• ...I wasn't afraid of her, but she feared me. I could tell by the way she dropped her head to avoid my eyes ervytime I walked past. She was scared, and lonely, and no matter how much I wanted to keep on walking, keep on acting like I didn't see her, I stopped.

    "Are you lost?" I whispered the question hoping not to scare her even more, maybe I should have scared her instead.
    "Lost?..am I lost?" Her voice was shaky and she still wouldn't look me in the eye. She stared at my feet.
    I asked again. "Are you lost? Do you need help. I can help you." I stepped closer forcing her to look at me, really look at me.

    "I'm lost. Can you he...you can see me?" She looked at my face, into my eyes; and I looked into hers. They were the strangest color, a milky blue tinted red around the edges.
    "Of course I can see you. Tell me your name, so I can help you." She looked about my age. We were the same height, almost the same build.
    I reached out to hold her hand and lead her away from the darkening woods, her bare fingers chilled my skin even through my thick wool mittens. "We've got to get you warm, fast."
    I pulled her along the quiet path, and she stumbled obediently behind me. It was a long walk back to town, I kept thinking she could possible die along the way.
    "Sam" I caught the sound of her soft voice, barely audible against the rising winter winds.
    "What did you say?" I stopped, turned to face her, glad that she had the confidence enough to speak with me.
    "My name...is Sam" She gave a quick firm nod as if trying to reassure herself. I smiled in return.
    "Im Alex. how did you get lost?" I wanted badly to keep moving, but just as I turned back around the wind picked up violenly, throwing snow in our faces, stinging our eyes. For the moment we could move, we needed shelter.
    Fleetingly I scanned the nearby woods looking for something that would sheild us from the snow, but was still close to the path so we wouldn't get lost.
    "Did you hear me? How did you get lost?" I raised my voice so Sam could hear me over the shrieking wind, but she still didn't answer. I held her hand in a deathgrip as I moved toward the cover of the trees.
    I was determined not to let her get lost again, I would save her.

    We ended up pressed against the trunk of a fallen tree, hoefully not far from the path. I was still holding Sam's hand, but she wasn't speaking. Through the snow, I could barely make out the features of the face. Those strange eyes, her small nose,her lips. Her lips were moving, but I couldn't hear her.
    "Sam, I can't hear you speak up." I leaned closer to her, but she stayed where she was, lips still moving. I leaned even closer until my ear was almost pressed to her lips. I felt them whispering against my sensitive skin.
    "Die...I'm going to die...Alone....I'm lost....need help...lost...alone" She kept repeating those words like a chant, chilling my blood until it felt like ice running through my veins.
    "We're fine. We're not going to die. Do you hear me Sam, I won't let us die, not here, not like this."
    I grapped her shoulders, hugged her close to. I was scared now, as I rocked us both back and forth, I was scared. I couldn't stop thinking about all the things I hadn't done yet, all the people I hadn't had a chance to say goodbye to.
    I don't know how long we sat there, pressed up agianst the tree. I had fallen asleep, and I woke up still holding Sam. The wind had stopped.
    "Sam. Sam look, the storm is over. we can go back to the path. Sam?" I stood up, making her stand with me. Something was wrong. She was staring off into the woods, eyes unfocused and bleary. her lips still moved.
    "Don't worry. We're fine" I tried to take her hand again but she jerked away from me and strarted walking deeper into the woods. Hesitantly, I followed.

    ...When I saw her, laying there, motionless; I was shocked. I quickly looked over at Sam who was standing over her, looking down at her with impossibly sad eyes. I hurried over.
    "Oh my goodness Sam we have to save her." I ripped off my parka and threw it over the girl, trying vainly to save her. Deep down I knew it was too late. Her cheeks were pale, and her lips were that cold blue color of death. I fought back tears as I scanned her empty face, lingering on her open eyes. I noticed right away the color. The familiar milky blue with the red tint.
    "Sam" Then I noticed everything else, the coat, the shoes, the lack of mitttens. "Sam?"
    I looked up at her, confused and even more terrified then ever before.
    "Im dead....I died....This is me?" Her eyes were void of emotion and so was the monotone that was her voice. No color rose to her cheeks, but I could see the red in her eyes, filling the milky blue space, branching out , leaking into the whites of her eyes. everything was red, the color of fresh blood, and it spilled over onto her pale cheeks. She was crying.
    I watched in awe as the bloody icy tears fell to the white snow, staining it with sorrow. I felt tears of my own blurring my vision until I could see nothing but the blurred outline of Sam standing before me and soon even that faded away..........