The Power of Storytelling: How One School Refuser with ASD Found Their Voice

Lost

A vast and feral mob of trees enveloped me, disorientating my senses. Lost. The word rushed through my mind like a distant echo. Curiosity, which had always been my downfall, led me to venture further into the mystery. Night fell and the once luminescent sun receded into the earth, casting an eerie darkness. Gloomy, grey clouds imprisoned the forest, like a cage of trepidation. Harshly, the frost of the cascading rain pattered upon my skin; my tattered jumper brought dismal solace. The crunch of the leaves beneath my feet and the rattle of the wind created a symphony of dread. “Is anyone there? Someone please!” I bellowed out into the night. The darkness responded with unnerving silence. 

Branches surrounded me in a sinister embrace, outstretching their arms like limbs of a gnarled creature. Their mighty forms loomed over me, piercing into my soul with ghastly stares. Despite my terror, the distorted and contorted branches beckoned me in; the trees hypnotised me in a trance of curiosity. My heart stopped. The trees were alive and convulsing like wild animals.  Slashing thorns pierced and punctured my skin. Before I could scream, the trees drew me in, dragging me underground. Complete darkness… 

As the ground submerged me: worms wriggled in the soil, the decrepit roots latched onto me, and the taste of dust and dirt churned my stomach. My chest tightened as the air was viciously robbed from my lungs, as my body was constricted in a cage of dirt. Clutching onto me tightly, like a predator seizing its prey, the branches gashed my coarse skin. “Join us!” The trees boomed in a hauntingly harmonious chant. Questions upon frightening questions rushed through my mind. “How could they speak? What do they mean? Is this the end?” As my eyes wandered in the shadows, they fell upon a harrowing sight. A sight that made my skin crawl. 

Mangled in the menacing prison of the branches, were skeletons scattered beneath the soil. The roots drew in their energy like a leech, absorbing and feasting on their soul and body. Lifeless and soulless was their carcass; nothing but an empty shell of desolation. Their rotting corpses drained of all life; the putrid smell was a reminder of my wretched fate. I was next. Desperately, I tried to escape from the roots that gnawed at me, but their grip was relentless. Their decaying teeth only continued to tear into skin; I was the prey. All hope vanished, until my curiosity led me to stumble upon a glimmer of hope in the darkness.

 In a burst of adrenaline and hope, I managed to dislodge my body from the grasp of the branches. The pale moonlight and glistening stars casted light through a small rupture in the ground. My arms frantically outstretched towards the light, clasping onto the surface. Slowly, I managed to unravel myself from this nightmare and pull myself to the surface. My legs then bounded like a cheetah on the prowl, away from the torment of the treacherous trees. Reaching safety, my legs gave way, and I collapsed in exhaustion. Relief washed over me, though the nightmare plagued my mind. A lesson was learnt that I will never forget curiosity is my nemesis and my friend. 

Author Abbi Prentice