By Nathan Sachman
Age 13
Eighth Grade, Brandywine Middle School

I  first saw him while I was on my way to school. He stood there on the side of the road when I

saw his empty eye sockets. It scared me but I thought that I might have mistaken what I saw, so I went and continued on with my day. But that was not the last I saw of him.

Later in the day, I saw him again later that day during lunch. I screamed and asked my friends if they saw him too. I suddenly felt a sharp jab of pain in my chest. But they did not respond and continued eating. I thought to myself, “Am I going insane?”
After school, I decided to go home and think this all through. I walked into the living room and called for my dog he came up to me but would not bark or play. I just gave up and went into my room and fell into a deep sleep.
I dreamed about the man. I saw an even closer view of his empty eyes. He was walking across the street when I saw a flash of two bright lights. I jolted out of bed and was all sweaty.
I looked outside and saw it was night. As I looked outside the window I noticed a dark thin shape by the lamppost. I then realized who he was.
I suddenly remembered everything. It was a dark night. My friend was driving down the mountains of our hometown, Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We were having a good time when suddenly we noticed the man. He ran to us while we driving.
My friend slammed on the brakes. The car rolled over on top of the man and continued rolling down the mountain. We screamed until we suddenly crashed into a tree that ripped the car in half. The last thing I felt was the pain of hitting a broken tree with a sharp point at the end.
Now that I realized what happened I finally understood everything that was going on. He was my version of the Grim Reaper, beckoning for me to leave this world and continue onto the afterlife.
But the question was, did I want to believe? Did I really want to leave and not know where I am going next? And did I want to stay here where he would be my constant reminder of the horrendous tragedy?