Side Story 4.83 - Buzzing Bravery

Liliana's POV

I didn’t mean to scream.

Not like that. But when I woke up, the shadows in my room weren’t just shadows. They slithered. Crawled. They looked like roots..

And for a second—just one second—I was back there.

Back in the forest.  

Back under that awful tree.

***

My fingers curled around Mr. Bumble—my bee stuff toy—-as the memory hit me like falling down a dark hole.  

The branches had hands. They reached for me. They grabbed me.  

Something cold slid around my ankle. I couldn't move. I couldn’t scream.  

It looked at me.  

No face. Jus