It was a Friday night, and I’d left another party. They were just too much. Who invented clubs? “Hey let’s make a dimly lit room where people can dance and be loud and annoying for only 50$!” They disgusted me, but more importantly, made me feel uncomfortable. Soft snow fell outside, and I knew it was only a matter of time before this small snowfall became a blizzard. Pulling my black trench coat over my shoulders tightly, I hurried outside and into the forest. The trees kept most snow out, but the sky was darkening quickly. I looked like another version of Little Red Riding Hood. I kept my head bowed, and good thing too, or else I wouldn’t have seen the red. At first, I had thought it was a tint in the snow. But then more showed up. Just small sprinkles here and there, but they made me curious. When I turned in the direction of my house, I noticed the blood lead the other way, deeper into the forest. Should I have gone? Probably not. I turned to the blood and began waking further.

As I was trying to walk home quickly because of the horrendous storm behind me I noticed drops on blood in the snow leading to the woods. I was alerted but I followed

I kept walking, as if I didn’t see what I just saw in the snow. A few paces later and a funny thing happened with my feet: they stopped walking forward. Call it curiosity, call stupidity…I found myself turning around and going back to the blood trail. It was dark out, so I wasn’t able to see much but what I could see, the trail of blood started with a few drops then got significantly “messier” as it got closer to the woods. Then, out of nowhere, I could a blood curdling scream. It sounded like a grown man too and, if I had to guess where it was coming from, it was coming from somewhere in the woods. I would come to regret my next choice: follow the trail.       As soon as I was a foot or two on the other side of the tree line…there was blood EVERYWHERE. Whatever happened was gruesome, for sure. Given the nature of the situation, I was treading lightly. Both the crisp snowfall from that morning and dead branches would for sure let whomever know that they had a guest approaching. Again, it was dark and using a light would give up my location, thus I was using the full but dimly lit moon as my flashlight, so to speak. It was at about 60 yards when I finally saw what looked like a campfire off in the distance. Though I hadn’t heard a scream since that first was, I was on high alert as I approached the light.       I broke through some brush to find someone’s campsite, absolutely soaked in fresh blood. You know it’s fresh when even the winter air smells like rusty iron. It made me gag something fierce. As I approached the single person tent, it felt time and the earth stood absolutely still. One big breath and I unzipped the tent to find what looked like a man. I saw what looked like a man because I could see what was left of his genitals and a small portion of his beard that was laying next to the body like some dirty shirt that had been discarded on the floor. Above the bloody mess was a note that simply read: I CAN SEE YOU.

“Blood?” I said as I am catching my breath from trying to walk home quickly “why would there be blood here, usually nobody comes here”. I observed the trail of blood, it was frozen from the cold, it lead into the wood. I called a ambulance to come. It must be a poor guy who got lost and possibly died from the mouth of a bear, I thought. I followed the trail into the wood, trying to find the unlucky one.

As I am examining the area, a bear commit a surprise attack out of the bush. Fortunately, I dodged the attack and shot the bear with my shotgun, it frantically tried to escape, but I uses another shot at the leg. The bear isn’t capable of moving anymore, it wails in pain. I had been a professional hunter for a long time, my reflexes were very sharp. I looked around in search of the corpse, since a bear was actually here I assume that the victim was dead. But I noticed that there was a strange mark on the belly of the bear. It was a name, Gabriel, was this bear tamed by someone? I conceived this idea. If so why would it be here? I have this question in mind, but it doesn’t matter now. I finally found the body, it is a man behind a bush as if it were hidden intentionally.

Suddenly someone striked me on my back, I let out a shriek and fled into the wood reluctantly before the anonymous strike again. My back was covered in blood, I realized I was attacked with a knife. “Halt!” I shouted “you are doing something illegal—and bad; it’s not too late to stop now”. I tried to convince the anonymous to let me go, but I guess I’m not really good at convincing others. “Why would I?” The anonymous replied with a vexed tone “you already saw the body”. “You had tamed a bear and use it to kill the man haven’t you? Why would you do that?” I asked him, trying to distract him before I could load my gun. “The details you don’t need to know, but you’ll be dead here for certain” he said with a sinister laugh. I caught this temporary moment as a chance to shot him, a fiercing scream come out of my gun. He is knocked down to the ground, dead. I waited until the ambulance arrived and told them about what happened. Alas, then I can finally go back home.

“Da-“

“Language!”

“Ugh I was going to say dang it’s cold. Why are you like this?”

“Because I can be. Bwahahaha! Oh What’s this”

“Is that blood?”

“Ewwww nasty”

“Dude this is serious, it could be a hurt animal, or worse…”

“Let’s follow it!”

“What? Wait up!”

follows blood trail in snow

“Oh hey Jason!” says in deep weird voice

“Oh hey Mitch!” says in deep weird voice

“Not even your names but okay”

“Hey Jason, hath thy seen thy blood spots in the snoweth?” changes to posh voice

“No… oh wait yes I hath! You mean the ketchup I’ve been sprinkling around!?”

“Why-?”

“Oh goodness me! It was only ketchup! Nothing to fear dear friend!”

“Why where you sprinkling ketchup in the snow?”

“For thy newish movie dear friend, titled “zombies in the snow” duh”

“Duh, that’s obvious”

“Right… obvious. Why do I still exist?” mumbles

“Because thy hasn’t died yet… ooo want to be a zombie for my movie?”

“No”

“Please?”

“No”

I feel Red Red Red

Drip

Drop

Drip

Drop

I think I’m bleeding Red Red Red Drip Drop Drip Drop

Someone will see the Red Red Red Drip Drop Drip Drop

Maybe the snow will wash it away, wash the Red Red Red Drip Drop Drip Drop

It’s on my hands and on my head Red Red Red Drip Drop Drip Drop

I remember our love was Red Red Red DripDropDripDrop

The Red Red Red Stains my dress And stains my heart, Tear this empty soul apart. I will not weep, I will not cry, I’ve always known that it’s a lie.

With a hurting hand And a hurting head, The blood I bled was Red Red Red

Drip…

It hasn’t stopped raining for several days; I think it’s winter.

I’ve been away since yesterday, and I have nothing to show for it.

I’m almost home now; I know that line of oaks.

There’s a trail of red. I’ll follow it and see what happens.

I’m not scared of death any longer.

I am getting closer to where I’m going. The smell fills the air.

I pull back the bushes. Dinner is served.

Trying to walk home quickly in the storm, you notice drops of blood in the snow in front of you, leading away into the woods.

Quickly you think to yourself: “Hell nah” and ignore the blood and walk straight home.

You don’t feel like being the main character that gets murdered in the woods.

Being a surviving side character will do.

Being what I like to think of as a horror aficionado, I knew better than to follow the ominous trail of blood in the snow. I knew the second those drops disappeared into the woods, nothing good would come of it or me. And still I followed. Storm and common sense be damned. So as I lay here, looking from my left leg, which is cocked at a strange angle to my body, to my right leg, which is currently being gnawed on by what can only be described as the most hideous creature to ever be birthed, I wonder if I’ll bleed out and die before it starts feeding on the rest of me.

Trying to walk home quickly in the storm, you notice drops of blood in the snow in front of you, leading away into the woods.

I fret over the blood droplets and wonder what animal left them there. I follow the droplets, crazy as I am, since the storm is flourishing. Then as I approach it’s like God knows I want to help. The storm lessons. I skip around a conifer tree following the droplets and up in the tree on a branch six feet above me perched a barred owl. His wing is disjointed.

I pull my phone out of my pocket to look up a local wildlife rehabilitation center. I dial the number and explain the owl’s situation and where I am. I promise to stay here though,I doubt the owl will fly away with an injured wing.

I waited it seemed like forever so I talked to the owl in hushed tones and named him Jasper. Then I heard a car door slam and heard the swish of footsteps around the bend. The two helpers had climbing equipment,a net, and bandages. One helper climbed the tree and coaxed the owl into the net. He climbed down then the other helper laid a warm blanket on the ground and they laid Jasper on the blanket to examine the injured wing.

Owls don’t do well in captivity, because they cling to the helper and then it’s not safe to release them back into the wild. The helpers gently and quietly reset the owl’s wing in the wild and held Jasper to the blanket for thirty minutes with gloves on so they weren’t injured in the process.

After thirty minutes they gently released the barred owl. The owl slowly stood up and spread its wings slowly and eventually to full wingspan. The owl hopped toward me as if to say thank you then flew far away. I thanked the helpers from the rehabilitation company and they went on their way.

As I began my trek home the storm started up again and I heard Jasper call “who cooks for you, who cooks for you all, who cooks for you, who cooks for you all.”

It made my heart happy to help Jasper. I finished my trek home with a bigger heart.