Curse of the Oak

Chapter Six

Des stared at the blank sheet of paper. It had been over thirty minutes of drafting, but her paper was no more than a bunch of lines that had been erased and written over more times than she could count. At first, she thought of discussing some of the historical values of the forest, dating back to before the town was established, which lead her to connect it to as it was now. But something just didn't feel right. It was the safe idea, the safe pathway to an A on the paper, but something made her hesitate. She didn't feel like she was uncovering anything more than what was already known about the forest. Then her mind drifted to the forest increasing the town's tourist attraction, making it a surge for the town's economy.

Although, none of it felt right.

Even after reading through many books about the legend of Herne, and learning more about the man, nothing was clicking. The term "writer's block" had officially planted itself into Des.

She threw her pencil across the table, slamming her elbows on the surface. Des started rubbing her temples, wanting the headache that had formed after her hallucination to go away. She still couldn't get the figure out of her mind. It was stuck there, roaming around in her brain. She peered over at Griffin who was lounging back in a chair. His thumb swiping left and right on the screen of his phone.

"You know, Kat said this was a group project," Des informed him, frustrated with his lack of aid.

"And what better way to help the group than too not help and sit here quietly," Griffin replied, not bothering to look back at her, continuing swiping his thumb.

Des agreed that he had a point there. Griffin didn't like school.

Never has.

Never will.

And his efforts and grades were a prime example of his views. Making straight Cs was his primary goal, and he succeeded except when he received a B in math and he had a complete meltdown, and then went as far as bribing the old teacher for a lower grade. Money, trips, and even the family boat. But the teacher didn't flinch. He stood his ground, forcing Griffin to accept his grade.

Since then, Griffin learned to make sure his grades were low Cs, in order to keep his track record clean. Des thought it was ridiculous that Griffin was wanting to just be an average student. She even tried talking to him about it, informing him of college opportunities. Although, Griffin never wanted to go to college. He thought that the academic institutions of paying to go to school was a fraud from the government. Colleges should be available to anyone who would like to pursue a career beyond their high school years.

"Can you at least help me bounce around some ideas?" Des asked, throwing herself back in her chair to join Griffin, staring at the pointless ceiling above. "I'm drawing a blank."

"I'll try," Griffin replied, he eyes finally coming up to meet hers. "However, I can't make any promises."

Leaning forward, Griffin slipped his phone in his pocket and following Des's gaze above him. Another five minutes went by, both friends not saying anything. Just staring at the empty canvas of life above them.

"What about playing around with the idea of bigfoot living in the forest," Griffin suggested, pulling his gaze from the ceiling. "Everyone says that he exists."

Des looked at him, giving him a puzzling look.

"Big foot?" she asked sarcastically. "Are you serious?"

"Serial killer serious," Griffin replied excited about it, leaning forward in his chair.

"That has got to be the stupidest idea I've ever heard come out of your mouth," Des laughed. "Big foot doesn't live in our forest! He supposedly lives in the Appalachian Mountains!"