Kathryn doesn’t respond. I look around and find that she isn’t near me. I can’t see her anywhere.

“KATHRYN!” I yell. No response. I hear the sounds of rushing water, and I start walking towards it. As I’m walking, the fog starts thinning and I arrive in a small grassy clearing. A small pile of stones stands in the middle of the clearing, water pouring down the side and streaming out into the woods. Fog hung low around the edges of the clearing, and sunlight streamed through the forest canopy. I stepped forward and approached the pile. I realized my canteen was empty. I refilled it with the water and gulped it down thirstily. I refilled it again and turned to leave the clearing. However, there was no more clearing. I’m in the forest. I turn back to see more trees. The clearing has vanished. I’m alone in the forest. I walk for a half hour and come to another clearing, this one larger without a pile of stones or a stream. I’m about to step in when I hear voices. I step back into the shadows of the trees.

“Trenton, you can’t do this,” I hear Kylie say.

 “But I have to,” I hear myself reply. I see two figures entering the clearing. One is Kylie and one is I. The other me turns to her and hugs her tightly and when he pulls away, I see tears in Kylie’s eyes. I look at the other me and see tears in his eyes too. He runs out of the clearing and I see Kylie fall to the ground weeping. I look to see where the other me went, but I don’t see him anywhere. I look back and Kylie’s gone. Instead I see Serena facing down the slenderman. I call out to Serena, but she doesn’t respond. The slenderman starts reaching towards her, but suddenly the other me bursts out from the trees and jumps in front of Serena. The slenderman’s arm plunges into my chest and exits through my back. The other me gasps and crumples to the ground as Serena screams. The slenderman dissipates as Serena sits next to my fallen body. I rush out to myself, but a stray beam of sunlight blinds me. When I can see again, I’m back in the middle of the forest surrounded by trees. I call out to Kathryn and start running in one direction. After a minute, I collide with Kathryn.

“Trenton!” she says happily. “Where were you?”

“I don’t know,” I reply. “Where were you?”

“I don’t know either. We really need to get out of here. She seems pretty shaken up. I agree and we start running. After an hour, we finally see palm trees and the beach. We collapse on the sand and rest. I pull out my canteen to find it empty. I shake it, but nothing comes out. We rest for a few minutes, then run back to our camp. After another hour of running, we see everyone. We finally get there and gulp down water.

“Back so soon, are we?” Nathaniel asks.

“What… what do you… mean?” I ask gasping for breath.

“You just left like five minutes ago,” he replies suspiciously. Kathryn shakes her head.

“We’ve been running for at least two and a half hours.”

“Go look at the clock,” Nathaniel says. When we get there, Nathaniel proves right. It’s been five minutes.

“Maybe you just misjudged time?” Nathaniel suggests.

“Hmmmmm…” Kathryn says. “I don’t think so. Something’s wrong with this island. Everyone stay on alert.”

“Wait,” Dawson says. “Where’s Kylie?!”