The sun lies across the horizon like a bright, half-closed eyeball, staring down at me from miles above. The once red sky slowly and gorgeously fades into pinkish purple, then, as the sun falls further down into the abyss of darkness, melts into a beautiful dark blue. Swirling around the atmosphere in invisible clouds, the air surrounding me follows the hints of the sky, gradually getting chillier and foggier. Soon, I can feel myself shivering, but I'm so transfixed in watching the sunset that I ignore it. My hands planted firmly on the soft grass below me, I sit next to the crystal clear lake I had found earlier, the forest trees looming higher and higher, their shadows getting more and more ominous (I ignore this too, for the sky is so breathtaking that the frightening trees cannot take away from its beauty). Now glancing back at the lake, I see a beautiful painting of purples and blues and reds stirred into a reflective puddle of calmness. A small fish jumps up from the lake, breaking the thin barrier between water and air. It is silver and only about two inches long. Another fish just like the first one leaps above the water line, but after taking a closer look, I see sharp yellow fangs pointing out from the fish's mouth. Cringing, I look back at the strikingly starry sky. Frowning again, I wonder faintly why there are stars. Hell shouldn't have stars.

The sky continues to grow darker, pulling the serene joy from the sunset away. I sit for a few moments in near pitch black, then decide to head back to the hotel. Lifting myself up from the ground, I feel my pockets for my phone. When I don't find it, I remember that I don't have a phone. It was in my car's cup holder when I died, and even if I did have it on me when I crashed, it obviously wouldn't travel to Hell with me.

I blink suddenly and tell myself to focus on the task at hand. The night is coming fast, and it's taking all of the light with it. Without my phone, I have no flashlight, which means I don't have a way to see. Suddenly, I realize that I also don't know my way back. Panic begins to pulse through my body, my lungs taking short, fast breaths. My head gets faint and my legs feel weak, so I force myself to sit. Tears spring to my eyes.

It is night, and I am lost in a place where demons thrive. I don't expect them all to be as kind as Charlie had been.

Falling into a bottomless pit of anxiety and terror, I look at the stars above me and pray I won't die. The warm, brilliant happiness I felt only moments ago has been washed clean from my system.

After allowing my chest to stop shaking and my mind to cease spiraling, I take a deep breath and pull myself to my feet once more. My heart pounds so hard against my ribs that I can literally see it beating when I look at my chest.

It will be okay, I tell myself, trying to shove away the fear that courses through my body. You will be fine. The darkness is okay, nothing is hiding in it. I have never been scared of the darkness, but I have always been slightly scared of what's inside of it. I have lost countless hours of sleep due to this childish fear.

"You're okay, Danielle. You are fine. Be confident. It's just a forest with the lights turned off," I whisper to myself. My self-reassuring barely helps, but I know it's all I can do. I need to get back to the hotel no matter what it takes; I can't sleep here. That would be beyond dangerous, and not to mention terrifying.

I take one last look at the lake, then turn and go back the way I think I came. With each passing step, the consuming blackness swallows me further. Crossing my arms over my chest tightly, like a protective barrier, I continue to reassure myself that everything will be okay, it is only a forest, nothing is going to harm me.

I continue to walk, the darkness enclosing me deeper and deeper. I can just barely see the shapes of the trees passing by me with each step. My eyes hurt from trying to focus on the dark, fuzzy figures around me. I can hear the grass and twigs crinkle and crack softly beneath my feet; my ears are instinctively perked up so that I can hear every single noise. As I take a deep breath and pick up my pace, I hear a swift cracking sound materialize from behind me, rippling through the air and stopping at my ears. My heart stops mid-beat, forcing my body to paralyze in its tracks. The Earth feels like it has stopped underneath me. The air holds its breath with me as my shaking hands clench themselves together, forming little fists.

"Hello?" I ask softly, my voice wavering. For a moment there is silence, and all I can see are the tall, leafy trunks of the trees and the bushes that border them. My senses are alert, waiting for a response, or no response at all. That crack could have come from my own footsteps or an animal of some sort.

"Hello my love," someone says from close behind me. Alastor.

I turn around slowly, but I don't see him. Then I see his eyes, glowing red shapes, standing out in the midnight black air like a blooming flower in a field of dead grass. "Alastor? Are you... following me?"

He hesitates. "Not necessarily," he says, but I can hear the omission in his tone.

"How long have you been out here?"

"Only a few moments. I was hungry and looking for someone to eat, but then I found you," he says. Watching his narrowing eyes carefully, I take a deep breath and will my heart to beat regularly again.

"Don't eat me," I say.

He chuckles. "I don't eat humans, so I won't. Unless you want me to." His tone deepens as he takes a step closer. I feel his hand touch my arm, making me jump. He laughs again.

"I can't see anything."

"That's okay," he says. Oh, shit, he took that the wrong way. Leaning in closer, Alastor tightens his grip on my arm.

I grab his wrist and try to pull it off my arm, but it doesn't budge. "Take me to the hotel," I demand.

"Why? The night is so calm and pleasant. Don't you love it?"

"Not really," I say, my eyes finally coming into focus. I can see the shape of his torso, which is connected to his head that holds his bright, staring eyes. Hearing another sound from somewhere deep in the woods, I jump about a foot into the air and grab hold of Alastor's arm.

"Are you sure?" he asks slowly. When I look back at him, I make out the grin on his smug face. My heart continues to race with adrenaline and fear.

I try to take a deep breath, but it doesn't work out too well. My throat is scratchy and it stings from the dry air. I feel like I might cry. Strangely enough, Alastor's presence gives me a small feeling of security. I comb my fingers through my hair and look off into the trees. "Yeah. Do you know how to get back to the hotel?"

"Of course, my love."

"Why do you call me that?" I ask, staring at him.

"Call you what?"

"My love?"

"Some fine women have earned the title of being my love, such as the gorgeous woman known as Mimzy. And... who knows? You might really become my love."

I frown, not really sure about what he means.

"Just take me to the hotel, please," I say, my gaze flickering from tree to tree.

"Of course," he says. He tightens his hold on my hand, then begins to walk forward, leading me home.

ᯬ

At the hotel, I leave Alastor to find my room on my own. He disappears to... somewhere else. Who knows.

I don't run into anyone on my way to the elevator, but when the door opens, I meet a familiar looking woman. She stands statue-still, an irksome gaze frozen on her heavily makeuped face. She is the pale, stout woman I saw earlier when Alastor was shapeshifting. She is dressed in a sleeveless purple dress that looks quite flattering on her curvy body. She blinks her long eyelashes and grins at me as I hesitate to step inside. Her grin is so kind that it's unsettling.

I press the button that reads 3 on the elevator manual. The door closes.

"Young lady," the woman begins. "What is your name?"

I pause, then say, "Danielle."

Suddenly, a squeeze of pressure pounds from my forearm. I look down to see the woman's pudgy fingers gripping me. She stares at me with eyes blacker than the night, and her kind grin has vanished to be replaced with an expression so sinister that I feel sick to my stomach.

Damn. Scary woman.

"Listen here, Danielle. Alastor is mine. I don't care what you say, what he says, or what either of you does. You cannot come between us, do you understand that? I love that man, and that man loves me back. No matter what he says to you or what he does to you. That man belongs to me, Mimzy. I am a nice person, so I will let this slide, but next time I see you ogling my Alastor, I will rip you to shreds so small that an ant wouldn't be able to see them."

So this is Mimzy.

Just then, the elevator dings again, and the door slides open. I yank my arm away from her and bolt out of the elevator as fast as I can.

When I get to my room, I fumble in my pockets for my room key. Right pocket, left pocket, back pockets, there! I find it and unlock my door as fast as possible. When I get inside, the tears are already flowing like uncontained faucets, but I run to the bathroom and lock the door behind me anyways.

I look at my sobbing reflection. My light brown hair is messy and tangled, and my gray-blue eyes are bloodshot. I cannot handle this anymore. That woman - Mimzy, I think was her name - was crazy. I don't like Alastor! She can keep him if she wants! I couldn't care less!

Once I calm myself down, I realize that I forgot to get what I had left for. New clothes. My staff interview is tomorrow, and I can't look bad for it. I consider going to find a store now but immediately drop the idea. It's already late, and my heart is still racing from the encounter with the crazy Mimzy lady. I rub a handful of cold water over my face, take a few deep breaths.

Feeling the water makes me realize another thing. I haven't eaten or drank anything all day. No wonder my head is pounding.

After gulping a glass of water and heating up a frozen sandwich from the already-stocked hotel mini-fridge, I lay down on the bed and try to fall asleep, but the woman's threatening glare is burned into the back of my mind and won't go away.