Casey, where are you?” called Ella with her hands out searching the darkness for any sign of life in the auditorium. “I can’t find you!”

She could hear the laughing and screeching of her friends. The curtains were closed, making the stage pitch black. The laughter and pounding of the feel on the hardwood floor stopped abruptly. The feeling of loneliness hit her like a brick wall. But to Ella’s surprise, that’s not what hit her. A rustling noise echoed through the room, but she knew where it originated. The rustling turned into a stomping sort of noise. The noise. The noise came nearer and nearer until something hit her in the face. She heard something fall to the ground as she fell hard in turn.

She lay on the stage, paralyzed with pain, trying to piece together what had just happened. She sat up slowly as tears rolled from her eyes. She looked into the dark, hoping that her eyes would adjust so she could see who the culprit was, but that’s not what happened.

She got on her hands and feet and tried to crawl to where the person or thing fell. She patted the floor, hoping to feel someone else on the ground, but she couldn’t find anything. With her eyes still watering, she stood up. She felt on the soft velvet curtain trying to find the opening so she get help. She opened it with difficulty, and she met Casey.

“What happened?” asked Casey.

Ella grabbed Casey’s hand and went back into the darkness where she fell. But no one or nothing was there