#spooktover

If anything, you had found some online material on bats, bat sanctuaries and absolutely adored all the videos these organizations posted on their social media. Especially with the bats wrapped in towels munching on pieces of fruit, they never failed to make you smile.

The last few days had been a unique experience though, with a bat whooshing past you a few too many times. It never bumped into you or attacked you, but you were worried about it still; it was not normal behavior for them to be so close to the humans in the park so many times. 

It hadn’t been once either, it had been 4 times the past few days already, and you were getting worried that it may be sick or need help. You weren’t sure what to do about it though, all the online resources warned you not to touch or interact with bats if you weren’t a trained professional, and since it was still flying around proper, you couldn’t really get close enough to get a height of the situation or take a picture to send to a sanctuary nearby. 

Tonight was another one of those instances, and yet, something felt off. The way the bat hovered next to you a little instead of passing you by. Could bats even hover? You wanted to grab your phone, hoping the light might scare it off or allow you to snap a picture, but the minute you stopped, the few lights in the park went out, and you stood surrounded by darkness. 

It was then you noticed that something else was off: you were all alone in the park. It was late, but not so late that there wouldn’t be anyone else passing through anymore. There was little wind either, all of nature seemed to have quieted down with the lights turning off, not even any owl sounds or rustling of leaves was left. The only sounds were your only footsteps and the flapping of the bat’s wings right next to you still. 

The bat was still hovering right next to you and you grabbed your phone, the light of your flashlight doing nothing to perturb it either. If anything, it squinted its big, curious eyes, an almost humanlike reaction to your tactics. You swore you could see it smirk. 

Unsettled by its behavior more than worried now, you figured a quick picture would be all you did before making your way out of the park. Maybe you’d jog a little, just to be safe. Your gut was telling you to run, after all, and who were you to deny your gut? 

You held up your phone, but were confused to find your screen empty, or at the very least, devoid of the bat. It flew away, almost as if it knew to avoid the camera, and the quick snap you took had not a single trace of the bat in it. 

That was your final sign to run. You started walking towards the exit, eager to be out of the park, and away from the strange bat. You would be doing your research on this weird behavior when you got home, but for now, you just wanted to get out. 

You picked up the pace when you noticed the bat was following you, and you were full on running when you were nearing the exit. You kept looking over your shoulder to see if you could see the winged creature behind you, especially when the noises the wings made were overpowered by your own ragged breaths. 

You nearly tripped and fell when you noticed the bat had disappeared, looking back just a little too long to try and figure out where it went. When you turned around, you smacked into someone, hard. You let out an ‘oof’, as you almost fell over, surprised the other person, who was smaller than you in statue, didn’t seem as surprised by it as you were. 

“Careful now,” they held up a hand apologetically, “if you look behind you while running, you lose sight of what is in front of you.” 

You shook your head, blinking rapidly to regain composure. The voice of the man didn’t match his petite stature or rather flamboyant getup. You wondered how you didn’t see him before, as he did stand out, even in the darkness of the park, none of the lights working still. 

“Sorry”, you apologized, out of breath, heart racing and wondering where the bat went, “I was just being chased-”

You stopped yourself mid-sentence. He was a stranger, first and foremost, but even more so, you’d be looked at as if you were crazy if you tried explaining that you were running away from a bat with human-like features. Now that you thought about it, his eyes- they seemed almost a little similar. You shook your head and smiled apologetically at the man for your odd behavior. Your mind, still riddled with adrenaline, was probably playing tricks on you. 

“Chased by a bat?” 

You blinked in confusion. You hadn’t said that part out loud, now did you? He chuckled, a lighthearted sound that didn’t match the grin he had on his face. You felt your blood run cold. 

“How’d you-” 

He interrupted you before you could finish your question. “I am awfully sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you. You simply seemed like such a nice person, always kind to the bats. Not to mention that you smell absolutely delicious.” 

There was nothing you could come up with that you could say. Nothing that would make you feel better or more safe. You opened up your mouth, but just closed it again, looking at him with big, confused and frightened eyes. 

“No worries, I will not hurt you. But I would love to properly explain. Care for a walk through the park? I promise I won’t bite.. yet.”