The Reason to Believe
                                     
     Autumn ran upstairs to hide. The raging storm outside gave off just barely enough light in the dark as she felt along the wall, searching. She had just found where the wall’s design of rectangles and squares hid one small chipped corner, when she heard him start up the first flight of stairs. Quickly, she traced the outline of the chipped wood, making sure not to touch anything but the corners, as she had been taught. As she did, a secret door slid open at the bottom right-hand corner of the hallway, revealing a place to hide, meant for two people. Autumn could hear the man continuing up, the boards creaking as he slowed his pace, almost to the top of the second flight. She had only a few simple minutes before he came to the realization she was on the third floor. As silently as she could, she crawled through the small space, the boards creaking slightly beneath her. With the sound of shallow breathing, the ten-year-old closed the door, taking the sound of the intruder with it.
    **Five years later**
      Autumn sat back in her chair, slightly annoyed that the hand of the clock wouldn’t move faster. It was ten minutes until three, making it hard not to stare. She really wanted to get home so she could pretend to be a small kid again with her best friend, Shane. Weirdly enough, it was silent in the classroom. The ticking of the clock grew louder, and moments later, the sound of the bell rang throughout the room. Autumn got up to leave and was halfway down the hall, only stopping to put everything in her locker, when she thought she saw a pair of eyes watching her.
Shoving the thought back from her mind, she couldn’t help thing about the man from when she was ten. Autumn had just walked out the side door of the school when Shane caught up, catching the very end of her uneasiness.
    “Did it happen again?” he asked, knowing of her tendency to relive her encounter.
      “I just can’t get it out of my head. It seems like just when I’m about to forget, I start getting paranoid again. Why can’t I just let it go?”
      “Probably because you blame yourself for something that wasn’t your fault. You think he’s still going to come after you, don’t you?” he said quietly.
      He had hinted toward the question before, but she knew he didn’t want to cause any old fears to resurface. Honestly, neither of them really wanted to know the answer. As they continued walking, still a mile or two from her house, Autumn stared stared straight ahead as she said, “I can’t go through that again.”
     Shane grabbed her arm, stopping her. He looked at her, his bright green eyes drilling into her blue ones, and said,”You won’t.”
      They walked silently the rest of the way until they reached Autumn’s house, then she took off at a run, and climbed two flights of stairs until she reached a balcony. The balcony was attached to a faraway tree by a rope bridge. She ran across, no longer afraid of heights, to the treehouse at the end. 

     To Autumn and Shane, it was a place to hang out and act like kids, but to others, it may have looked a little like a small house. It had everything they needed in case
they wanted to get away from society, or away in general. The good thing about it was that everything was camouflaged. Aside from them, Autumn’s brother was the only
one who knew it was there. Even the rope bridge was hidden.

     Shane followed a few paces behind her. When he caught up, she looked away, her thoughts still ringing in her mind. She found a chair and sat down across from Shane, who already seemed half asleep. As she was just starting to relax, Autumn glanced out the window. She thought she’d see the clouds. Instead, she saw the figure of a man on the branch. He whispered something inaudible, and reached toward her.
 
     There was nothing out of the ordinary about him, besides that he wasn’t a physical being. She could just barely see the trees’ leaves through him. Also, she knew enough with her religious background to know the difference between the physical and spiritual.

     He continued to get closer, clearly trying to make her understand him. Just as ounces of fear and doubt creeped into Autumn’s mind, he disappeared, leaving a faint glow behind, only to become a memory the next moment. 

     She felt a sense of peace all around her. She left the window and started for the door, pausing only to take one last look at Shane, who was sleeping. He rolled over, murmuring something about Simba and why he couldn’t be king.

     Autumn went up to the stairs to the next hallway of rooms. Stopping at the third door on the right, she twisted the doorknob and pulled it open. It had been at least a year or two since she’d been in her room. It looked like nothing had been touched. The green blankets were still pulled back neatly, the blinds open, and the acoustic guitar sitting at the end of her bed. Being there then, at that moment, reminded her of the girl she once was, and she missed it. She used to be so carefree and happy, but that all changed.

     Feeling like it was something she must do, she got down on her knees. She started praying and asking God for help. Not leaving a thing out and hoping that He would listen, Autumn sat and prayed for nearly two hours before Shane silently came up, having realized what she was doing. Noticing him, she finished her prayer, whispering, “Amen.”
     “Haven’t seen you do that in a while. I was starting to wonder if that part of you had disappeared forever,” he said, grabbing her guitar as he sat down in the floor next to her. He strummed a few chords, perfectly in tune.
     “I just felt like I needed to. Shane, can I tell you something?” she asked, suddenly wanting him to know this.”
     “Sure. What’s up?”
     “I miss who I used to be. I want to go back to her. I know that it won’t be easy, but I don’t want to just give up like this.”
      “Then don’t. Be the Autumn that you were. The Autumn that doesn’t doubt who she is. I’m right behind you to back you up.”
     “Seriously?”
     “Of course. You’d do the same for me. Plus, I kind of miss the old you, too.”
     “I wish you would’ve told me. I didn’t want to say anything. Thank you.”
     “No problem.”
     Shane finally decided he’d better go home. He went to ask if she was too, but figured her brother, Derek, knew where to find her if he needed her.
     The next day, Autumn went through school seeing the man from the day before. He never tried to speak to her or get her attention. He was just there one minute, watching her, the next there was nothing but a fading light. She considered asking Shane if he saw him, too, but thought better of it, as Shane might see the man as a threat.
     Walking home, Autumn felt like she was being watched. She turned, thinking it may be the man again. No one was there. Hearing a noise behind her, she quickened her speed. There was a sound of feet running, along with an almost breathless call of her name. Terrified, she finally gained the courage to face the pursuer. She quickly spun around, just in time to see the man disappear, Shane, unknowingly, running right through him. He asked if she was alright, but she didn’t respond.
     Her afternoon went pretty much the same as the day before, but there was no man on the branches or guitar-playing Shane. He did, however, fall asleep again, this time mentioning Rapunzel and where she got the frying pan. She made a mental note to ask where his obsession with Disney movies came from.
     As the days passed, the man still watched, Autumn kept praying, and Shane still talked in his sleep about Disney characters and their strange hobbies. Autumn was slowly changing for the better, and Shane even changed just watching her. Three weeks had passed before Autumn finally brought herself to talk to God about that night so many years ago. She spoke as if talking to a close friend that never knew.
     “Lord, that night, as my ten-year-old body waited behind that secret door, I only imagined what I would see when I opened it. I listened, straining to hear, but it had been built soundproof. I waited for what felt like ten hours, but turned out to be only five. Then, I punched the code in to open the door. Silently, terrified he might still be in the house, I crawled out. I searched the rooms, finding my two brothers and sister, all older, in separate rooms. They wouldn’t wake up. My parents’ room was the same as always, but their bathroom door had a busted lock, along with a bloody hand print on the window sill. No one was at the bottom.
     “I went back down the hall, finally reaching the steps, careful to be quiet. I reached the house phone, on the table next to the couch, grateful to see it still plugged in, when I saw that the intruder was passed out on the couch. I quickly spun around and ran weightlessly down the hallway, turning into a closet. I quietly closed the door and dialed 9-1-1. The operator answered, and I told her everything, including that the man was on my couch. She told me to stay hidden and that the cops were on their way. I told her to make sure that they turned their lights and sirens off. 
     “I met the police at the door, and as they came in, the couch was empty. Derek walked in minutes later, having spent the night at a friend’s house, confused and scared. The police didn’t believe me, thinking that I did it, but Derek reminded them that we had cameras, and cleared my name pretty quick. Shane had run over to see if we were alright, and we tried to be happy about the fact that Derek had just turned eighteen, so he could now be my guardian, but it didn’t help much.
     “God, that’s been awhile, but it got me to thinking about my life right now. I can’t run from it. It’s here. I’m tired of being afraid. Help me be better, please. I once waited behind that secret door. I’m not hiding behind it anymore, in Jesus name I pray, Amen.”
     The very next day, Autumn saw the man one last time. He had been waiting for her and Shane in the room of their tree house that they were always in. Shane saw him for the first time, confused on why Autumn wasn’t afraid.
     “He’s been here all along, Shane. He’s been watching. I have a feeling that I won’t be seeing him again.”
     The man finally spoke to Autumn, for the first and only time. “I have not been following you to scare you or with any intention of hurting you. You see, I have followed you because I was told to. My job was to help you to accomplish what you wanted to do all along. I was supposed to lift you up and help you through the pain of remembering. As you went through each day praying, you grew stronger. You became less and less afraid of who you wanted to be or who you were meant to be. The love in your heart grew bigger. My job is finished. I must go now.”
     “Wait! How did you know what I was going through? Who gave you the- you’re an angel, aren’t you?”
     “Yes, I am an angel. Yes, God sent me. My assignment was to stay with you and help you until you did not need me. I believe you will do fine without me now. I am sorry to say that this is the only time we will speak to each other. One last thing before I go,” he said, looking to Shane.
     “Wait. What did I do?” Shane asked, suddenly worried.
     “You have done nothing wrong, Shane. However, I was also sent to answer a prayer of yours.”
     “What prayer? I don’t pray.”
     “Not in front of anyone, and it has been awhile, but you asked God for a reason to believe. After watching Autumn change, I see you have found your reason.”
     “I have. Thank you.”
     “Do not thank me. I am only a servant of the Lord. Give Him the glory.”
     “I will. Believe me.”
     That night, as Autumn hit her knees to pray, she smiled, knowing that Shane, too, was praying right then. That was another prayer of hers that had been answered