Our First Hunt - Part 2

September 9

Thirty seconds…

It felt like a lifetime and not enough time at the same time.

I’d told you to keep your light turned off until you opened your eyes. Of course you listened.

The moment you closed your eyes, I took off into the dark, careful not to make too much noise with my footfalls. Where should I stand? I’d thought about where I would stand already, but now that the moment was here… I wasn’t sure anymore.

I chose the middle of the path, next to the picnic shelter.

I turned and stood. Watching. Waiting.

I saw your light turn on, and you began to move. If you looked up, you’d see me. Well, not me, but a dark figure. All in black. A shadow, unmoving. Watching.

I waited until you were around the bend, then slowly shifted into the shadow of the picnic shelter. I wasn’t sure if you’d seen me, but my eyes never left you as you walked. You were clearly visible from where I stood in the dark, your light reflecting off the white of your dress.

As you turned the corner toward the other side of the island, I followed, stalking quietly. I was on your left as you passed, and I tossed a small stick into the brush to your right.

You stopped and turned your light toward the tall grass, but there was nothing.

I used the moment to reposition myself behind a cluster of trees and allowed silence to surround us.

It was then that you did something unexpected.

You turned toward me.

My heart fluttered. I’d have to think quickly.

As you approached my hiding spot, I circled the tree, keeping just out of sight. If you’d lifted your light to look at the tree, you could have seen the light flash in the whites of my eyes, locked onto you.

I let you pass without a sound, then quietly fell into place behind you.

I took a thick branch from my pocket and slowed, creating some distance between us before I bent it.

Just enough…

Crack.

You stopped.

So did I.

You turned slightly. Whether you saw me or not, I couldn’t tell. But for a moment, we were both still, suspended in a silence that seemed deafening.

I slipped behind another tree as you continued, then slowly returned to the cluster I’d been hiding in. I waited, allowing you some space and silence to simply wonder where I was.

As you passed me again, I let you hear my footsteps, followed by another crack of a branch behind you.

You stopped again.

I could have used that moment to sneak up and grab you, but I didn’t.

Next time…

Next time I will.

You turned toward the picnic shelter, and I chose that moment to reveal myself.

You entered beneath the shelter and moved toward a corner to my left, so I tossed a stick in that direction and circled around behind you.

I scuffed my feet against the concrete, and as you turned, I said lowly,

“There you are…”

I circled you slowly as you stayed right where you were, eyes on me all the way until the moment I stopped behind a pillar and waited for you to continue.

You continued your wandering steps around the dirt path, and I stayed closer behind this time.

It was getting so hot, covered in all black with my hoodie pulled over my head. Sweat began to drip down my forehead, so I chose my moment.

I stepped out from behind the shadows of the trees, quickening my pace to catch you.

I let you hear me as I approached.

As you turned, I closed in.

Faster.

Faster.

The smile on your face and your eyes both grew wider and wider until I was on you.

I reached for you, finally catching you. My hand closed around your throat as I grinned, the hunter finally claiming his prey.

Then, just as quickly, I ended the game with a firm kiss on your lips.

The rest of the night belonged just to us on that island.