The Frozen Forest

Chapter 1 - The Frozen Forest

October 21, 2025, Friday, New York City....

Imagine yourself in a place where no one could hear, talk to, or hurt you. Imagine yourself in a glistening, cloudy, white beauty of land. Imagine yourself in a woodland of wonder, hope, and safety. Imagine yourself in a Frozen Forest.

My mother always told me that poem when I was a child and I was frustrated with life, especially when I was sick. Every time she told me that story, I felt safe and always wanted to visit the place. I remembered I asked her if the place was real and she said it only existed to those who are staunched to finding such a place according to her. Ever since dad died, mom began to become depressed. It slowly consumed her until one day she.... snapped.

I wish she was still here to tell me the poem, though things change and cannot be undone. In other words, I lay on the couch playing a game just silent and deep in thought while hearing the sounds of the game burst out from the TV speakers. I lay in the living room of the house living with four siblings, me being the second to eldest of brothers and sisters. I see my brother cooking dinner, which is ham and eggs while my two sisters are on their phones doing God knows what.

The family consist of two brothers and two sisters: the eldest being Roger, second eldest is me; third eldest is Diana; and the youngest is Lilly. Roger is twenty-six and has brown hair that looks like my father's with hazel eyes from my mother. Roger wears glasses because he recently started having blurry vision and was having trouble seeing as you can tell. I have black hair with dark brown eyes, apparently I look like my grandfather when he was younger, according to my mom, but I honestly see no resemblance. My sister, Diana, reminds me of mom because she was energetic and very humorous, although at times she doesn't really seem to act thirteen. Diana has wavy blonde hair like my mother with brown eyes, sometimes her looks confuse me with my mothers. Lilly is nine years old and can sometimes be an angel, yet a trouble maker. Lilly, unfortunately, didn't get to see her mom for too long because mom died when Lilly was five and ever since mom died she began to show signs of.... personality switches. Lilly has long brown hair with brilliant, blue eyes and this sometimes makes her look adorable for her age.

"Dinner time!" Roger exclaims out loud making it sound like the whole world could hear.

At dinner, we talked and talked and talked about whatever was on our mind like a normal family would do at dinner. After this, I finished my plate and asked to be excused from the table. My brother said yes, but to remain seated for a short amount of time.

Making his announcement, Roger said, "I have news about something," he said lightly.

"I'm getting a promotion!"

We all sat up in awe and questions arose from our faces. I sense something else coming up because usually when my brother gives news, there's always bad news.

"The problem is," he pauses briefly. "We have to stay at a hotel for a while."

I was right, what are the odds of there being a bad thing after some news?

We immediately start packing for a long two-month trip. I grab everything important: my toothbrush, clothes, things to entertain me, and a very beautiful stone that I was given by my grandmother when I was five.

We arrive after the six hour long drive to Tonawanda, New York. We find ourselves at the hotel we booked for our two-month 'field trip'. The hotel is named, Forest Inn & Hotel, which seems to have a logo of trees or woodland. We get set in our room 209, which has had stories of some oddities happening in this very room. Disregarding this, I unpack along with my siblings, the room is comprised of four dimensional red walls with one white wall, painted with a frozen, snowy, cloudy, white woodland. There was a note on a door that was locked with some numbers on it, which I neglect to read. I stared at the picture for quite a while until my brother asked, "What are you staring at?" breaking my daze.