Short story 2

The definition of fear is: anxious anticipation of danger, pain, etc. It is almost indefinable to some people, though. To me, fear is knowing you’re going to die and just waiting for it to happen...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

When I was younger, maybe 12 or 13, I had three best friends: Katie, Allison, and Danny. We were almost inseparable for a couple years, but as kids grow up, they grow apart. Katie, Danny, and I lived really close to each other, out of town, and Allison was our friend from school. We would always do things together, like go swimming, hiking, and camping. This one camping trip, in particular, will always live in my mind.

Katie, Allison, Danny, and I decided, at the end of May, that we were going to go on a camping trip. Being that we lived in the mountains, in upstate New York , this was a challenge because we had gotten snow as late as June before. But we made the plans anyway. We had a lot of planning and convincing to do. Our parents wouldn’t let us camp just anywhere. Allison and I were the decision makers of the group, so we decided that we were going to camp on a small strip of land, owned by my Grandparents, near Katie’s and Danny’s houses. There were a lot of stories about the area and we were a little hesitant about staying, but also, more than a little excited about the legends.

It is said that Native American people lived in the area and that there was a great battle on or near the spot we had chosen. Some people said that an evil spirit roamed the area and when people came into the area, it would do things to challenge their state of mind. This evil spirit, it is said, is the reason the battle took place and the reason for many more tragedies that happened over several decades.

The day we told Katie and Danny about the spot we had chosen was a little difficult. "We’re gonna camp in that one spot, by your guys’ house, by the brook," I said.

"In the woods?" Katie asked, you could hear the fear in her voice.

"Well, duh, why?" I asked.

"It’s supposedly haunted up there," Danny said.

"What, you scared, Danny?" Allison taunted.

"No, I’ve just heard about a lot of weird things happening up there," Danny said. "Your cousins told me about some stuff that happened to them when they were hunting. I don’t know anyone else stupid enough to go up there."

"I guess we’re going to be ’stupid enough to go up there.’ Right, Allison?" I said.

"Hell yeah, I think it’ll be fun. We don’t know what’s going to happen. It’ll be like an adventure," Allison said.

"Actually, it does sound fun. I mean, we’ll go up there and won’t have any parents around for the night and we can do whatever we want to. I’m in," Danny said. "Plus, you can almost see Katie’s house from there and mine is just up, over the hill, so if something does happen, we can leave."

"Awesome," I said. "Come on, Katie. Please say you’ll come. It won’t be as fun without you."

"Please Katie," Allison said.

"Yeah, please, Katie," Danny said.

"I don’t know, I’m scared and I’d have to ask my parents," she said.

Katie’s parents were notoriously overprotective. She had never been able to attend an after-school activity, sporting event, or even school dance. Religion was very important in her home and her parents saw every opportunity to "spread the Good Word."

"Just don’t tell them that Danny’s coming," Allison said.

"Oh my God, don’t do that," I said. "They’d never let you come."

"I’ll ask them, but they think you guys are a bad influence on…"

"What the hell? Why?" I asked.

"Well, I don’t know, maybe…"

"Because we don’t fucking go to church," I said.

"No shit, that’s messed up, Kate," Allison said.

"It’s not my fault," Katie cried. "I don’t say it, I love you guys."

"I know, Katie, it’s just that someday you’re gonna have to stand up to your parents," I said. "I mean, you’re 13, it’s time to grow up."

"I’ll ask, guys, okay? I just can’t make any promises," she said.

Two weeks later, we found out that Katie’s parents’ were going to let her go camping with us. They gave her a curfew of 9am.

It was finally the day of the big trip and we were all getting to go at our separate houses. Allison had called me on the phone at lest seven times, asking what she should bring. I finally told her to bring the essentials: hot dogs, marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers, just to get her to stop calling. I had no idea what to bring, the only other time I had gone camping was with my parents, and my Mom had packed everything. I acted like I was an expert, though, calling all the shots and making all the decisions. I packed myself one pair of socks, a pair of sweat pants, one tee shirt, one sweatshirt, and one pair of shorts. Most importantly, though, was the roll of toilet paper I had managed to steal from my parents’ bathroom.

About an hour before I left, my Mother informed me that I had to bring my little sister with me. She was, after all, only three years younger and was old enough to go camping. Needless to say, I was furious. I wanted this to be the one chance I got to spend away from my family. There was no use in fighting, if my sister couldn’t go, I couldn’t go

Allison and her mother finally arrived to drive us to Katie’s house and I told her that my sister, Pearl, had to go. Allison was really cool about the whole thing because she knew that I had no say in the matter. We just loaded the car and left for Katie’s. Allison’s mom dropped us off at Katie’s and we walked down to the camp site...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

"Hey, what took you guys so long?" Danny called from the site when he saw us. "I thought we were gonna get here at six in the morning?"

"Fuck off, Danny," I said. "It was hard enough getting here before noon."

"No shit, just shut up," Allison said.

We started unloading all our stuff and looked around, noticing Danny had brought all his weapons. He carried five knives of various sizes, a "blow gun" made out of bamboo and darts that he had stolen from his father’s dartboard. Danny also told everyone that he knew all sorts of martial arts, which was very far from the truth. The truth was that he carried all the weapons and lied about the martial arts because he was a very skinny, little, white boy. He was constantly in fights in school for shooting his mouth off and starting trouble with the wrong people. Allison and I always joked that he needed all of that stuff to fight off Katie incase she attacked.

Katie was famous for falling in love with any guy that talked to her and Dany was no exception. She had never had a boyfriend, although she had plenty of make believe boyfriends. Most kids at school picked on her because of her weight and her ability to get really mad and say stupid things. There were several times, at school, when she wore skin tight mini skirts or spandex pants. She also wore a lot of make-up and hairspray, more than any other girl in the eighth grade.

"Okay, I didn’t ask at my house, but I have to know, what’s she doing here?" Katie asked, referring to Pearl .

"Mom made me bring her…"

"Mom made me come," Pearl said.

"Are you serious?" I asked. "I can’t believe her. She told me that you asked to come and that I had to bring you. OH MY GOD! I can’t believe this shit."

"Jesus, get over it," Allison said. "We can still have a good time."

"Yeah, I guess," I said. "Let’s get the tent set up and make some food."

Allison was my best friend of all three. We had been friends for longer and had introduced Katie and Danny. Allison had an older brother and a sister, both of whom were very athletic. Allison was a bit of a disappointment in her family because she didn’t want to play sports. It hurt her a lot, but she hid it by buying tons of designer clothes and shoes.

After we got the tent set up, I looked around at the campsite and my friends. Katie was still complaining about how tired she was from the long hike to the campsite. She sat on a log, ogling Danny and going on and on. The brook that normally flowed steadily next to the campsite had dried up to a trickle. There was enough water, though, incase we needed any. Danny had set up his own teepee style tent near a tree.

"It’s so cool here," Allison said. "I’m glad we came."

"Me too, it’s gonna be fun," I said.

We had finally finished unpacking and Danny was trying to start a fire. I had put my sleeping bag in the middle of the tent because I was the tallest and I needed the extra room to put my feet outside the tent. I was worried about having enough room for all four girls because it was, technically, a two person tent. It was pretty big, though, so I thought it would work.

"Hey, what is that, Ali?" I asked.

Allison was pulling a long, flat box out of her bag and said, "My Ouija board. I thought it would be fun to play up here. Ya know, see if there really are any ghosts in the woods?"

"Cool idea," I said.

"Oh HELL no," Katie said. "I hate those things."

"It’ll be fine, Katie. Don’t worry so much," Danny said.

"If my dad knew that it was even here, he would kill me," Katie said.

"God, if he knew I was here, he would kill you," Danny countered.

"Katie, he won’t find out. We’re all the way up here," I said.

"Quit whining, Katie," Pearl said. "Who the hell is gonna tell him that you were playing with it, anyway?"

"Shut up, Pearl! Jesus, you’re no help at all," I said.

"It’s not even that, I don’t like ’em. They can open up a door to Hell," she said.

"Who the hell told you that?" Danny asked, laughing.

"My father."

"That’s a bunch of shit. It’s just a game," Allison said.

"It’s made by Milton Bradley, for Chrissakes," I said. "Don’t worry avout it, okay Katie? You don’t have to play."

"Fine, just promise you won’t tell my dad," she said.

"We promise," I said...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

So, we got out the Ouija board and Allison and I started to play. We messed around with it for a while before we gave up because we couldn’t make contact. All of us decided to sit around the fire and just talk and make dinner.

We ate our dinner, mostly raw because the fire just wasn’t hot enough and Allison and I decided to go into the tent to try the Ouija again. It was raining a little but Pearl , Danny, and Katie sat outside.

"Is there anyone here?" I asked the Ouija board at least five times before there was any movement.

"Who are we talking to?" Allison asked.

The movement stopped.

"Who are we talking to?" I asked.

"ME," it spelled out.

"Who is ’ME?’" I asked.

"YOU WILL DIE TONIGHT," it spelled out.

Allison and I exchanged nervous looks. Katie, Pearl , and Danny came into the tent.

"What does that mean?" I asked

"YOU WILL DIE TONIGHT."

"Who will die tonight?" I asked.

"ALL OF YOU. I WILL KILL YOU."

Suddenly a tree crashed behind the tent. We all jumped and Katie let out a small scream. The plastic planchette on the board turned and pointed directly at me. The wind outside the tent picked up and with that, and the rain, the fire went out, completely. Katie started to sob.

Both Allison and I started to laugh.

"What is so funny?" Katie asked, between sobs.

"You sound like the Cowardly Lion," I said, Allison and I still laughing, Pearl and Danny joining.

"It’s not funny. This is why I didn’t want to camp here," she said, crying harder.

"Okay, okay, Kate, I’m sorry," Allison said.

"Will you stop playing with that stupid board?" she asked.

"We just gotta close it out," I said.

Allison and I picked up the planchette.

"Good bye," I said.

The planchette started moving around the board in circles. Slowly at first, and gradually picking up speed until we could barely control it.

"What the hell is going on?" Allison cried out.

"I don’t know, it’s your board," I said.

The planchette continued to move rapidly. Then it suddenly stopped. It was silent in the tent, with the exception of the occasional sniffle from Katie. The only other sounds were the rain and the wind.

Just as the tension started to ease a bit, and everyone resumed breathing, we heard footsteps. Heavy, deliberate footsteps. They started quite a distance behind the tent and started getting closer and closer. We all looked at each other, waiting for something to happen when we heard something splash in the little pool in the brook outside the tent.

Katie screamed.

Allison and I threw the Ouija to the back of the tent.

Danny jerked forward, trying to look outside the tent, through the door.

Pearl looked behind her, at the side of the tent.

I said, "What the hell…."

Something hit the tent. Not hard, on the side nearest the brook. This time, everyone jumped.

"Oh my God," Allison said.

"Let’s get outta here," Katie said.

Danny stepped out of the tent and looked around. "I don’t see anything, guys."

I stepped out of the tent and looked toward the back of the tent. "I don’t…oh my God, look at that!" I whispered.

There was a dark, human figure standing about 50 yards behind the tent. It wasn’t moving, just watching us. "Do you think it sees us?" Danny asked.

"What? What is it?" Katie asked.

"Shhh…" Danny and I both said.

I moved toward Danny, closer to the opening of the tent. The figure moved the same direction as me.

"Of course it sees us," I said. "It’s watching us."

"What do you see?" Allison asked, sticking her head out of the tent...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

"Wait, Ali," I said. "There’s something there."

"Let’s get back in the tent," Danny said, starting to push me back into the tent.

As he did that, the figure started slowly moving toward us.

"Get in," he shouted. I saw the figure start moving toward us quickly before Danny pushed me into the tent, diving in behind me.

Danny reached up and zipped the tent closed. We heard footsteps stalking around the tent. The steps were very heavy and very deliberate. "What the hell is that?" Allison shouted.

I said, "I don’t know, it’s like a…"

"Dark, human figure," Danny said.

"What? What do you mean?" Pearl asked.

"There’s like a guy out there?" Katie asked.

"Yeah, I think, I don’t know," I said.

"All we could see were shadows," Danny said. "But there was definitely a human form to it."

Then, it was like someone was trying to reach through the tent, all four sides and the top, all at once. Everyone screamed and everyone jumped.

"Oh my God," Allison screamed.

"What is happening?" Katie cried.

Whenever a side was pushed in, whoever was sitting closest to that side jerked away.

"We have to get out of here," Allison said.

"There’s no way, that thing moves fast," I said.

"I wanna go home," Katie said, crying very hard now.

Suddenly, everything stopped and was quiet.

No one breathed. We all sat, huddled together, in the middle of the tent.

"Do you think it’s over?" I whispered.

"No way," Danny said. "It’s just messing with us."

We waited for something to happen and when nothing did, Danny finally moved to the door.

"What are YOU DOING?" Katie screamed, pushing him away. "You can’t go out there."

"I’m just gonna look to see what’s happening. If it’s still out there."

"No, no, no, you can’t," Katie said.

"We have to see, Kate," I said.

And with that, Danny opened up the zipper of the tent and stuck his head out. Very cautiously, he stepped the rest of the way out. "Jess, come out here," he said.

I slowly stepped out of the tent and looked around.

"I don’t see anything," I said. "Do you think…"

"No, no way," he said. "It’s still out there."

We made our way back into the tent.

"Was it still out there?" Pearl asked.

"We didn’t see it," Danny said.

"Do you think we should try to leave?" Allison asked.

"No, it’s still out there," Danny said.

"If you didn’t see it, maybe we have a chance…" Katie said.

"Yeah," Pearl said.

"No, it’s definitely still there," I said. "I can feel it watching us."

"What do you see?" Allison asked, sticking her head out of the tent...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

"Wait, Ali," I said. "There’s something there."

"Let’s get back in the tent," Danny said, starting to push me back into the tent.

As he did that, the figure started slowly moving toward us.

"Get in," he shouted. I saw the figure start moving toward us quickly before Danny pushed me into the tent, diving in behind me.

Danny reached up and zipped the tent closed. We heard footsteps stalking around the tent. The steps were very heavy and very deliberate. "What the hell is that?" Allison shouted.

I said, "I don’t know, it’s like a…"

"Dark, human figure," Danny said.

"What? What do you mean?" Pearl asked.

"There’s like a guy out there?" Katie asked.

"Yeah, I think, I don’t know," I said.

"All we could see were shadows," Danny said. "But there was definitely a human form to it."

Then, it was like someone was trying to reach through the tent, all four sides and the top, all at once. Everyone screamed and everyone jumped.

"Oh my God," Allison screamed.

"What is happening?" Katie cried.

Whenever a side was pushed in, whoever was sitting closest to that side jerked away.

"We have to get out of here," Allison said.

"There’s no way, that thing moves fast," I said.

"I wanna go home," Katie said, crying very hard now.

Suddenly, everything stopped and was quiet.

No one breathed. We all sat, huddled together, in the middle of the tent.

"Do you think it’s over?" I whispered.

"No way," Danny said. "It’s just messing with us."

We waited for something to happen and when nothing did, Danny finally moved to the door.

"What are YOU DOING?" Katie screamed, pushing him away. "You can’t go out there."

"I’m just gonna look to see what’s happening. If it’s still out there."

"No, no, no, you can’t," Katie said.

"We have to see, Kate," I said.

And with that, Danny opened up the zipper of the tent and stuck his head out. Very cautiously, he stepped the rest of the way out. "Jess, come out here," he said.

I slowly stepped out of the tent and looked around.

"I don’t see anything," I said. "Do you think…"

"No, no way," he said. "It’s still out there."

We made our way back into the tent.

"Was it still out there?" Pearl asked.

"We didn’t see it," Danny said.

"Do you think we should try to leave?" Allison asked.

"No, it’s still out there," Danny said.

"If you didn’t see it, maybe we have a chance…" Katie said.

"Yeah," Pearl said.

"No, it’s definitely still there," I said. "I can feel it watching us."

"What the hell does that mean, ’you can feel it?’" Allison asked.

"I don’t know, it’s just…" I said.

"I feel it, too," Danny said.

We waited in silence for something to happen. Virtually the only sound you could hear, besides the wind, was our hearts beating. The time seemed to creep by.

"I can’t sit here like this," Katie screamed.

"What do you think we should do?" Pearl asked.

"I don’t know, but I just don’t think we should stay here."

Something inside me flipped, "WHO ARE YOU? WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO US? DOES IT MAKE YOU STRONGER TO KNOW THAT YOU’RE PICKING ON KIDS?"

"Calm down, what’s that gonna prove?" Allison asked.

That’s when things changed. The world around me went dark. I saw tiny, white lights all around me. When I closed my eyes and opened them again, I was no longer in the tent. I was standing, facing the tent, about 200 feet away, close to Danny’s tent. I looked up and saw the Dark Figure behind

the tent. He could see me but was frightened by something and wouldn’t come closer. Next to me was a shadow. I couldn’t see what was casting the shadow or what the exact shape of the shadow was, but it was there...:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

I looked into the tent and things changed for me. I saw all my friends panicking. I looked closer. It was me. I tried to scream out to my friends to tell them I was okay, but no sound came out. I tried to run toward them but my legs felt like they were stuck in molasses. I looked at the Dark Figure and he had retreated backward. I looked at the Shadow and it had grown in size, it was now twice the size it was, which was originally about the size of a young boy. And it continued to grow. Soon, it was all around me and was spreading to the tent, where my friends were still huddled around me. It stopped growing when it reached the back of the tent, almost all the way to the Dark Figure. Suddenly, it felt as if I had been punched in the stomach.

I woke up in the tent again, gasping for air. "What the hell?" Allison said, immediately after I awoke.

"Oh my God, you guys are not going to believe me," I said.

"You scared the shit out of us," Katie said. "You are such an ass hole."

"No kidding," Pearl said. "What the hell happened?"

"I was standing outside the tent, like, watching you guys," I started.

"And you didn’t say anything?" Allison asked.

"I couldn’t, just listen." I said. "Everything was dark and then there were these little, white lights…"

"Angels," Katie said.

"Whatever," I said. "Anyway, I saw the Dark Figure. He was scared. He even backed off. There was this shadow next to me and when I first saw it, it was small, like of a kid or something."

"What the…" Danny interrupted.

"Shut up," I said. "Then it started getting bigger and bigger until it was all around like the tent and everything. I watched it. The Dark Figure backed up more and everything. Then, it was like I got hit in the stomach and I woke up here."

"What? How do you expect us to believe that?" Katie asked.

"Just watch," I stood and walked out of the tent. I was dizzy for a moment and stumbled but recovered. "See? Nothing’s going to happen."

They watched me for a moment, waiting for something to happen. When nothing did, Pearl came out.

"It’s different out here now," she said.

Danny stood and came out. "She’s right. The air feels different."

Allison came out. "It’s like it’s not as heavy."

Katie stayed in the tent. "I’m not coming out."

"Why not?" I asked.

"I don’t want to die. It said it was going to kill us."

"It can’t now," I said.

Katie waited a few seconds and then stood and, very slowly, walked out of the tent.

"See? It’s different," Danny said.

"Yeah, I think I feel it," Katie said.

Everyone looked around a little, breathing in the air. I looked toward the back of the tent and saw the Dark Figure. He was still watching us. He was still afraid. But he was also waiting for a moment where we let our guard down.

After a while, we settled into the tent (everyone, including Danny) and went to sleep for the night. None of us got much sleep. The Dark Figure made his presence known throughout the night. Each of us were kicked, repeatedly and things were thrown at our tent. And then there were the screams. I will never forget those screams as long as I live. I cannot even begin to describe the sound and do it justice. The best I can do is say that it was a human-inhuman sound like something being tortured and in immense pain.

We awoke the next morning to quite a scene. Katie was the first to wake up. She went out of the tent and began to scream at us.

"GUYS! Wake up! Get out here!."

All of us woke up and got out of the tent. All around us was wreckage. Danny’s tent had been shredded. All of our belongings were thrown around and destroyed. There were huge boot prints in some of our stuff and in the mud around the area. None of us could fit our feet into the prints. The fire place that we had made had been kicked around. Some of our clothes were thrown high into the trees and others were in the water. There were even some clothes that were even shredded like Danny’s tent. The only thing that hadn’t been harmed was out tent. But, the damage hadn’t been done to the tent, but to us.

"Was I the only one who got kicked in the night?" I asked.

"Hell no," Katie said. "I did, too."

"Check this out," Danny said, lifting his shirt, showing us his bruised ribs.

We all looked at our ribs and all our ribs were very bruised. Allison and I had the worst of it because we had slept on the outsides of the tent. My friends even told me I looked like I had a black eye forming.

We spent time cleaning up our campground. It took about an hour. Most of the time we were silent, just taking in the damage and clearing our minds of the night before. The only words spoken were when someone asked if something belonged to someone else. We were supposed to have a ride home, but we didn’t wait. We walked Katie and Danny to the ends of their driveways and said goodbye. Allison, Pearl , and I walked down the hill, over the highway, and down the road to my childhood home. Allison called her mother and soon, she too had gone home.

Over the next few months our friendships changed. Danny started hanging out with an older, rougher crowd. Over the years, he really got into drugs and in our senior year, he left town and we lost contact with him. Katie didn’t really change much, just became more involved with her church. She tried and tried to get Allison and I to join her. We always gave her an excuse. Allison and I were really the only ones who stayed in contact throughout our school years. We made a few mistakes, like most kids do, but we got through everything. In our senior year we also grew apart. We lost our friendship because of a boy. It’s kind of sad, looking back.

A couple years ago I went home to visit, living 600 miles away now. I heard that Katie had met and fallen in love with a married man. They lived together and, at that time, had three kids together. I ran into Allison. She had changed a lot. She had become a completely different person, opposite of what she had been when I knew her. Pearl and I live in North Carolina , now. We’re very close and each have little boys. I sometimes miss the friendship I had with Allison, Danny and Katie but that’s what happens when you grow up.