SNAP. The twig broke under the weight of Nicole's foot. The sound didn't startle her. She'd been in this area countless times to the point that even in the dark, she felt comfortable.

The dirt tickled her toes as she got closer to her destination. Her destination, of course, was a small waterfall in the forest around her home. She'd found it once while traversing the forest. That day, she'd told herself that she didn't want to go too far into the woodlands. The waterfall hadn't been in too deep, but there was no path to the spot, and she ended up forging her own.

She always spent a great deal of her time alone by the waterfall. Admiring the scene. Watching animals. Thinking. Going there made her feel relaxed, and she went there regularly. That was what she expected to be doing that evening.

She'd been wrong.

Nicole nearly arrived at the waterfall when she started to hear the sound of something splashing in the water. She dismissed it as another animal. Lizards played around in the pond quite often. But she quickly realized that the splashing sounded more frantic than normal. Still, this didn't make much of a difference to her as she continued on her path. But, then . . . she heard their voice. Someone was already there. She could hear them talking. They must have been alone. Whoever was speaking were only greeted by the forest noises.

The fact that someone was even there was surprising enough. She'd thought she was the only one who even knew about the waterfall, let alone visited it. At this point, it would probably have been a good idea to turn back and head home. Nicole however, wasn't the kind of person to do that. She persisted and came to the waterfall. As usual, everything was beautiful. As usual, flowers and shrubs covered the ground.

However, she'd never seen a boy sitting in the pond. Furthermore, he certainly wasn't native to Costa Rica. The second she saw him, she stopped in her tracks. What in the world, she thought. Who is this guy? She hid behind a large tree and watched him, eager to see what he was doing.

The stranger sat on his knees, and he seemed to be digging through the dirt under the water. He looked to be about her age, with gold blond hair and slightly pale skin. He was evidently very thin. His movement reminded her of a panther, or at least, that's what she thought a panther's movement would look like, given that she'd never actually seen one. His back was facing Nicole. She held her breath and struggled to move as little as possible.

"Definitely not here," The boy mumbled to himself. He stood up and tried to wipe the mud off of his pants. When it didn't come off, he grunted quietly and washed his dirt covered hands in the water.

Nicole shifted slightly so that she could see his face. The stranger froze. She realized that he'd heard her, and immediately regretted moving. She noticed his body tense up. Sugar honey ice tea, she thought. What was she supposed to do now? He started to turn around, and she got a good look at his face.

She had to keep herself from screaming. His eyes... weren't human. It was the rich shade of green that had caught her attention. The pupils were unnaturally large and glassy. Almost animal-like. The two only stared at each other, both shocked and unsure of what to do.

Nicole hid behind the tree again, hiding her eyes. She knew it was stupid. Whoever that boy was, he knew she was there. She could have run away, sure, but she didn't actually want to. If it really came down to it, she'd fight him off herself. She heard more splashing. He was walking in the water. And then, it was silent. Everything was still, except for the flow of the waterfall along with her own heavy breathing. She laid her hand on her chest and waited. She took a deep breath. Maybe he was wearing contacts, she reasoned. Slowly, she looked back to the tiny area.

The boy had vanished.