I don’t know what compelled me to remember what happened that night. I guess it was that I had to drive by the forest every day, and that I had plenty of time to think before I got to work. We had a lot of fun, you and I. As children, we were always told to stay out of the forest by our parents, as they feared we would get lost and never be found again. I now understand why they were so worried. It was dark, and the forest stretched for miles past our tiny homes. I try to remember what happened on that day…
It was a warm, mid-summer day in Texas. The sun was blazing and you could see the heat coming from the sidewalk. We lived about a mile apart, but in Texas heat, it felt like 5. We always rode our bikes back and forth, begging our mothers to let us sleep over or to just play around for awhile. “Alright, but don’t go near the forest” were words we hear often. As soon as their backs were turned, we would sneak off with some kind of new game. You were always good at making up new games, Will.
“Shane, I thought of a completely new game to play.” I looked at you, with your shaggy hair and clothes that seemed too big. You were always the mischievous one, finding some way to get us in trouble. “What is it this time, Will?” I sighed and rested my head on my hand. “We’re not going to get in trouble again, are we?” You shook your head, grinning your stupid grin “Of course not! Why would we? Besides, it’s just like hide-and-seek.” I stood up and sighed once more. I could never resist going along with your crazy antics, and you knew it too. I agreed to play your game with you. “So, what’s it called?”
“It’s called ‘Let’s play dead.’” I shudder when I think of it now. “What do you have to do?” You looked at me like I was stupid. “Simple, you just run into the forest and hide, lie down and close your eyes. And when I find you, it’s your turn!” I always wondered how you came up with these ideas. “Alright,” I said “just don’t pick a hard place for me to find you.” You nodded, still grinning. “I don’t make any promise!”
And so I went, trying to find a decent place to hide. The trees were tall, and the leaves spread far, giving us plenty of shade. I wondered if I could hide in a tree and lay on a limb, but I’d be afraid of falling off. As I continued to walk, I stumbled upon a tree that seemed a bit hollow. “It must have been a fox’s home” I thought to myself. I was barely able to squeeze myself in, but I managed. I did what you told me, and closed my eyes as I lay there. After about 5 minutes, I heard something moving around where I was. My heart’s pace quickened as I thought about how easily I must have been found. I kept my eyes shut as I heard the noise get closer, and I was prepared for you to get me.
But it didn’t happen. Whatever it was that found me, it wasn’t you. It breathed heavily and sniffed around me. I was too scared to do anything, not like I could have. It must have thought I was dead, so it quickly moved on. After a minute or so, I poked my head out, wondering if I would see a Yeti or a Bear. As soon as I did, I nearly had a heart attack as I saw you standing right in front of me. “Gosh, didn’t I tell you that you had to lie down and keep your eyes closed?” I nodded but didn’t say anything. You smiled and pat me on the back. “Well, it’s your turn. Count to 50 and start looking for me.” I nodded again, and closed my eyes and counted.
“1, 2, 3, 4…” I counted slowly, my heart slowing down as I did. It calmed me, and as soon as I reached 50, I began my hunt for you. “Will! Will?” I looked for over an hour. It was getting dark, and I got scared and ran home, telling my parents that I didn’t know where you were. They called the police and they arrived after 10 minutes. A rescue team had been sent in. What they came back wasn’t a bright young boy, but lumps of dripping red cloth. They told us you had been mauled by some kind of animal. I wanted to tell them about the animal that had been near me, but I got too scared, so I kept my mouth shut.
We had a funeral for you 2 weeks later. Your parents decided to have you be ashes, as they would rather have that than a dismembered body in a casket. I spent the next few months depressed, still in shock. I had lost a friend; your parents had lost a son. It took me over a year to finally recover from it, but even then I was still a mess. I made it through the rest of middle school, high school and ended up graduating at the top of my class. I now have a beautiful wife, and we’re expecting a baby soon. I decided to name him after you.
To this day, I don’t know what happened to you. But that is why I am going back now. To the forest we used to play in. Most of it is cut down now, the space used to make way for new homes, but there are still plenty of woods left. I get out of my car, taking my video camera. I record my walk through it and spend several days there, trying to see if I can find anything. I take notes of local animals and see if there is anything that could have killed you. After a few weeks, I almost give up.
I decide to go in without my gear this time. I find my old house, currently occupied with a stingy old lady. I go through the little places we would be, and keep walking. I eventually stumbled upon the tree I had been in. I get on my knees and examine it. It hasn’t seemed to change one bit. I don’t know why, but I lie down in front of it, closing my eyes. I relaxed, and almost fell asleep. Almost.
As I lay there, I hear something moving around me. I sit up, alert to everything around me. I look around, but there doesn’t seem to be anything. “Must have been a fox or something…” I sigh and lie back down, closing my eyes. After about a minute, the movement starts again, but closer. I wait until I hear the breathing until I open my eyes. As I do, I see a large figure, obviously not any animal or human. I could only see a silhouette, but its eyes were white as snow and as big as my fist.
We stared at each other for what seemed forever, and it slowly smiled a sick smile. Its teeth were thin, but long and sharp. It had curved, pointed ears, sticking out about 5 inches from its head. Its arms or legs were as wide as the tree trunk, and ended what looked like claws instead of hands. As its mouth opened wider and wider, I heard one last thing before my death.
“I found you.”
