I'm back!

As I stated yesterday, I have given myself a new writing challenge. It keeps me fresh and gives my friends a taste of my writing. Here you go, but before you do here is a picture of my sweet little niece! Let me know what you think of last week's story.

Perfection!

Week 1 (1-4 January 2015)

The Fear Touch

It was late. The stars were twinkling and a warm breeze brushed Lilou's cheek. She sighed with happiness as she walked home from her friend's house. She felt safe and joyous this clear night but it would prove to be a fateful evening. As she was walking, Lilou could hear footsteps behind her. At first she thought nothing of it but the steps followed her at every turn. She decided to stop and the footsteps stopped. When she began walking again the footsteps began again. Like a cougar stalking it's prey, someone was following her. Lilou turned around to see who was following her but no one was there. She turned back around to continue walking and standing in front of her was a tall, dark figure. She screamed and jumped back from the figure but as she did so she tripped on the curb and fell in the street. The last thing she saw were the lights of a car. She shielded herself from the car but to no avail. Fear washed over her as she closed her eyes for impact.

Lilou woke up in the hospital. It took her a moment to realize where she was. She squeezed her hands. Okay I can feel my fingers. She clenched her stomach. I can move my upper body, that's good. And finally she wiggled her toes. I'm not paralyzed! Relief washed over her but so did confusion. She remembered being hit by a car but she felt fairly intact. Nothing really hurt except her backside from laying on a hard hospital bed. Sleeping in a chair next to her was her mother.

“Mom, wake up,” she whispered to her mother. Her mother stirred awake then shot up out of her chair when she saw Lilou talking to her.

“Lilou! You're awake! NURSE! Honey! You're awake!” she screamed.

“Yes mom, I am fine! Please calm down.”

The nurse came into the room and saw that Lilou was awake. She made sure Lilou was stable then explained that the driver of the car that hit her brought her in. She had been in a coma for two months but surprisingly she didn't suffer from any physical injuries. She had no broken bones, no internal bleeding, she had nothing but a few scrapes yet she was out for two whole months without explanation. Lilou's mother was overjoyed with the fact that her daughter was awake so she leaned in and hugged her. As soon as her mother touched her Lilou could hear bees and an overwhelming feeling of fear filled her body. She could see bees and hear her mother screaming.

“Mom, are you afraid of bees?” she jolted away and asked.

“Yes honey, I am. I am terrified of them. When I was child I watched one of my friends die after being stung by bees. They have scared me ever since. Why are you asking me such an odd question?”

Lilou did not know how to answer that. She just knew that when her mother touched her paralyzing fear took over her. She could see it, she could feel it and hear it. It was strange. The fear just materialized in front of her from a single touch. She shook off the feeling and told her mother it was probably just the groggy feeling from being asleep and on meds for so long. She convinced herself that was the truth, until it happened again. The doctor put his cold hand on her arm and suddenly she heard screaming. Her vision was shaking and she felt like she was falling. She looked around her and could see she was in an airplane as it was crashing. When people touched her she experienced their fears so intensely it was as if they were her own. Lilou was scared. She didn't know what was happening or why but she was literally living in fear.

Lilou let her mother go home and sleep. She couldn't process what was happening to her and didn't want her mother there to question why she was acting strange. Every doctor, every nurse, every single person that touched her bare skin would cause nightmarish flashes before her eyes. She would feel their fear, hear it, see it and even smell it. The night nurse who was terrified of being raped and killed after work. The MRI tech who feared drowning. Lilou's sister who feared heights. All the fears of the world filled her head. She didn't know what to do, she just knew she needed to stop touching everyone.

Once she got home, she spent several days alone. Her family didn't think much of it. They assumed she needed her rest but Lilou really just needed a reprieve from her fear flashes. Over time she learned to control the sights. She could touch someone and not be seized in visions and feelings. The only thing she did not understand was why it happened. She researched and looked up if anyone else had ever had the same feelings but nothing came up. Lilou decided to just live her life and learn to control her visions. Life was happy after that, at least for a short period of time.

After a couple months, life got back to normal. Lilou went back to work and the daily grind while controlling things she saw when people touched her. She became more sympathetic to those around her and felt a greater sense of being human. Oddly enough, the fear made her feel more at peace. That all changed one day after work. She walked home like normal, everything seemed so normal! When she got home, Lilou noticed the door was ajar. That was strange but not strange enough to stop her from proceeding inside. She opened her door and stood in shock in her doorway. Her house was in complete disarray. Holes were busted in the walls, the couch was thrown upside down, all the cabinets were open and everything was shattered to pieces.

“Get out!” screamed her mother as she darted around the corner with a bat, “Oh my God! Lilou! You have to leave! They are looking for you. Go!” her mother ran up to her and hugged her. A new vision flashed before Lilou's eyes. Men were taken Lilou and were killing her.

“Momma, calm down! Calm down! What happened?” asked Lilou.

“They kicked open the door. They were looking for you Lilou! They tore everything apart looking for you,” she was panicked, trying to rush Lilou out the door.

“Who mom, who?”

“I don't know Lilou! You need to leave here! I haven't called the police yet, I wanted to make sure you were okay if you ever came home! I tried calling you! I thought they had found you! Your phone went straight to voice mail,” Lilou's mother was in tears now realizing her daughter was okay. Lilou noticed her mother had been beaten and knew she was serious, “I gathered some things for you and put my savings in a bag for you. They tore the house up looking for you and they missed the shoebox full of money I had in the closet.”

Lilou had so many questions, one of which was why her mother was hiding money, but she only asked one question, “Momma are you okay?” her mother shook her head yes and was about to say more when a young man entered the house.

“GET OUT!” screamed her mother as she shoved Lilou behind her and raised the bat and began chucking any object she could grab at him.

“No, no, no! I am not here to hurt you! I need to take Lilou to a safe place! Please stop throwing things at me!” the man said as he held up his hands in surrender.

“How can I trust you? Do you not see my house?” Lilou didn't recognize him from her mother's fear flash so she calmed her mother and let him speak.

“Because I am like you,” he calmly stated and put out his hand. Lilou nervously stepped forward, ready to fight if he grabbed her, and touched his palm. She saw the same men killing the young man in her home, “We have to leave now and I will explain everything.”

“What does he mean like you Lilou?”

“Momma I will explain later. Please call the police. Don't tell them they were after me. Tell them I am away visiting a friend in another state. I will call you and explain everything. Please Momma call the cops, I will be okay, he is safe,” Lilou hugged her mother and followed the young man. Once they reached a safe hiding place she finally asked him who he was.

“My name is Averett and there are more of us than you think. You need to rest and I need to organize our next safe spot. I will explain everything else once you get some rest. I need you on top of your game.”

Lilou agreed but couldn't sleep. Her life was in chaos and she wasn't even sure what to do about it. Her family wasn't safe and it was her fault. She knew she needed to sleep but that would be difficult. She closed her eyes and relaxed as much as she could. Averett was correct, she needed her rest because life was about to go full speed and she still had no idea who was looking for her. She closed her eyes and dreamt of the happy life she didn't have anymore.

To be continued...