The Downward Spiral part 3

I tried to text her again to find that, strangely, I couldn't. My phone would lock up and then restart. Whatever this glitch was, it seemed to be hell-bent on making sure that I couldn't call or message. I shut my cell down and then went to sleep. How I even managed to was a mystery to me. My thoughts were filled with my fiance and worried that something bad might have happend or will happen soon.

Morning couldn't have come faster for me. I didn't touch breakfast and the drive over was more like a haze than anything else. Anthropology class, usually fun and exciting for me, seemed to go on forever and a day. The second it ended I bolted out the door and browsed the cafeteria for her. In a corner table, I found Catherine absent-mindedly eating a sandwich. She looked resigned, a bit sad even. I tapped her on the shoulder and she whipped around. She stood up and nearly knocked me over with the strength of her hug.

"Elizabeth, why didn't you answer my texts? I even called you almost forty times." she looked just a tad angry with me, but I could see that she was far more relieved than anything else.

"I could ask you the same thing. I texted you, too. And when did you call me? I never got a voicemail or anything." I pulled out my phone and showed her. Then again, I didn't need to. Catherine would have believed me anyway. She looked at my phone then casually slammed it on the table. "You okay...?" It was a stupid question; no, everything wasn't okay.

"This shit is ending, Elizabeth. It's ending for real this time. I won't let anything happen to you or our friends, or anyone else. I swear to God." She pushed what remained of the sandwich away, picking up her backpack and walking towards and out of the cafeteria door. I followed her outside saying, "Wait, are we in danger?"

Catherine muttered under her breath, "Not if I can help it."

"Weren't you going to tell me more about this thing? If you're planning anything you better count the rest of us in it. I'm not letting you do it alone."

She slowed down enough for me to reach out and grab her gently, forcing her to turn around. I never saw Catherine look so sad in all my life. "Please. Please. I love you too much to see you be this way. There is strength in numbers. All six of us can do something."

"Ellie, let me do this. I know more, and I've seen more. Trust me."

Trust. I had been trusting Catherine my entire life, and never had she let me down. So why was I hesitating this time? Did I trust her? Yes, I did. But I was afraid for her. I pulled her into a hug, not saying anything. I couldn't think of any words that could fit the situation at the time. She whispered, "I won't let this thing go near you. I won't."

Catherine untangled herself from the hug and kissed my forehead. "I'll be right back."

"No. Let me come with you."

"I can't. But in case something happens, just repeat, 'here comes the sun' over and over again. It always works." She sounded like someone going on the mission of a lifetime, not even remotely overdramatic, but very solemn. "Stay safe, I'll be right back. I'll go to your house when I'm done."

I should have followed. I should have grabbed her arm and refused to let go. But I didn't. Why? Why?

I walked back into the cafeteria, completely forgetting that I had abandoned my backpack. Not like I even cared at that point. Immediately I called Catherine's number. Nothing. Not even voicemail. What the hell? Alright. I called Florence, who picked up after three rings. "Yo, I'm working out, girlie. What's up?"

Okay, that worked. "I'm worried about Catherine."

"What's wrong?"

"She is acting strange again. I think that she might have seen that thing again, or it's looking for her."

"No way. Where is she now?"

"...well, she left for her car."

"Okay, stop talking to me and follow her!"

"I don't know why I didn't. Catherine said she didn't want it near me."

"Mother of God, El. Call her now! Call her and ask her what the hell is going on."

"I did. Nothing happened. The call didn't go though."

She sighed loudly. "How? You have the best phone ever. Hers isn't too bad either. I think she might have shut it off. Honestly, and this is just me, maybe she needs to conquer this herself. We can be there for moral support, but this is something she needs to do." A pause; Florence chugged her water bottle. "Just saying."

Rebecca was the one to tell me that there might have been something less than mystical at work. Florence was now telling me that perhaps this was her fight. And maybe, just maybe, Florence was right. Maybe.

"You going to be okay, El?" she said.

"I hope so."

"Stay strong, okay? I know it's hard, but you can do it."

"Thanks, Flo. Talk to you later."

"See ya."

I hung up the phone, walked to my car, and drove home. I told my mother what happened and pretty much bawled my eyes out. I was so worried, and I berated myself for not following her when I could. Thank God for my mom being there when she could. Mothers are the best, they really are.

A day later, after me worrying my head off, I got a text from Catherine: I'll be there in five minutes. 

The Downward Spiral part 2

We met at the cafe at 1 pm without any alarming incidents. A nice waitress sat us down at a table near the window, to which Catherine politely asked that we be moved farther back. She told me that the sun was too bright for her. I had no problems with this, but I was wondering what she was thinking about.

I drank a pumpkin chai latte, both palms on the forest green mug, and she a tall glass of caramel flavored milk. Our conversation for the most part was unremarkable, talking about school, friends, family, cracking jokes at the terrible parking lots out college had.

The fruit and nut salad I ate there was perfect beyond all perfection, if that is even possible. I offered Cathie a forkful, but she declined, so invested in her grilled cheese and tomato soup was she. It was only after we had paid the check and started to walk around the busy sidewalks that the conversation started to get strange.

I asked, "Did you sleep alright? No crazy dreams this time around?"

"No, thank God. I had a good night's rest."

"No creepy guys staring at you while you sleep?"

"Nope. Didn't see that guy."

"Still writing in the diary?"

"Yep."

It was starting to be pretty obvious that she was getting uncomfortable. So moistening my lips, I said, "I am so happy that you're feeling better, though. I'm glad you aren't coughing as much as you used to, and that you're doing well in your classes. No matter what, I'm here for you."

Catherine smiled, "I know that, Elizabeth. I just don't like talking about this thing. Just thinking about it creeps me out."

And for a while, the subject was dropped. We went into a candy store and bought an large assortment of sweets to nibble on. By the time we had our fill of the downtown, the sun had started to set. Catherine's body language betrayed a bit of nervousness at the coming darkness, so I had decided that it would be for the best to call it a day and head home.

Walking back to the lot in which our cars patiently waited, I said, "I think I saw that thing you were talking about the night we had our dinner. It was just standing there outside my house all creepy like, not really doing anything."

Here Catherine stopped dead in her tracks, eyes wide. It was if I told her that I was dying of some incurable malady and had nine months left to live. "Are you serious, Elizabeth? You saw that?"

Yeah, I did." I said quietly. "I haven't seen it since, and it was probably a trick of the light, anyway."

"It wasn't." Catherine's voice was so steely and cold. I never heard her sound like that in all the years I have known her, and to be honest, it scared me a bit. "It wasn't at all."

"Then...?" I started to say. She grabbed my hand and began to drag me to my car, looking over her shoulder and around us in a frantic, paranoid manner. It was as if she believed the entire street had ears and eyes and would turn on us at any moment.

Catherine opened the car door for me and pushed me in, looking to her left and then her right. "Listen to me Elizabeth: go now, and don't stop for anyone. At any chance you get, you have to text me. At each stoplight, at each stop sign, until you get to you house. And then you have to call me. Hopefully then we can talk about it."

She hugged me tightly, kissed me as if she didn't want to ever stop, then walked quickly away to her own car. I watched her until I felt the urge to get out of the lot, at which point a strange loneliness swept over me. I drove back in silence, not even touching the radio. I texted her at each stoplight and stop sign, telling her that I'm still fine, that I am worrying again, and that I will call her when I was at home.

I did not receive any texts back the entire time. I kept sending them, praying that Catherine would reply. I couldn't have gotten home fast enough; the second I walked through the door I whipped out my phone and dialed her number.

It went straight to voicemail. My heart skipped a few beats, and the voice that said things were getting bad again got louder. No texts, no calls. Was she truly okay?

Hours later, I finally received all eighteen of her messages. What puzzled me was that they were all sent at the same time I was sending her texts. They stopped at the time I got home. My phone must have glitched or something, but it had never done that before.

Sandy

Just wanted to make sure that anyone and everyone living on the East Coast is doing all right. I currently have power thanks to that generator, and my family and friends are safe. It's worse than Irene, no doubt about that, and from what I hear it might take even longer to get everything back up and running. My college is cancelled for the entire week due to the roads being a mess and the generators there breaking. I saw how Atlantic City and many places closer to the shore got completely totalled, and my prayers go out for those who live there.

The weirdest thing is that many images of the storm's aftermath in the more damanged areas look far too similar to what Catherine drew.

Happy Birthday, Catherine

Today is Catherine's 22nd birthday. I thought that maybe she would be found by this time, but obviously that didn't happen. I am a broken record by this point, but I miss her and want her found. So bad.

The Downward Spiral part 1

This won't be easy to write. I made it this far, so I might as well.

A day after she had shown me the menu, I found Catherine sitting inside the library, pouring over a large, old book as far away from the wide windows as possible. In reaching distance there were two others waiting to be read, She looked more than just a little spooked, very unnerved at something. I immediately pulled out a chair and sat across from her.

"Hey, Catherine. Jeez, you look like hell. Are you alright?"

She bit her lower lip, thinking about her response. "I, ah...I had a really bad nightmare last night. Actually, a whole series of nightmares. One after another. All of them were horrific and so realistic. Then I had an insane bout of sleep paralysis that scared the living crap out of me. I couldn't sleep after that."

It explained her looking like a ghost, but I got nervous. "Do you remember them at all?"

"I kind of do. One had me walking on a forest path in the middle of the night. There were candles lighting the way, but they didn't help at all. If anything it made everything more creepy. Even worse, every step I took I knew that someone was following me. It was one of those dreams where you want to run and scream, but you can't. Another one was me just staring down a hallway in some sort of giant castle or palace. I could see large pictures on the walls that spanned the entire length down. I couldn't make out what they were of, though. But the whole time I was just so uncomfortable. Like I was seeing something forboding and wrong."

I nodded slowly, looking at the books that she had next to her. A voice in the back of my head screamed out 'it's starting again'. "What do you have there, Cathie?" I said, motioning at the other books.

She closed the book she was reading and showed me the title: Celtic Monsters and Myths. She slid over the other two books, which were about the hidden meanings of dreams.

I smiled and tried to make light of it, saying, "So...did you learn anything?"

The books were put off to the side and she continued, "Nothing you don't already know: the forest represents the unconscious, life, fertility, change in one's psyche. Candles mean illumination. And if you dream about a dark shape staring at you while you sleep, it means a dark shape is staring at you while you sleep."

We both chuckled at that little quip, but for me the mirth quickly died. "Wait. Something was staring at you? Like, an actual something in your room."

She let out a long sigh and nodded. "Yeah. I didn't really see it, per se...but I felt it.I knew it was there." Catherine checked her cell for the time. "I should head out now. I have an appointment with Dr. Frey. I'll tell him about all this and see what he has to say."

"Please do. You know how much I worry. Do you want me to walk you to your car, just in case?"

"Absolutely."

As we left for her car, she didn't seem to want to talk about anything. Even when I tried to strick up a conversation about dinner or the weather, she nodded silently and kept close by. We finally got to her car, and to my horror I heard her let out a wet cough. Not a good sign in the slightest. I tried to reason with it, telling myself that allergy season was kicking and she might be getting a cold. "Are you alright?"

She responded, "I'll get back to you on that."

My gut instinct told me that things were wrong...very wrong. I didn't want her to get into that car and drive off, lest something bad happen while I wasn't there. But my fears on that proved to be for nought: Catherine drove safely there and drove safely home. The second she was in her room the texted and then called me, saying that she felt bad for getting me worried, and that she told him everything. He was as surprise and shocked as we were, she said. He recommended that she steer away from any sort of over the counter medication, saying that most of the side effects for such drugs typically undermined the benefits, especially in her case. He wanted her to take teas, keeping with his preference for the natural.

"Say, you want to get something to eat tomorrow? That 'No Joe's About It' place is amazing." she said offhandedly.

And so plans were made for a delicious lunch and walk.

One Year

One year ago today, Catherine disappeared from my life and hasn't been seen since. Goddamnit, she was getting better. What happened? I know that the police have done all they could in trying to track her down, but they can only do so much. I will elaborate more on how it went down, but right now I can't. I feel nauseous and depressed.

Please, Catherine. Come back to me.

Lights

And then, finally, the lights came back on. I was outside, laying on the grass with Lunagirl snuggled close to me when I heard my father scream out "Yes!"

I rushed into the house and saw--much to my delight--all the lights in the house back on. I experimentally flicked a lamp on and off just to make sure it worked, and thankfully it did. My phone practically blew up with messages from my girls all praising the gods of electricity.  It was so nice to finally put away the flashlights and candles and get back to light bulbs. Because of that week long incident my parents invested in a generator, so in the event a monster storm of any kind it, we would be safe. Three cheers for having power!

School started back up a few days later, my schedule consisting of computers, math and another anthropology class, continuing from last semester. Life was getting back to its usual routine: wake up, go to school, hang out, do homework, do chores, sleep. Repeat until winter break.

Catherine, God bless her, recieved a lot of extra help to assist her with passing her classes. She was getting better, academically and emotionally. Her cought started to go away, too. She didn't talk about the white tree we found, nor did she want to. Naomi mentioned how she wished that we took a picture so she could draw it or show her art teacher. Personally that tree gave me the creeps. I had never seen a tree quite like it, nor do I think I ever will again, and for that I am glad.

For our anniversary, we ate a wholesome dinner of chicken and sweet potatos by candle light at her house. It was very sweet and very romantic, and best of all, my Cathie was acting like herself again.

Some time during the middle of September, Catherine came over for a study session and a dinner. She went over her math and I read my anthropology textbook. It was an interesting chapter on the development of superstitions and folklore. She and I talked through the while, occasionally making observations about the other's subject. When the both of us had finished our work, we began to make preperations for dinner: for tonight, fettuccini alfredo.

Catherine insisted that I relax and allow her the honors, but after I insisted ad nauseum, she allowed me to cook the pasta as she made the sauce.

It was these quiet, peaceful moments that made the evening for us. No words were spoken, but none needed to be; we could understand each other perfectly without them. We set the table and ate slowly, enjoying the moment and each other.

"I feel that I can move past all that and focus on the future." she said. "My restaurant, our marriage. It's going to be great. Oh, I made a menu for the reception if you want to see later on."

"Sounds like a plan." I replied.

After we cleaned the plates she showed me a rough draft of her idea: shrimp scampi, swiss steak and jambalaya where some of the few dishes she wanted to have. The menu had an absolutely delicious range of flavors, all of which I couldn't wait to share with the rest of my family.

Eventually she had to return home. I walked Cathie to her car, we kissed goodbye, and I waved to her as she drove away.

Before I walked back inside, out of the corner of my eye, I could have sworn I saw someone in black under the streetlight.