Fear is something none of us take lightly. You may think you are fearless by watching a few horror films or reading many scary books, but I can assure you that fear is something all too real. It's something that can save your life. It can also be something you never want to be entangled in.
The carnival was in town. Tents were set up side by side in almost a box shape, surrounding the entirety of the carnival. Hay was scattered across the ground to hide that this was a section of a street they had to section off, for this town was too small to house this carnival elsewhere. There were far too many people there for this to be enjoyable, but I followed my friend Tommy around anyway.
"I can't believe nobody ever told you about Madame Echo," he said. "She's such a good fortune teller. She once predicted exactly how someone would die and when, and she was right down to the second."
"So you expect me to believe some fortune teller is going to tell me when I die?" I asked, completely unconvinced. I rolled my eyes at the thought of it. If she called it so close, she would have the police on her, thinking she was connected to it somehow. What if she's some kind of crazed killer. I chuckled at the thought of it.
Here we were, drawing back the curtain that lead us in a yellow-orange tent. The inside was dimly lit. There were a few pillows lining the ground. A short table sat in the middle with two bigger pillows on either side of it. I nearly jumped when I looked next to the entrance beside me and saw an elderly woman with dark skin and a turban. She gestured for me to sit on the pillow by the table nearest to me. She sat on the other side.
The woman stared at me for a few eternal seconds without blinking. Finally she uttered a noise. "What are you afraid of?" She asks, still unblinking.
"Nothing." I replied, chuckling. It was true, I didn't fear the scariest ride, nor was I afraid of the imaginary monsters lurking in the shadows. I'm skilled enough to take anything down. The idea of fear doesn't exist in me.
"Hmm I see." She looks down at the table. She sits up and asks me to put my hand out. I do and she begins rubbing my palm.
I woke up to birds chirping over head. I squinted at the bright sunlight that poured in over the trees. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. How long had I slept? It must have been later than I thought. I looked around to ask my friend Tommy what time it was. Where was he? I looked all around me and was flooded with panic when I realized I was all alone out here.
I tried to think back to where we had parked. Maybe he'd already packed up the camping stuff and was waiting for me. I turned to where I believed the car was parked and walked in that direction.
As several minutes passed by that seemed like an eternity, there didn't seem to be any kind of clearing coming up. I know we didn't park that far out.
I thought back to last night. We left the carnival and Tommy talked me into staying the night in the local campgrounds. I was hesitant but said yes. We went to his place, grabbed some sleeping bags and then- and then what? There was a blank spot in my memory. I didn't remember anything about where the campgrounds even were. I had just moved here a few months back, nothing around me looked familiar.
I sat down to take a rest after I'd been walking in this direction for so long it felt like the sun was going down. I was filled with panic and worry. I didn't have my phone on me, how was I going to get home?
Madame Echo let go of my hand and I staggered back, appalled at what she had just made me experience. I turned to my friend and grabbed his arm. I yelled to him that we needed to get out of there.
The carnival was in town. Tents were set up side by side in almost a box shape, surrounding the entirety of the carnival. Hay was scattered across the ground to hide that this was a section of a street they had to section off, for this town was too small to house this carnival elsewhere. There were far too many people there for this to be enjoyable, but I followed my friend Tommy around anyway.
"I can't believe nobody ever told you about Madame Echo," he said. "She's such a good fortune teller. She once predicted exactly how someone would die and when, and she was right down to the second."
"So you expect me to believe some fortune teller is going to tell me when I die?" I asked, completely unconvinced. I rolled my eyes at the thought of it. If she called it so close, she would have the police on her, thinking she was connected to it somehow. What if she's some kind of crazed killer. I chuckled at the thought of it.
Here we were, drawing back the curtain that lead us in a yellow-orange tent. The inside was dimly lit. There were a few pillows lining the ground. A short table sat in the middle with two bigger pillows on either side of it. I nearly jumped when I looked next to the entrance beside me and saw an elderly woman with dark skin and a turban. She gestured for me to sit on the pillow by the table nearest to me. She sat on the other side.
The woman stared at me for a few eternal seconds without blinking. Finally she uttered a noise. "What are you afraid of?" She asks, still unblinking.
"Nothing." I replied, chuckling. It was true, I didn't fear the scariest ride, nor was I afraid of the imaginary monsters lurking in the shadows. I'm skilled enough to take anything down. The idea of fear doesn't exist in me.
"Hmm I see." She looks down at the table. She sits up and asks me to put my hand out. I do and she begins rubbing my palm.
I woke up to birds chirping over head. I squinted at the bright sunlight that poured in over the trees. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. How long had I slept? It must have been later than I thought. I looked around to ask my friend Tommy what time it was. Where was he? I looked all around me and was flooded with panic when I realized I was all alone out here.
I tried to think back to where we had parked. Maybe he'd already packed up the camping stuff and was waiting for me. I turned to where I believed the car was parked and walked in that direction.
As several minutes passed by that seemed like an eternity, there didn't seem to be any kind of clearing coming up. I know we didn't park that far out.
I thought back to last night. We left the carnival and Tommy talked me into staying the night in the local campgrounds. I was hesitant but said yes. We went to his place, grabbed some sleeping bags and then- and then what? There was a blank spot in my memory. I didn't remember anything about where the campgrounds even were. I had just moved here a few months back, nothing around me looked familiar.
I sat down to take a rest after I'd been walking in this direction for so long it felt like the sun was going down. I was filled with panic and worry. I didn't have my phone on me, how was I going to get home?
Madame Echo let go of my hand and I staggered back, appalled at what she had just made me experience. I turned to my friend and grabbed his arm. I yelled to him that we needed to get out of there.
Comments
Post a Comment