Please note that this is a work of fiction!
*****
"Storm tonight!" The headlines blared. It'd been like this for weeks now. A couple of storms ha hit us already, but nothing major. Our town was more than used to these things by now. Most of us could sense it coming, just by feeling the air. We knew when to stay inside and when to barricade windows. We knew when to use the shelters, how to get there fast enough and what and how much food to store. And we knew to definitely not be out in the forest when a storm was approaching.
Which was why I wondered, for the thousand time, why Keith hade chosen this particular day to take me to his secret hide-out. I wondered even more why I was stupid enough to tag along. But Keith was three years older than me, captain of the swim-team in college, totally gorgeous. And he noticed me! Plain, cute-but-not-hot me. It started a few months ago, right after I'd turned eighteen and removed my braces. And gotten contact-lenses. I'd just walked in to school with my friends one day and there he was, waiting by my locker. I nearly freaked. All the girls in my year had a major crush on him and he was standing by my locker! But I, being me, played it totally cool and we talked a bit. Two days later he asked me out!
Four happy months of dating and talking and cuddling and kissing. I looked at him, holding my hand. I was so lucky. He looked down at me and fired up a dazzling smile. "We're almost there", he said in his deep voice.
I glanced up at the dark sky showing through the trees. "Are you sure about this? We should head back soon."
He stopped and pulled me closer. "I thought you wanted to be alone with me", he whispered.
I shivered. "Of course, but..." He silenced me by pulling me in for a kiss. This close, I could feel him getting hard against my stomach. It left me breathless, as always.
"No buts. Now come on, it's right over here." He pulled my hand.
A couple of yards later, we were there. A small cave, surrounded by tiny pine trees.
"Oh", I said. "It looks cozy."
"Wait until you see inside." We hurried through the dead leaves and bushes and crawled inside. He told me to wait while he lit a few lanterns. In the back of the cave lay an old mattress with a red blanket on top and a few fluffy pillows. Three lanterns lit up the whole cave - that was a bit bigger than it looked. A couple of beanbags sat against another wall and on the small metal table lay a deck of cards.
It really did look cozy, but something about it gave me the creeps. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Not that I was going to tell Keith that. It was probably just the approaching storm, anyway.
He walked towards the mattress and plunked down om it. He clapped the spot next to him. "Come here." When I hesitated, he smiled. "I won't bite."
