"They were playing hide and seek when he disappeared. She spent the rest of her life looking for him."

The last rays of sunlight had disappeared behind the Earth and a cool night breeze blew her hair into her face. A small breath of laughter was heard in the darkness and Aubrie lit up as she whipped her head around in search of him. The young girl looked up into the night sky and watched the stars flicker while the moonlight shone onto her chubby face. Their game of hide and seek had been going on for a while now and they were supposed to be in by sundown. Her perfect smile washed away and she called out for Toby into the night. Another puff of laughter was heard in the trees. Aubrie didn't return the enjoyment and instead panicked.

"Toby come on, we have to go inside!" Suddenly, there was no response. The wind began to pick up as the leaves whispered to her. Trees swayed and the wind whistled. "Toby!" She called again. The stars were no longer visible and the little light provided seemed to decrease as the grey clouds flew over the moon. Aubrie's light brown hair began knotting up and her blue eyes formed a glossy glaze. Soon enough, salty tears streamed down her face as she called for him.

Although she continued shouting for him, Toby was yet to be found. The forest in front of her sent chills up her back as it loomed above her. The silence was very unsatisfying as the shadows from the large trees looked like creatures reaching up to take her. Shivering with fear, Aubrie clenched her clammy hands into fists and lightly stepped toward the woods.

Her pink and purple shoes began to crush the leaves below as she came closer to the trees that bordered the forest. Another step. One more. Aubrie stopped when she heard the dead leaves rustle behind a tree. Drawing in a sharp breath, she stood stagnant.

"Toby," a voice that wasn't his own had said. Aubrie took a small and shaky step back, silent. "Toby.." It repeated quieter, as if it was pondering on the name. "Toby who?" Aubrie didn't want to answer. Her vision was blurry and her mouth was dry. "Toby who?" It repeated a little frustrated.

"T-Toby Freeler?" She said in more of a questioning tone.

"Hmm," it pondered. "Toby... Freeler." Aubrie swallowed harshly and couldn't help but let out loud staggering breaths. The silhouette of a hand was slammed against the tree. It had razor sharp claws on the end and its fingers were like sausages. It was such a rough hit, small pieces of bark flew off of the tree. Scared, Aubrie let out a little whimper and ran towards the house. The yard felt longer than she remembered as her small shoes hit the ground. Her heartbeat pounded in her head and her ears. If the creature was following her, she couldn't hear it.

Soon enough, the house was towering above her. She went around the side to reach the front door but before she could ascend the deck's stairs, a shadow flew over her and a low growl was heard. Without stopping, she stumbled up the steps and ran to the door. Shaking the door handle, she finally got it to turn. A light flashed behind her before Aubrie slammed the door shut. She was breathing heavily and tears rolled down her cheeks. Aubrie kicked off her shoes and ran up to her room, turning on every light along the way. She wasn't too fond of the dark now...

Aubrie jumped onto her bed and buried her face into her pillow. She looked over at the picture of her and Toby, when will she next see him? Her parents were asleep and they didn't believe in any sort of paranormal activity, but to be honest, neither did she until now.

. . .

Toby Freeler. It's been a while since she's heard the name. He would be a teenager by now, just like Aubrie. It was that time in life when you begin to take responsibility and take matters into your own hands. A teen turning into an adult, an important step in life. Yet, without Toby, it didn't seem like much at all. 

Aubrie had applied to get into Eagle Academy University, EAU, a high-praised college that studies the wonders of the world. Although she was interested in marine biology, she preferred to learn about rare and mysterious land creatures, for the sake of Toby. She would never forget that cold and dark night when she was just a vulnerable small girl and she would never forget Toby. Her apartment is cluttered with documents of weird creatures and pictures of Toby. Research is spread across her floors and her laptop is running out of storage due to the excessive amount of files on anything mysterious. She works two part time jobs, one as a coffee maker, the other is a library organizer, which gives her the chance to look at books. She seems to know what she's doing, but everyone considers her as a recluse.

Aubrie's family doesn't see much of her, although they live in the same state, and her only friends go to a different college and seem busy most of the time. She does have a friendly neighbor, Sophia, who she spends most of her afternoons with before her scheduled research time. They enjoy talking about their day and anything interesting, but sometimes it feels like Sophia is foreshadowing something Aubrie wouldn't like. She tends to twist the conversations in the direction she desires, but Aubrie thinks she may be paranoid and should take a break from the Toby hunt. Or, maybe she should research Sophia Vandenshire instead... 

By: PuffMuffin246

Prompt: Pinterest

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