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Halloween Part 4
a week ago
Each step hit the ground in rhythm, though he couldn’t hear it over the ragged sound of his own breathing. The road stretched ahead into darkness, the trees pressing in on both sides, their shadows alive with watching eyes. Every rustle felt like a needle pricking his back, each one a whisper from whatever darkness his flashlight couldn’t slay. The metal cuffs on his wrists were a cruel reminder of how dire his situation had become. Finally the black blur of motion, a clearing. Lapis saw it off to the side. Something other than trees. A building. The outline of a small gas station.
His legs carried him forward despite the fire in his lungs. The station had two pumps beneath a sagging canopy, nearly collapsed under its own decay. Moss and grass strangled everything in green. Nature had reclaimed it all. The pumps, the walls, even the air. The double doors were choked by roots thicker than his arm. Lapis collapsed on the front step, panting. Minutes passed... maybe more. His mind screamed to move, but his body refused.
He knew he couldn’t stay long. Never in one place for too long. The road itself felt like it had guided him here, but even that thought felt wrong. Still, he stood again, studying the overgrown doors. No way through. Circling the side, he found a window shattered but half-filled with roots. Carefully, he climbed up and over, paws brushing the damp vines as he slipped inside.
The interior was chaos. Shelves toppled and cracked, the floor split and green with weeds. It was a quiet, heavy ruin. He moved carefully, flashlight in hand. The front counter was mostly intact. He rifled through drawers. Pens, pencils, a stapler. Nothing useful. He sighed, setting his recorder on the counter, and pressed deeper into the dark. In the corner, a door marked EMPLOYEES ONLY. He grasped the knob. It turned, but something behind it blocked the way. He shoved. A crash answered him. Metallic, loud, followed by the scatter of small objects across the floor. He tried again. The resistance lessened. One last push, and the door burst open, sending him tumbling into a heap of pots and pans.
He caught himself on shaking arms, flashlight cutting through the mess. Rusted cookware, broken racks, and scattered boxes of food littered the ground. Someone had blocked this room off. The door behind him groaned, the debris scraping against it as it tried to swing shut. Each movement made the metal scream. He lifted the light again, surveying what remained of the staff lounge. Rusted counters, a destroyed microwave, a broken folding table with destroyed stackable school chairs. The walls flaked with mold. The roof sagged dangerously. Only graffiti was missing to complete the picture of abandonment.
He turned toward the back. Another door made of wood, cracked, half torn from its hinges. Something about it was off. Still, he searched the rest of the lounge until a small, intact closet caught his eye. The only untouched thing in the room. Even beauty hides dread. He turned the handle. The latch clicked. He opened the door just long enough to see—
A body. Tan uniform. Black pants. Built like a wall. Something black and fuzzy was attached to the man’s head. Blood oozed slowly from beneath it, tracing his chin before dripping down his shirt. It was moving.
Lapis slammed the door shut, heart hammering. Behind it came a low, strange noise. A kind of cricketing. He stumbled back, every instinct screaming to run. The image burned behind his eyelids. The worst part, he saw tools and untouched supplies of boxes. A particular tool on the racking, was pliers. He could use those pliers to cut free of his handcuffs. His thoughts raced. He knew where the anomaly was. He could use debris from the chairs as a weapon. But even thinking about fighting made his body lock up. He stayed still. Listening.
Behind the door, the anomaly chirred quietly, a distorted, rhythmic sound that almost resembled breathing. A flicker of movement. From beneath the door, a smear of motion. It was trying to crawl out. Lapis' sight was because of his flashlight. The flashlight, had shined down upon the anomaly. The beam hit it dead on, and the anomaly recoiled instantly, sizzling as it retreated into the dark. The smell was faintly burnt air.
He didn’t move. He set the flashlight on the floor, angling it toward the gap beneath the door. The light cut through the black, a fragile weapon against the unknown. The anomaly screeched high, broken, cutting in and out like static. The sound rose and fell, bending into something like agony. Then, suddenly, silence.
It stopped.
Lapis stood motionless, eyes wide. The quiet was worse than the noise. He lowered himself to the floor, peering under the door. Nothing. He scanned the corners with the light... No movement, no sound. Just the faint hum of his own pulse in his ears. He reached for the handle, every motion trembling. One deep breath and he pulled the door open. The closet held no anomaly. The roof vent hung open, its cover twisted and broken. The walls bore small dents and scrapes. Signs of where it had gone. The pliers he’d spotted earlier were still in one piece. He snatched them, backing up from the closet.
Falling to the ground he kept his flashlight in his lap. The pliers in his paws, as he began cutting the cuffs right down the middle of the chains.
Wow!!! Halloween is ALREADY around the corner? Oops... The story might need at least 2 more parts to finish up... And it takes a long time to write a part- So I started writing this part twisting the original idea. I want to make it seem nice, and make sense in the end still. I might just start writing that little things start working conveniently. Which is the opposite idea I had for practicing. I definitely shouldn't write when I'm feeling lazy- I noticed I start skipping my practice concepts too. I wanted to write out everything so I know how to add details and create more and more to really burn the idea of what's happening. So, we'll see..
I wanted to add some humor however when I read stories or listened to podcasts about scary stories- They never seemed to balance well, or it never ends well? Sometimes they add too much humor, and it derails the idea and sensation of the story. But... I kinda did anyway LOL. I forgot where, but I made a little hehe in this passage. I wanted to do it twice, but I only ended up writing 1 silly thing. Anyway... Lets hope I can do part 5 before or at least during Halloween day :D
*This was a reupload because I realized I accidently uploaded the rough draft LOL*
Thanks for the support and feedback during these btw <3 I love seeing it C:
His legs carried him forward despite the fire in his lungs. The station had two pumps beneath a sagging canopy, nearly collapsed under its own decay. Moss and grass strangled everything in green. Nature had reclaimed it all. The pumps, the walls, even the air. The double doors were choked by roots thicker than his arm. Lapis collapsed on the front step, panting. Minutes passed... maybe more. His mind screamed to move, but his body refused.
He knew he couldn’t stay long. Never in one place for too long. The road itself felt like it had guided him here, but even that thought felt wrong. Still, he stood again, studying the overgrown doors. No way through. Circling the side, he found a window shattered but half-filled with roots. Carefully, he climbed up and over, paws brushing the damp vines as he slipped inside.
The interior was chaos. Shelves toppled and cracked, the floor split and green with weeds. It was a quiet, heavy ruin. He moved carefully, flashlight in hand. The front counter was mostly intact. He rifled through drawers. Pens, pencils, a stapler. Nothing useful. He sighed, setting his recorder on the counter, and pressed deeper into the dark. In the corner, a door marked EMPLOYEES ONLY. He grasped the knob. It turned, but something behind it blocked the way. He shoved. A crash answered him. Metallic, loud, followed by the scatter of small objects across the floor. He tried again. The resistance lessened. One last push, and the door burst open, sending him tumbling into a heap of pots and pans.
He caught himself on shaking arms, flashlight cutting through the mess. Rusted cookware, broken racks, and scattered boxes of food littered the ground. Someone had blocked this room off. The door behind him groaned, the debris scraping against it as it tried to swing shut. Each movement made the metal scream. He lifted the light again, surveying what remained of the staff lounge. Rusted counters, a destroyed microwave, a broken folding table with destroyed stackable school chairs. The walls flaked with mold. The roof sagged dangerously. Only graffiti was missing to complete the picture of abandonment.
He turned toward the back. Another door made of wood, cracked, half torn from its hinges. Something about it was off. Still, he searched the rest of the lounge until a small, intact closet caught his eye. The only untouched thing in the room. Even beauty hides dread. He turned the handle. The latch clicked. He opened the door just long enough to see—
A body. Tan uniform. Black pants. Built like a wall. Something black and fuzzy was attached to the man’s head. Blood oozed slowly from beneath it, tracing his chin before dripping down his shirt. It was moving.
Lapis slammed the door shut, heart hammering. Behind it came a low, strange noise. A kind of cricketing. He stumbled back, every instinct screaming to run. The image burned behind his eyelids. The worst part, he saw tools and untouched supplies of boxes. A particular tool on the racking, was pliers. He could use those pliers to cut free of his handcuffs. His thoughts raced. He knew where the anomaly was. He could use debris from the chairs as a weapon. But even thinking about fighting made his body lock up. He stayed still. Listening.
Behind the door, the anomaly chirred quietly, a distorted, rhythmic sound that almost resembled breathing. A flicker of movement. From beneath the door, a smear of motion. It was trying to crawl out. Lapis' sight was because of his flashlight. The flashlight, had shined down upon the anomaly. The beam hit it dead on, and the anomaly recoiled instantly, sizzling as it retreated into the dark. The smell was faintly burnt air.
He didn’t move. He set the flashlight on the floor, angling it toward the gap beneath the door. The light cut through the black, a fragile weapon against the unknown. The anomaly screeched high, broken, cutting in and out like static. The sound rose and fell, bending into something like agony. Then, suddenly, silence.
It stopped.
Lapis stood motionless, eyes wide. The quiet was worse than the noise. He lowered himself to the floor, peering under the door. Nothing. He scanned the corners with the light... No movement, no sound. Just the faint hum of his own pulse in his ears. He reached for the handle, every motion trembling. One deep breath and he pulled the door open. The closet held no anomaly. The roof vent hung open, its cover twisted and broken. The walls bore small dents and scrapes. Signs of where it had gone. The pliers he’d spotted earlier were still in one piece. He snatched them, backing up from the closet.
Falling to the ground he kept his flashlight in his lap. The pliers in his paws, as he began cutting the cuffs right down the middle of the chains.
Wow!!! Halloween is ALREADY around the corner? Oops... The story might need at least 2 more parts to finish up... And it takes a long time to write a part- So I started writing this part twisting the original idea. I want to make it seem nice, and make sense in the end still. I might just start writing that little things start working conveniently. Which is the opposite idea I had for practicing. I definitely shouldn't write when I'm feeling lazy- I noticed I start skipping my practice concepts too. I wanted to write out everything so I know how to add details and create more and more to really burn the idea of what's happening. So, we'll see..
I wanted to add some humor however when I read stories or listened to podcasts about scary stories- They never seemed to balance well, or it never ends well? Sometimes they add too much humor, and it derails the idea and sensation of the story. But... I kinda did anyway LOL. I forgot where, but I made a little hehe in this passage. I wanted to do it twice, but I only ended up writing 1 silly thing. Anyway... Lets hope I can do part 5 before or at least during Halloween day :D
*This was a reupload because I realized I accidently uploaded the rough draft LOL*
Thanks for the support and feedback during these btw <3 I love seeing it C:
Let's hope I can do it in time
I'm glad you like it 👉👈 I've wanted to cut corners last night, and I thought "no!!! I cannot!" and started rewriting a few lines for more deets ✨️