Everything suddenly went quiet...

Everything suddenly went quiet. My eyes popped open. I shivered in the cold weather. The weather that was so cold, it made my hands turn blue. Why, just a minute ago, I had been listening to the music of the night. The music that had had me plunge into a dreamy trance. But the sudden quietness, the sudden stillness and the lack of life made my heart petrify. I had the feeling like when one misses a step and one’s heart seems to sink deeper in the body. I was lying on the wet, cold grass in a forest in Australia and the night was a moonless black. I moistened my lips and slowly got up. I heard the howl of a wolf somewhere near and automatically whipped around. Nothing. I gulped. I have lived in Australia all my life. It’s just that I never stepped into the dark forests. That is, before today. I don’t really remember how I landed up lost and alone, but I did learn that sometimes one has to control his or her curiosity. Questions materialized in my head. Why was it so quiet? Where is the wolf? Why am I feeling so uncomfortable? I had cried so much that I certainly could not cry any longer. I pulled my jacket collar up to my chin and strode here and there, not knowing what to do. Sometimes I hugged the trees, praying for help to arrive for me, sometimes I tried to hide from something I couldn’t see, but feel. I could sense it. Huh? What was that? I literally jumped. A growl, a very fierce one. I slowly turned around. I screamed.
I screamed until my voice became hoarse. Without thinking, I found myself running for my life. Close upon, a big, grey wolf, nearly my size, was chasing me. Saliva dripping from its yellow teeth, with its tongue lolling, the hairy beast was looking hungry. I was nearly fainting when two strong hands tugged my hair and pulled me aside. The unexpected turn startled the wolf. It gave me enough time to climb onto the nearest tree, which happened to have a lot of branches up and down. The wolf stood up on its hind legs and howled in anger. Its big yellow eyes glared up at me from below, just before it disappeared into the trees. I sighed in relief, but not for long. Beside me, a small boy, an Aborigine, sat smiling at me. I slid back, carefully. The Aborigine said something in a different language. I didn’t understand, so I showed my confusion by merely shrugging helplessly. He seemed to understand, because he stopped smiling and sighed. He offered me his hand. I looked at him skeptically. He pointed at me, then himself and then on the ground below. I was not an idiot. I smiled slightly and took his hand. I discovered he was an amazing tree climber, the way he swung down the branches, dragging me with him. I was scared, and he seemed to know, because he nodded and gave me a reassuring smile. We ran and ran, sometimes with me tripping over the rough forest floor. Finally I spotted light. I wore a toothy grin as the boy showed me the way out. We waved to each other and he vanished into the forest. I learned that I was not very far from my house. What luck! I sprinted towards my house at full speed. When I hit the bell thrice, the worried face of my mother looked out of the window. The door opened and we hugged.
It was my birthday and we were decorating the house. I looked out of the window, at the entrance of the dark forest that now appeared so far away. It lay so silently there. I spotted something moving. I squinted and saw an Aborigine boy peep outside, and then vanish quickly. I grinned and in my heart I will always remember that friend who had helped me in such a troubling situation. I heard my sister call me for some help and I rushed in her room.