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“Come on! What are you, scared?” Soren teasingly said, his slender arms poking at Charlie lightly. “I’m not scared, smooth brain!” Charlie shot back, her blue eyes glaring into the other’s soul. Classic death stare. “Then go in the forest! There aren’t any monsters, you know!” Eli exclaimed before he used his hands to mimic a singular large fang, growling like Charlie’s parents had described when telling the story of what they called “it”. It still gave her chills today. “Alright, fine! But you’re paying me $200!” Charlie yelled, anger swirling in her voice like a whirlpool. She stormed out of the safety of her home, towards the ominous forest where nobody escaped. The walk was short and overflowing with an eerie, spine-chilling tension Charlie couldn’t explain. It was almost familiar to her. The cold pricked at her skin and soul as she reached the beginning of the forest, its depths looming over her. Birch trees were everywhere like the forest had all eyes on her. “Just go in already!” Soren groaned, lightly shoving Charlie closer to the inky depths of the woods. The feeling of being watched had intensified. The trees stared at her unblinkingly, as if its stare were to falter by even the slightest margin she would disappear forever. Her stomach sunk to her colon as she entered the foggy mist that covered the ominous woods. The trees towered over her, the birch trees inhabiting the woods staring at her with it’s “eyes” as if she were its prey. Her stomach sunk even further (If that was possible) as she continued walking further into the forest. She felt as if she were being hunted, her gut screaming at her desperately to run. To go as fast as she could and as far away as she could from the woods. From her doom. She ignored the desperate cries of her instincts, red, orange, yellow, and purple leaves crunching softly under her brown boots as she continued walking deeper and deeper into the forest. The woods seemed to be shifting, one moment a tree was in one spot, and then a different one the moment her gaze was unoccupied from the spot it was in. Her gut was still screaming for her to run, to escape her imminent doom. She only ignored its pleas for salvation, trudging deeper into the depths of the forest. Sundown approached, the lighting beginning to dim as the sun kissed the edge of the horizon. The white birch trees looked even more like they had eyes on them now, Charlie having to squint to see everything properly. The trees gazed at her without blinking once, sending eerie chills down her spine. Charlie didn’t notice the path beneath her feet fading, now completely surrounded by the trees that stalked her like prey. She began to see splotches of a substance darker than the wood, It seemed sticky. The number of appearances it made on the trees greatly increased the more she strode into the forest's depths. Reaching out to one with a cautious hand, Charlie touched the substance. It was thick and moist, some of it sticking to her fingers like caramel. She held up her fingers to the dimming sunlight. She tried her best not to scream. Blood was spread across her fingers, the sickeningly deep scarlet shimmering in the pink-hued light of the horizon. The trees stared at her, their pure white bark stained with blood.
She heard a rustle behind her, her body instinctively whirling around as her eyes searched for the source of the noise. She saw a faint shadowy figure hiding in the foliage, its body blending with the oranges, reds, purples, and yellows of the fall leaves. Taking her chances, she pushed off of the tree she was leaning against with a burst of strength from her quickly increasing adrenaline. She heard the shadowy figure let a deep growl escape from its throat, the bloodthirsty monster bursting from its hiding spot. It gave chase for her blood, for her flesh. Charlie’s legs were already screaming for an end to this game of cat and mouse, her brain too preoccupied with running for her life to listen to the pleas of her body. Charlie pumped her legs faster, pushing her body to its limit and beyond. She panted heavily, hearing the figure crunch the leaves behind her. She focused, pumping her legs in quick and far strides. The tree canopy above her was only a blur of orange as she continued running for her life.
And yet, she was still too slow.
Just as she reached the end of the forest’s foggy mists, she felt a clawed hand snatch her back by her hair. Nobody heard her shrieks and cries of pain, her last breaths taken alone.
“Charlie?” Soren called, stepping further into the woods.
Two children were filed as missing that very same night, their bodies left undiscovered in the forest where they died.