Emotionless

• Ella Gill
• Short Story
• 2019

The sound of crashing waves and seagulls squawking awoke me. I sat up and spat gritty sand out of my mouth. The smell of salty sea air filled my nostrils as the sandy taste lingered on my tongue. My body lay on the warm sand, a mass of trees clustered beyond the shore. An endless ocean of deep blue water surrounded the beaches as small waves rolled onto the damp sand. I groaned as I stood up in confusion and shook the sand off my clothes, my head throbbing. Suddenly, memories came rushing back to me. I remembered a dark and empty room, moonlight peeking through the barred window. My desperate cries for help unheard. I shuddered at the dark memory.
I noticed the figure of a girl sitting on the damp sand, not far from where I was standing.
“H-Hello?” I asked as I cautiously paced towards her. She sat motionless, staring out into the ocean.
“I’m Maci,” I anxiously stated. Suddenly, her expressionless face turned towards me. I took a step back, not breaking eye-contact with the mysterious girl. I started to run towards the vast forest, looking back to take a glimpse of the emotionless girl. I froze. A boy had appeared beside her, their expressions the same. Suddenly, they marched towards me, their gazes sending shivers down my spine. I turned to rush to the forest. All of a sudden, I face-planted on to the hot sand, feeling the presence of someone standing over me. I slowly raised my head to see the expressionless boy and girl looming over me. Memories flashed in my head. I was in the dark room again. Two figures were glaring down at me as I tried to wriggle free from my chains. One of the figures crouched down and threateningly stared into my eyes with a nasty grin painted across his face. I could see the other feminine figure standing behind the mysterious man, the same grin on her face.
I snapped back into reality. The eerie boy and girl stood over me, pinning me to the sandy ground with one foot each.
“W-What do you want from me?” I stammered, shaking in fear.
There was a moment of silence. Only the distant sound of waves crashing onto the rocky shore could be heard. Suddenly, the boy pulled a shotgun out of his pocket. I feared the worst as his finger lay on the trigger, ready to shoot. I closed my eyes. I couldn’t bare to watch him shoot me. I heard the loud bang of the shotgun. But I didn’t feel any pain. I slowly opened an eye, seeing the sinister girl collapse to the ground, clutching her chest, grey blood seeping through her shirt.
“Finally. I’ve been stuck here for far too long,” the boy sighed, looking down at the ground, with… human emotion.
He dropped the shotgun down on the sand, next to the girl’s frail body, offering a hand to help me up.
“You’re safe now.”