RUN, KELSEY, RUN

~Kelsey

My breath came in ragged gasps, my legs screamed for rest but I didn’t stop running.

I couldn’t stop.

Not when he was right behind me.

I didn’t dare turn back, i didn’t dare check if he was following, I just ran.

The streets looked blurry, the rain distorting my vision, but my feet knew where to go.

A shortcut through the woods was the quickest route home. It was dangerous, especially at night, but I was out of options.

I ran off the main road, plunging into the narrow path that led into a thick canopy of large trees and thick grass.

Darkness swallowed me whole and I could barely makeout what was a tree, a shrub or even an animal. It was pure darkness.

The air was damp and thick with the scent of wet earth and leaves.

I had no guarantee that I was being chased but I knew my stalker. He would never let go of a perfect opportunity to scare the shit out of me.

Running through the woods was a foolish decision but the tall trees and bushes provided some sort of camouflage. Even if he did come after me, he would never spot me.

I kept my pace steady, stopping occasionally to catch my breath before continuing my journey back home.

The rain was getting heavier and I hid behind a large tree to rest a little and wait for the rain to reduce.

The woods were oddly quiet except for the light tapping of raindrops against leaves and the loud pounding of my heart.

BANG!

My heart stopped and I forced my hand over my mouth to muffle my scream.

The sound echoed through the air and the woods shook violently.

I fell on my knees and began crawling away from the gunshots.

Another sounded, this time more closer than the others and I took to my heels, running as fast as I could.

Another loud bang sounded from the direction I was running to and I skidded to a stop, my heart beating rapidly as I rested my back against the trunk of a tree.

From the shadows, he emerged.

He was directly in front of me!

Dressed in all black, his rain soaked hair clinging to his forehead, water dripping from his sharp jaw.

His clothes were drenched and clung dangerously to his body, highlighting his perfectly sculpted frame.

And damn it was terrifyingly hot.

His expression was calm as usual. He had two guns. One in each hand and a smug look plastered on his face.

Was he finally going to kill me? Was this going to be my end?

“Why did you run?”His voice was smooth, sounding perfectly through the loudness of the rain drops.

I swallowed hard, my chest rising and falling as I tried to catch my breath. “Fuck off,” I spat.

“Instead of chasing me around like a psycho, report me to the police already. I’m sick of your silly games.”

He chuckled, his face twisting into a dark sinister smile, which sent a shiver down my spine.

His face hardened almost immediately.

“What were you doing at the coffee shop?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Drinking coffee, like everyone else?”

His grip on the guns tightened.

“Liar.”

I flinched.

His voice was deeper now and deadly calm.

“You hate coffee, Kelsey.”

My breath caught in my throat.

How did he know? Only my family knew I hated the taste of coffee, even my ex-husband, Marcus, didn't know this.

I opened my mouth, but no words came out.

He stepped closer to me.

“Why did you lie?”

I immediately took a step back, my heart hammering against my ribs.

“I-"

“No,” he murmured as he shook his head. “I do not trust you, Kelsey.”

Trust? He did not trust me? The same person that broke into my home, followed me to a party and chased me through terrifying woods, was talking about trust?

He raised the gun and pointed it directly at me and my heart stopped.

"What are you-" my lips trembled as I tried to speak..

I was totally consumed by fear and it felt like my body was about to shut down.

“Run, Kelsey.”

I froze on the spot.

He was joking. He had to be joking.

BANG!

A bullet whizzed past me, striking a tree behind me. The branch shattered, splinters flying everywhere.

A scream escaped from my throat.

And then I ran like a crazy person.

I ran like my life depended on it, because it fucking did.

Branches slashed at my arms, my feet stumbled over roots but I kept moving.

Another shot.

BANG!

It hit a tree just inches from my face.

I turned left, my pulse roaring in my ears. I had no idea where I was going, no idea if I could even make it out of the woods.

I just knew I had to keep running.

Until I couldn’t anymore.

My body gave out and I twisted my injured ankle.

I stumbled, my legs crumpling beneath me as I scrambled behind the thick trunk of a tree.

I pressed a hand over my mouth, sobbing into my palm.

I was finally going to pay for my sins..

I was finally going to pay for killing Marcus.

He was finally going to kill me.

The woods fell dead silent. Almost like he had gotten bored and left .

There were no more gunshots, no sounds of his boots, mothing but the rain and my own ragged breathing.

For a moment, I thought maybe, just maybe I had lost him.

Then, a hand roughly clamped around my arm.

I shrieked as I was yanked from my hiding spot.

He slammed me against a tree, my breath knocked from my lungs.

I gasped, trembling beneath his intense gaze. “P-please—”

His gun pressed against my temple and he gently slid it down my cheek.

I went still.

Paralyzed under the stern gaze of his piercing grey eyes and the fear that if I moved, he might blow my brains out.

Tears mixed with the rain streamed down my face.

I shut my eyes and patiently waited for the final shot, the pain, the end of everything.

But it never came.

Instead, I felt him press his body against mine.

My body went rigid as I felt his hardened member pressed against my stomach.

The audacity of this man!

This was all exciting to him. He was aroused by seeing me suffer.

The tip of his gun caressed my cheek, followed by the feeling of something soft and warm against my lips.

His lips brushed against mine like he was teasing me.

A delicate kiss, barely there, but burning all the same.

The cold steel of the gun stayed against my cheek as his mouth claimed mine.

He roughly sucked on my lower lip until I was sore and blistered.

Just when I had began to enjoy the feeling of being kissed by a man that had almost killed me, he pulled away.

His eyes were darker than I had ever seen them and his erection was so obvious that it threatened to escape his pants.

“Go home, Kelsey.”

He tilted his gun, gesturing toward a narrow path.

I swallowed, my body shaking as I squeezed past him, my steps unsteady.

I didn’t look back.

Didn’t breathe until I knew I was out of sight.