October 31st, 2013 at 2:15pm
Esther Park (deep woods)
"So, you don't remember their faces?"
Josh walked through the abundance of tall oak and pine trees, the phantom at his side. Tyler is only a few inches taller than Josh, but his black stained hands, arms, and neck, his blunt expression, and those red eyes, made Josh feel intimidated. (And must I remind you of what he's capable of?)
"No; it was all too dark...either that, or I just don't want to remember," Tyler said, looking down at his feet in some shame. josh frown, but stayed quiet. The dead autumn leaves crunched beneath their feet, making the silence at least a bit bearable. Josh sighed, "Don't worry. We'll still find out who they are." Tyler only nodded.
The wind whistled as it blew against the trees, making its leaves rustle and ruffle. The afternoon was quiet and peaceful, Josh never thought he'd feel so at peace before, it was a rarity. It truly was a good day after all; and it was his birthday, which is never a good day.
"Can I ask you something?" Tyler asked, his voice quiet, almost not breaking the silence. Josh looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Um, yeah, sure..."
"Why don't you celebrate your birthday anymore? Give me an honest answer."
Josh swallowed hard. "An honest answer? Like, honest to God?"
"Honest to God, yes," Tyler chuckled. Josh looked down at his black Converse's, as they stepped over piles of dead leaves and branches, making scrunching and cracking sounds. A gale-like wind blew past them, threatening to knock them over. Josh shivered and rubbed his arms through his jacket for warmth. Tyler frowned at this, because he felt nothing, and at his silence. "You don't need to tell me...I won't force you to," he said, breaking the painful silence.
Josh let out a sigh of relief and nodded. "Thank you. I will tell you—at some point. Just—Just not now." Tyler nodded in understanding. "I understand. Tell me when you're ready." With that, the two kept walking deeper into the further and farther from society in peaceful silence.
Oddly, yes, Josh felt at peace next to the phantom, but something still bothered him, though, he'd never admit it or ask the phantom about it. Is he just using me for his own purposes? If we're done with this will he continue tormenting me, or will something else happen? Why all of a sudden is he acting this way with me? Was he always like this? Will he kill me? God, I don't know anything anymore, all these questions swarmed through Josh's mind. This is all that bothered—these questions nudging at him, but he would never ask them in fear of what the phantom might do.
Soon, they were so deep in the forest, that all there was were oak and pine trees, and nothing more. It was eerily quiet with only the sounds of the wind shaking the now dying and those still alive trees, making their leaves and branches fall because of its strong force. Crows squawked, and flew from tree to tree. Their horrid sounds made Josh slightly uneasy.
Josh had always seen crows as creatures of evil, but sometimes they were his companions. When he was smaller, he had a pet crow, believe it or not. He was a secret, Josh's first secret, and only his to keep. But when his grandfather found him in the backyard, petting the black-feathered creature, he shot the bird on the spot. Josh cried for days. He never understood why his own grandfather had done that, but then again, his grandfather was a vile old man.
The crow and the squawking of the devil-birds weren't the only thing that was making Josh uneasy. It was the voices. They were back, somehow, when Tyler had promised him that he'd made them stop. But here they were, whispering things in languages that Josh didn't understand. His heartbeat sped up as they kept walking. The voices were intensifying as they kept walking.
This was some kind of sign, it had to be. Just like back in his grandparents' house when he was doing his research. Josh quickened his pace.
Tyler looked at him questioningly and raised his eyebrows at him. "Where are you going? Why the sudden change in pace?" He asked, following Josh. Josh just shook his head and kept walking, almost ignoring Tyler. But Tyler didn't mind, he just followed.
The voices were growing considerable loud, to the pint were Josh thought he would burst into tears and his ears bled. Instead he tolerate it until they stopped all of a sudden. And when they did, Josh and Tyler were standing side by side in a clearing, in front of an abandoned cabin. "In...side...Inside...", a voice whispered into Josh's ear, making him shudder.
"We—We need to go inside," Josh said, pointing at the cabin with his index finger, and turning his head to look at Tyler. Tyler's expression was a mix of shock an confusion. "What? Josh—" Tyler couldn't finish his sentence, because Josh was already making his way to the freakish cabin."Josh!" Tyler ran after him, but didn't stop him, seeing the determined—yet scared—look on his face. He only sighed and followed along.
Tyler had to help Josh break down the rotting wooden door, which was strangely locked by a now rusted chain and lock. Josh and Tyler were both quite shocked at this. Now, they expected anything to be inside. Except the stench of rotting, dead meat. It smelled like literal death inside. Josh gagged, and pulled the neck of his shirt over his nose.
Tyler felt uneasy inside the cabin. The heavily locked door, the stench of pure death...it was all too unsettling, yet obvious of what was going on.
They searched through the cabin, but found nothing of interest.
It wasn't until Josh went into the last room they hadn't inspected, when things truly got interesting.
Josh walked carefully inside, paying close attention to where he stepped. Then, he felt it. One of the floor boards had rise, as if something were underneath. "Tyler! I think I found something." The phantom walked into the room quickly, and stared down at the rising floor board. "I think there something underneath," Josh said. Tyler nodded. "Yeah, I see it."
Tyler crouched down and grabbed one of the floor board's loose edges and pulled. He kept pulling at it, but it wouldn't budge. He kept pulling and pulling and pulling, and finally, it came off with a snap!
Josh's eyes widened like saucers, his breath hitched, and he gagged in disgust. Tyler's eyes were even wider than Josh's, and he felt something that he'd never felt before after his death. Sadness.
a/n: hey!!! missed me?
sorry if i haven't updated in so long! school's been a pain in the butt lately, but i'm here now! sorry for any typos btw hope u guys enjoyed!! love y'all and remember to comment and vote! :)
