Snow. Its all around me. I cant get out of it, the suffocating coldness of it mixed with the dread and betrayal running through my veins makes it unbearable. It flies up around me as I race through it, soaking my socks, but none of that matters.

All that matters now, is getting away from that thing.

~Earlier that day~

The anger slowly builds up inside me, how dare it think itself important enough to wake me up. That stupid bird, singing its annoyingly stupid song, all loud and proud in its high pitched stupid voice, on its stupid little perch on my window sill and 5:30 in the morning. My alarm clock decides it wants to sing an annoying high pitched song as well, so I sit up snatch it off my side table and chuck it at the window.

“If you both want to be annoying at five in the morning then go do it somewhere else!” I screech at the bird, who bolted when the alarm hit the window, and the now shattered alarm clock, still going off might I add, now on the floor.

I huff in annoyance when I realize I’m too worked up to go back to bed, stupid bird and alarm clock, “stupid loud high pitched annoying things” I mutter as I get out of bed, kicking the pile of broken alarm clock making it finally go silent.

I stalk to my dresser, yank it open and pull on an oversized sweater, leggings, and nice warm fluffy socks. As I walk past my mirror my eyes go wide when I see the rats nest on my head. I grab my brush and try to untangle to dark brown mop of hair, but after ten minutes of hair yanking and no results but a few missing chunks of hair, I pull my hair up into a bun with chopsticks. The I put on my thick rimmed glasses that magnify my green eyes. I glare at my reflection before grabbing my laptop and walking out of my room. My bad mood decreases when I smell the sweet scent of waffles floating up the stairs.

I almost drool as I quicken my pace, bouncing down the squeaky steps. In my haste I forgot about out slippery floor, so as soon as my sock covered foot touched the polished hardwood floor it flew out from underneath me. My breath gets knocked out of my lungs when my back hits the floor with a loud thud and I stare dazedly at the ceiling, my laptop clutched safely to my chest. I sit up just as my adoptive mother flies around the corner of the kitchen.

“Alaina? are you alright?” her voice is loud with worry as she walks towards me quickly.

“I’m fine mom” I say pushing up off the floor while rubbing the back of my head, and then checking my computer, can’t have my school breaking now can I?

‘What a wonderful morning’, I think sarcastically while I allow my mother to herd me into the kitchen while circling me, checking for injuries. She scolds me for not being careful while she puts a giant chocolate chip waffle on a plate and grabbing a tall blue tinted cup and filling it with milk. I nod every now and then as she continues with her scolding but my attention is solely focused on that perfectly crispy golden waffle, the melted chocolate chips giving off a heavenly scent, making drool pool in my mouth. I’m sure if someone took a picture of me just then I would have looked like a wild animal ready to eat after weeks of no food.

 She drops the plate down in front of me and the glass of milk, “now be more careful you could have seriously injured yourself!” I nod absentmindedly while warily pulling my laptop away from my food as I watch the ocean of milk attempt to slosh out of the cup.

 My (adoptive) mother is a petite thing. Just barely five foot two, she has dark tanned skin, very out of place in woods in the middle of nowhere in Alaska. Her eyes are a light hazel, big and round, they take up most of her face. She has a little button nose above pink lips. Her golden hair in retrained in a ponytail that hangs down to the middle of her back. Its hard to take her seriously when she yells at me if i’m not sitting down because with my five foot eight height its like getting scolded by a two year old. But that doesn’t change anything about her being basically the only person in my life, she is my role model (no matter how small.)

I nod and begin eating my waffle, almost moaning when the rich taste of chocolate bursts on my tongue. When I go for another bite my mom calls out that she is going to take out the trash.

“M’kay!” I answer while stuffing another forkful of waffle into my mouth, before taking a huge gulp of milk.

I find myself so lost in the waffle that I don't even notice its been a few minutes since she left. And our trash can is right outside. When I actually did notice I got up to go see if she needed help, she was small after all. Maybe she couldn't lift the trash bag high enough. I chuckle quietly at that thought and the image of her struggling with a bag. I open the back door and stick my head out. I shiver slightly from the cool air as my breath puffs up into little clouds in front of me. My gaze sweeps across the snow covered tree line before they land on our small garage with the silver trash can pushed against its side... with no mom in sight.

I step out onto the porch, the snow was swept off of, and look around, “Mom?” I call out.

When I don't get an answer I step back inside and slip on my shoes, which are more like house slippers considering we never really leave, before going back out and walking to the trash can to investigate. I follow moms footsteps to the trash can and then notice they lead into the forest. ‘Why would she go there?’ I think with a furrowed brow as I begin trudging through the snow after her. I look around the snow covered woods and take in the beauty of it. I’ve always loved alaska because I always get to see tree’s covered in snow, and there is just something about the sight that gets me everytime.

Not a minute later I hear a faint voice. I recognize it as my mothers and go to call out, but something stops me so I continue walking towards her voice, though now more quietly.

“How much longer must I do this? I cant take it anymore! I want my house back!” I hear my mother hiss as I get to a meadow and hide behind a tree so she doesn't see me.

I hear a strange garbled growling noise followed by my mother saying in a more quiet tone, “of course not, I believe in master with all my heart.” I slowly peek out from behind the tree to see what she is talking to.

I wish I hadn’t.

A black grotesque figure is towering above my mother. Its body jerking slightly in different directions as if being tugged by multiple people, a red cloth is wrapped around its eyes, and its mouth is open slightly revealing sharp teeth. If not for its mouth it would look like a cut out of a body that was shaded in black.

I swallow back my sudden nausea before my eyes go to my mother whose shoulders are hunched as she flinches away from it when it makes that odd noise again. Why is she with that thing? And what is it? My mind and body are screaming at me to run back to the house and lock all the doors, but my feet feel rooted to the ground. I can’t run and leave mom with that...that.. thing. My hand that’s gripping the tree suddenly jerks down when the bark I was holding onto falls from the weight of my hand.

The creature whirls around and my mothers eyes flash to me, her face twisting into a dark scowl. My heart stops, how could my mother look at me like that? I thought she loved me, surely she is looking at the creature and not me? My breath catches when the thing tilts it head up slightly and breaths in with its mouth, before its mouth slides into a terrifying sharp grin, its teeth glinting. It was at that moment my body decided to run.

And boy, did I take off.

I take off back towards my house, hoping it will provide some kind of protection from that monster, but then it’s suddenly in front of me. I dig my heels into the snow and make a sharp left going in a different direction. Snow flies up around me as my feet kick it up into the air. I don't even notice when I lose my shoes, I barely feel the cold snow as it soaks into my socks, or the air as it slices against my skin. All I can feel is the terror that wells up inside me as I hear the thundering foot steps following me closely behind. Goose bumps break out over my skin when a sickening screech like howl sounds behind me, Images of being killed by that thing fill my mind so I was distracted and didn’t see the hill.  My breath tears out of me in sharp gasps as I trip and go tumbling down a steep hill.

My body bounces against hard frozen ground as I flip and roll down the hill, and pain joins the terror inside me. I can't even tell if the crunches filling my ears are my bones or the underbrush anymore. Then after what felt like forever I land in an unnatural heap at the bottom of the hill, my eyes wide as I stare up at the deceivingly bright blue sky. I listen to the quiet air for any noise, anything to tell me that creature has found me. After a few moments I start to calm down and try to move, only to be shocked when I realize I can't.

I relax my numb body against the ground and think about everything that just happened. There is no way that any of it was real... creatures like that don't exist right? My brutalized body and memories say otherwise. Then my mothers face right before I ran flashes through my mind.

It had been filled with disgust.

I close my eyes unable to look up at the beautiful happy sky any longer, as tears build up. What was she doing with that thing? Why didn't she help me? I feel my heart harden, the only person in my life betrayed me, I shiver uncontrollably as violent emotions builds up inside me. When a sob rips out of me the pain flares up again, before I begin violently coughing. I move my tongue around in my mouth as tears run down my cheeks, trying to place the metallic taste in my mouth. Is that blood?

Am I bleeding internally? I expect to feel dread or panic, something at this, but I don't feel anything. Its like all my emotions are draining out of me as I lay in the cool snow, absently noticing that it has started snowing, it feels like a cool blanket is being laid over me. It soothes the pain momentarily putting me in a blissful numb state. Hmmm, I wonder what heaven is like? Will I meet my real mother? I wonder if she would like me, since i’m the reason she died.

I hear crunching snow as my vision fades and it becomes harder to breath, my lungs feel heavy I muse distractedly. When it becomes to hard to breath I decide to stop breathing, it helps a little. As I lay there I think about how deceiving the snow is, having been laying in it for so long it’s become so cold its boiling hot, how very deceiving.

Then I hear a voice calling to me, thats odd it sounds familiar... but I don't know any boys, just my mother who betrayed me. See if ever trust anyone again.

‘Idiot you probably won’t live to trust someone!’ a voice retorts in my head

Wait I have to know him, he knows my name. But i’m so tired maybe I’ll go to sleep for a while. I breath out in a quiet sigh, ignoring the annoying voice calling out my name, maybe if i hum I won’t hear him anymore. To bad I couldn't ignore my alarm clock and that bird thirty minutes ago. My lips curl in a smile as the darkness closes over me.

Stupid, annoying, high pitched things.