SageTea

The Light Through the Window

Sage T

Droplets of water race down the thick foggy glass of Mason’s window. The rain beats outside. “Are you just gon’ stand there or do ya’ wanna sit?” Mason asks in his thick country accent, sitting at his swivel chair. There’s a fluffy green carpet right under him.

I sit down under his window, on his bed, which bends and creaks beneath me. “The rain’s really coming down,” I say, shifting my legs close to me. Mason tries to swivel over in his chair, so he can get a better view of the pouring rain, but it gets stuck on the rug, leading to him and the chair toppling over. I can’t laugh. I have to keep it in.

“You good?” I stifle.

He rolls over onto his back and looks at me, arms flopping to either side of him, his face deadpan. “Whadda ya’ think, Charlie?”

My laugh escapes me and my hands clasp over my stomach. That’s when I hear it, Mason’s ring tone. He sits up to check his phone, “Sorry, it’s Naomi.” That’s all he says, before picking up the phone and leaving the room. I can hear mumbling from outside and he chuckles. My hands clench at my sides. He’s been doing this for almost two months now.

He’s allowed to be happy. But, we barely hang out anymore. When we do, he does this. Even when we make plans, they’re always cancelled so he can hang out with her. The storm seems to be getting worse. I can hear the lightning roar outside.

The door opens once more and Mason steps inside smiling. “Sorry ‘bout that,” Mason chuckles before seating himself on the bed next to me. I can feel the warmth from where he's sitting.

I force a smile. “You guys are cute together.”

“Ya’ think!?” he beams.

“Yeah, you guys are always together now,” I scoff. My legs come up to my chest and I rest my head between my knees.

“Well, she’s goin’ away for the summer, so I wanna spend as much time with her before that, ya’ know?” He leans on his hands behind him and looks forward, that gleam is in his eyes. The lovestuck one. I look away.

“When are you going to make time for me?”

Mason looks over, confused. “We’re hangin’ out now, ain’t we?” I sigh into my knees, “Nevermind, it’s not important anyway.”

Mason puts a hand on my back. "Charlie, if something’s botherin’ you. I’d like it if ya’ told me," he assured, toning down his accent to sound as serious as he can.

I pull my head up to look at him, “I feel like we haven’t hung out the two of us in a while, like even now you’re leaving for a call with Naomi. I get that you wanna spend time with her, but,” I sigh, “I really do miss you.”

Mason goes silent for a moment, his brows furrowed, “I’ll tell ya’ what, our town’s havin’ its pluot festival next week. If ya’ want, we can hang out there, then spend the weekend campin’ like we used to.”

I grin. This’ll be the first time in a while it’ll truly be just us. My chest feels lighter, like I can finally breathe. “Sounds great!” I drop my legs to sit criss-cross on the bed.

The Light Through the Window

Sage T

I can see droplets of water racing down the thick foggy glass of Mason’s window. The rain beats outside. “Are you just gon’ stand there or do ya’ wanna sit?” Mason asks in his thick country accent, sitting at his swivel chair. There’s a fluffy green carpet right under him.

I sit down under his window, on his bed, which bends and creaks beneath me. “The rain’s really coming down,” I say, shifting my legs onto the bed. Mason tries to swivel over in his chair, so he can get a good view of the pouring rain, but it gets stuck on the rug, leading to him and the chair toppling over. I can’t laugh. I have to keep it in.

“You good?” I stifle.He rolls over onto his back and looks at me, arms flopping to either side of him, his face deadpan. “Whadda ya’ think, Charlie?”

My laugh escapes me and my hands clasp over my stomach. That’s when I hear it, Mason’s ring tone. He sits up to check his phone, “Sorry, it’s Naomi.” That’s all he says, before picking up the phone and leaving the room. I can hear mumbling from outside and he chuckles. My hands clench at my sides. He’s been doing this for almost two months now.

He’s allowed to be happy. But, we barely hang out anymore. When we do, he does this. Even when we make plans, they’re always cancelled so he can hang out with her. The storm seems to be getting worse outside. I can hear the lightning strike the earth.

The door opens once more and Mason steps inside smiling. “Sorry ‘bout that,” Mason chuckles before sitting on the bed next to me. I force a smile. “You guys are cute together.”

“Ya’ think!?” he beams. “Yeah, you guys are always together now,” I scoff.

My legs come up to my chest and I rest my head between my knees. “Well, she’s goin’ away for the summer, so I wanna spend as much time with her before that, ya’ know?” He leans on his hands behind him and looks forward, that gleam is in his eyes. The lovestuck one. “When are you going to make time for me?”

Mason looks over, confused. “We’re hangin’ out now, ain’t we?”

I sigh into my knees, “Nevermind, it’s not important anyway.” Mason puts a hand on my back, "Charlie, if something’s botherin’ ya’ I’d like it if ya’ told me.”

I pull my head up to look at him, “I feel like we haven’t hung out the two of us in a while, like even now you’re leaving for a call with Naomi. I get that you wanna spend time with her, but,” I sigh, “I really do miss you.”

“I know ya’ do, but I only have so much time left with Naomi before summer.”Mason goes silent for a moment, “I’ll tell ya’ what, our town’s havin’ its pluot festival next week. If ya’ wanna, we can hang out there, then spend the weekend campin’ like we used to. Whadda’ think, Charlie?”

The Shadow Between Trees

Sage T.

The axe bite cuts through my first calm night since the incident. No, that can’t be right, there shouldn’t be anyone nearby. I slowly sit up and look around my orange tent. The sides are folding inward, I was never the best at putting it up and always needed help. A flashlight catches my eye. As soon as I go to pick it up, I hear the cutting stop, immediately followed by footsteps approaching. I hurriedly pick up the flashlight and peek out the tent opening. I shouldn’t have come here today. To the right is Charlie's tent. It's green and has the name Charles Peterson on the side of it. I calm down a little. Maybe he’s cutting down the tree. No, I would’ve heard him unzip his tent. The footsteps keep getting closer. I make the split decision to rush into Charlie's tent.

I stay as low to the ground as I can get and try to remain quiet and quick. Opening the zipper I find it’s stuck. The more I pull the less it budges. My hands are shaking and I can hear beating in my ears. I can’t feel anything but the cold metal of the zipper. I give it one last pull. Finally, I push it open, rush inside, and zip it back closed. Only then do I realize how quiet it’s become. The grasshoppers have stopped their song and the wind has settled. The only clear sound is the stomping of footsteps.

Scanning the tent, Charlie’s sleeping bag lies empty. Is he the one outside? No, I would’ve heard him leave. But then why isn’t he here? That’s when I see it. A shadow of a tall lanky man hovering over the tent. Charlie was short, and pudgy. Who is that? I can’t remember. I clasp my hand over my mouth. Each strand of hair on my body sticks straight up to the sky. I can taste copper in my mouth. I try to hide under the sleeping bag, however my legs betray me and I’m frozen. Stuck staring at the shadow, who will likely find me soon. I close my eyes as tears pour from them. That’s when the wind returns and the grasshoppers sing once again.

As I open my eyes, the shadow is gone. I rise to my feet, my legs still shaking, and peek outside. There’s no one there, there’s not even a sign that someone was there. My orange tent should be five feet to the left. Nothing. The tent walls around me are orange, not green. I'm inside my own tent. Charlie's is gone. I step out, my bare foot touching the dirt beneath me. The wind rustles my hair and my clothes cling to the sweat on my skin. “...Charlie?” My voice is quiet, broken from the earlier tears. Where is he? I can’t lose him again. “Charlie..?” My voice is a little louder this time, he has to hear me. “Charlie!” I’m yelling at this point, tears threatening to spill again. “Charlie, please come out! Please don’t leave me again!” I’m crying once more.

I reach down for my phone, maybe I have enough signal to call him. As I open up my phone, I stare at the lock screen. It's a picture of me and him at our town's pluot festival. That was taken three days before… The accident. No, that can’t be right. He texted me yesterday about this trip. But as I stare at the date on my phone, the truth crashes through-

Cold.

The wind was howling.

We were lost.It was late.

There was someone else.

Who was it?

I fall to the wet ground, memories returning slowly. My clothes now stained with the dark mud.

That night.

In these woods.

He chased us.

We ran.

Charlie fell.He couldn’t get back up.

That night.

…

Charlie died.