Fiction Friday: Lisa and the Light

     “Lisa, I swear to god if you walk out that door!” yelled her mother as Lisa did, in fact, walk out that door. A screen door barely hanging from its hinges, it slammed loudly against the frame. Lisa could hear her mother’s threats fade as she walked down the summer warmed streets of the deep south. Her callused bare feet withstood the temperature; even if they couldn't, she felt her anger would have carried her away. The argument she had been having with her mother was one Lisa didn't care to have again, so when she reached the intersection of her street with the highway, she did not turn around. She turned left, south, towards the coast. The coast was of course hundreds of miles away, but right then it sounded nice. The figment of saltwater tinted the air as she considered the prospect.
     As she ambled down the road, the streets of the rundown suburb gave way to swathes of forest. The street became narrower and the cars rushing by her seemed disturbingly close; the force of the passing vehicles forced her to walk carefully. The danger of her situation sobered her mind. She should go back. Her feet continued to carry her forward as she considered the events that would follow that decision. Her mother would yell at her again, but perhaps she could go stay with someone more understanding. The heavens above shone with starlight as a car came close enough for her instincts to make her jump off the road. The car stopped and a figure slid out.
     Lisa, unsure of what to do, tried to lay flat against the ground, quietly. Her heart raced, and she hated the moment she decided to start walking down the highway. The fragrant scent of soil filled her lungs as her eyes attempted to track the stranger. She couldn't tell if they were male or female, but they were rather short and broad. When the form started walking her direction she scrambled to her feet and ran further into the woods. She did not look back but heard it follow. As the canopy above thickened, it was harder to see where her bare feet landed. She could hear something moving behind her, and then suddenly through the trees to left a bright light, a beacon, a house perhaps, safety.
     As she ran towards the light, it became clear it was too bright and too colorful to be coming from a home. For a moment, she wondered if they had Christmas lights up. But the light wasn't spread out, it was a dense column of light. Lisa scrambled through branches to find the column shooting through tree stumps, it seemed a crystallized white beam that gave off faint hints of other colors. It was confusing and frightening, and Lisa felt, unnatural. The crunch of heavy steps sounded and Lisa thought to hide. 

     A voice called out to her, it seemed familiar. She stood in front of the beam and turned around, letting its illumination enlighten the face of the stranger. Lisa was scared for who it might be and angry that anyone would dare. When the shroud fell from the approaching figure, it revealed a soft middle-aged woman, with heavy boots and a bit of limp. It was her mother.
     "What the hell mom?" said Lisa, anger rising to her cheeks.
     "Come home, we'll figure out what to do with it, just come home," pleaded her mother.
     Lisa wondered if her mother had softened, "It's not yours to deal with, it's my problem."
     Any pleading disappeared from her mother's face, "Damn right it is, but I won't let you make any more mistakes."
     Lisa's mother took a step forward and Lisa took a step back, her foot landing directly in the beam. It seared her skin and she screamed, but when she tried to pull it out she found herself pulled into the blazing white light. For a moment there was nothing but the stark emptiness of white, then everything was black.