Just Write: A Collection of Short Stories

Up the Hill, but Never Down Again

Prompt #1: Use the first line of a nursery rhyme as the first line of a dark narrative.

Jack and Jill went up the hill. Here's the thing though. They never actually came back down. Several months have passed, and though the villagers have looked high and low for them, they were never able to find them. Susan and Jared Alder––Jack and Jill's parents––to this day spend their afternoons searching for their children. At night, Susan cries herself to sleep in Jared's arms, regretting ever giving permission to her children to fetch water after sunset. The elders of the village always advised not to leave after sunset. There were beings that came out during that time that liked to cause havoc, especially when they came across a human being. It was best to stay indoors when the moon rose, shining its eerie light over the villagers' houses.

Although Susan knew it was not recommended to leave the house in the dark, the family needed water for Jared's sudden illness and Jack being the eldest son––always trying to make his father proud––said he'd gladly fetch water for his mother. Of course, Jill being so close to her brother meant she didn't want him to go alone in the dark after hearing stories from her grandparents. So she thought that it was best to accompany Jack up the hill. Had the family been able to wait, Susan would've sent her children in the morning, but as the minutes passed by she realized more and more that they needed water from the well, and they needed it now.

* * *

Jack

He hit the floor with a loud thud, the coolness of the metal floor easing the pain of the bruises outlining the left side of his jaw. Jill lay across from him sleeping. He muttered a little prayer of thanks. They hadn't been able to sleep a wink for the past several days. Or had it been weeks? He'd honestly lost track of how long he'd been stuck in this god forsaken place. Jill's lips were cracked and caked with dry blood because of the dryness in the air. They were both bruised and cut everywhere, courtesy of the monsters that captured them. He closed his eyes still remembering the day he had climbed the hill to fetch some water for his mother.

The village had several wells planted in the ground, but unfortunately where Jack's family resided, the only closest well was past one of the hills. Usually they would head out as a family before the sun got too high, to bring back as many pails of water as they could for the day––or if they were lucky, two days. After all, they needed to drink, cook and bathe with that water. The day their father caught a terrible fever, was the one time they had hoped the water would have lasted two days instead of one. But him being sick meant they needed much more water for him to drink, and for their mother to use for warm compresses. They were desperate. And although the elders advised against going out after dark, both Jack's mother and Jack himself concluded they needed to grab water that night. If only Jack had convinced Jill to stay back home. He'd never forgive himself for letting her come along. But Jill was persistent and wanted to lend a helping hand, so in the end she came with him.

The walk usually took thirty minutes both ways, but navigating through the night with only a small lantern had extended their journey a bit more. It was only when they got to the top of the hill that they started hearing noises. Shuffling footsteps coming from a few metres away. And even when both Jack and Jill would move further away, the more they moved, the louder the sounds would get. It didn't seem to matter what direction they went. They seemed to be surrounded. Then suddenly the sounds stopped. That was a relief.

Jack lowered the bucket into the well, and then suddenly heard a scream. It's not the type of scream you hear when you see a spider, and definitely not the shriek of excitement you have when you win a game. It's the type of scream that any older sibling would be terrified to hear. Jack spun around, watching as a bag went over Jill's head, her hands being held back by two tall, bulky beings. He didn't get a chance to examine further because a burlap sack was thrown over his head as well, and just like blowing out a single candle in a windowless room, everything became very dark.