Short Horror Stories

Alleyway

The cool night air drifted around Jess and Alex as they ventured through the city streets. All was silent except for the occasional cry of an owl or misplaced footstep. A footstep that occasionally didn't belong to the pair. Scarce moonlight illuminated the sidewalks and alleyways as they came across an alley. They both looked at the never-ending passage, shuffling from side to side and exchanging wary glances. Finally, Jess broke the silence.

"Should we go down?" She asked, her voice having a trembling undertone. Alex, meanwhile, was standing still and rigid but upon further inspection, his palms were clammy with sweat.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I guess..." replied Alex. His voice trailed off toward the end as he started to shuffle a bit. Jess shifted her glance back to the pitch-black space that looked like the gaping mouth of something waiting to attack if they walked in. Summoning the remaining courage she still had, she straightened and took a deep breath, glancing at her companion. They slowly started to inch their way into the gloomy labyrinth before them. Silence crept onto them as they continued, their breathing becoming sharper and quicker. The normally steady thump of Jess's heartbeat started to quicken, becoming like the flutter of a bluebird's wings. They started to trip on small uneven spots of the stingily paved ground, hearts stopping at the rustle of a rat picking through forest-green dumpsters or the flutter of a bat's wings above them.

The alleyway seemed to go on forever in the dark of night, the moonlight fading above them as towering structures reminiscent of giants towered above them, covering the only open space above them. It was then that they considered turning back. Who knows what could lurk in a dark, foreboding space like this? A million different options started to inhabit Jess's mind, while Alex tried to avoid thinking at all.

"Are you sure you want to keep going?" Asked Jess. Her nervous shifting had become pacing as she fidgeted with her hands. She did not attempt hiding it, unlike Alex who was rigid and had a deadpan expression plastered onto his face.

"Why not? It's not like anything's back here, right? It's just a harmless alleyway. I thought you came out here for adventure, anyway. Well, here it is," he reasoned. She swallowed nervously.

"Monsters aren't reserved for fairy tales. There are plenty of bad things that can happen in the real world," she muttered.

"Don't tell me you're backing out now!"

"It's just a stupid alley, Alex! I'm going back, whether you come or not," she snapped. Jess turned on her heel and stomped the other way, nearly falling over in her rage. Alex just looked after her, debating if he should follow. It's not like he would be able to keep up his act any longer. Jess wasn't interested.

He turned at looked back into the looming darkness, his gaze determined. Someone had to explore this. He supposed this person would have to be him.

***

As he continued, the spurt of confidence he had failed him. He started to turn around. This was stupid. Jess was right.

But as he turned, he saw a strange tall, lanky figure staring down at him with dead eyes and sharp claws that were lifted right above his head.