The little girl's eyelids fluttered open, and a warm smile spread across the woman's face across her as she gently coaxed.
"Come, bubu, let us get you something to eat." The little girl's voice was groggy with sleep as she replied
"Okay Mama." her words slurred as she rubbed her hands against her eyes.
A tiny yawn escaped her lips as she trailed behind the woman to the kitchen, her eyes slowly focusing on the environment around her. The bright glow from the kitchen lights enveloped her, she shielded her eyes from the light, her eyes fluttered trying to get accustomed to the bright light.
As she climbed onto her chair, the little girl's gaze wandered, taking in the familiar surrounding. Her eyes landed on her father, who propped himself up against the kitchen counter, his weight shifted into one elbow. As she stared more at him, her brows furrowed with concern. "
Dada, you have dark circles under your eyes," she said, her voice laced with worry. Her father chuckled and ruffled her hair, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "Yes, bubu, I get those after a long day of work."
The little girl's face lit up with a giggle, and she smiled at him, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
"Mama, I want hazelnuts!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with playfulness. Her mother then searched the cabinets, rummaging deeply to find the hazelnuts, but was disappointed when she did not find any. Her mother smiled apologetically as she turned to her daughter.
"I am sorry, bubu, but we are out of hazelnuts. I will get some for you tomorrow, okay?"
The little girl's face fell, her lower lip jutting out in a pout. But then her expression changed, and she said, "Mama..." Her voice was filled with a deep thoughtfulness, her brow furrowed in concern.
"Yes, my bubu?" her mother replied, her voice soft and patient.
"I am allergic to hazelnuts, so you don't keep them in the house." The little girl said, Her mother smiled and nodded, her eyes filled with love and admiration for her daughter's concern.
" Silly me, I must have forgotten about it due to work. I will ask our supplier to bring it tomorrow." The woman told her daughter, her hands rubbing daughter's cheek.
" Okay Mama, but I remember you telling me that the man won't bring them anymore, since you stopped him from doing so." The little girl said, her hands playing with her dress.
Immediately, the atmosphere in the room began to shift. The air grew thick with an unsettling energy, and the shadows seemed to deepen and twist. The little girl's voice trembled with uncertainty as she gazed up at the woman, her eyes wide with worry. "You are not my mummy," she whispered, her small hands fidgeting with the delicate lace of the dress she held.
The fabric seemed to shimmer in the fading light, a stark contrast to the darkness that was unfolding. The air was heavy with an unsettling silence, as if the very house itself was holding its breath. And then, without warning, the parents' faces contorted, their features twisting into grotesque masks of ferocity.
Their eyes turned a piercing red, and their skin rippled with an otherworldly energy. The girl's scream was frozen in her throat as the beasts lunged at her, their jaws open wide, revealing razor-sharp teeth. She dropped from her chair, her heart racing with terror, and sprinted out of the house, the wooden door creaking shut behind her.
The forest loomed before her, a tangled web of branches and leaves that seemed to swallow her whole. The trees towered above her, their branches like skeletal fingers reaching out to snatch at her clothes. She ran without stopping, her feet pounding against the earth, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
The trees blurred together, their trunks a blur of brown and green as she fled through the forest. But the beasts were relentless, their hot breath on her heels, their paws pounding the ground in pursuit. The girl's feet flew across the forest floor, her heart racing with fear.
She stumbled, her foot catching on a hidden root, and fell hard onto the earth. The impact knocked the wind out of her, and she lay there, gasping for breath. As she scrambled to her feet, one of the beasts caught up to her, its claws closing around her hair like a vice.
The girl's scream was torn from her lips, a raw, anguished sound that echoed through the forest. She felt a searing pain as the beast's grip tightened, her scalp burning with agony. The world around her dissolved into chaos, the trees spinning wildly as the beast dragged her backward.
The girl's vision blurred, her eyes filling with tears of fear and pain. She was trapped, alone and defenseless, at the mercy of these monstrous creatures. Her heart pounded in her chest, and her breath came in short, terrified gasps. She was completely at their mercy, and she knew it