The Girl Who Ran, The Forest That Waits

II

"THE STORY"

Mr. Veloso's POV

As I tread the hall alongside the students on this first day of school, a distant echo of my own youthful adventure's flickers in my mind. Compared to theirs, mine were far more thrilling, more... alive. Then, just outside a classroom, a crumpled paper taunts my eye. "Pick that up," I warn, my voice gruff, "or bear the consequences." A chuckle rumbles from the offender. "Mr. Veloso! Fancy seeing you here," he quips while looking at my ID, sauntering inside. "Join me," I say, the sarcasm dripping like honey. "It's time I shared a tale, one that reshaped my view of nature."

The room erupts in a flurry of settling bodies, papers rustling into place. Moments ago, it was a battlefield of discarded wrappers and crumpled notes. Now, a façade of order. "Good Morning, Class. I am Mr. Veloso. I'll be your culture adviser this semester." I greeted them. "Good morning, Sir Veloso," they sing in practiced unison, "God loves you as we do." "And you," I reply, the bitterness clinging to my smile. "Take your seats." "Thank you, Sir!" echoes back, laced with a faint tinge of insincerity.

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," I ask, eyes scanning the rows of bored faces. A few hands hesitantly rise, the gesture more rote than engaged. "Does anyone else know this saying?" My question hangs in the air, met only by the creak of a windowpane.

Suddenly, a voice breaks the silence. "Sir, my mother taught me something similar," A student says, her voice barely a whisper. "She said we must respect nature, or it will disrespect us in ways we can't imagine." A scoff erupts from one corner, followed by a ripple of laughter. The joke, it seems, is on Sophia. My jaw clenches. Laughter like theirs... I've heard it before, echoing from the depths of that cursed forest...

"Silence!" I bellow, the room snapping to attention. "May I know your name, young lady?" I asked. "Sophia Santos, Sir" She answered. In a sudden, a familiar name I remembered, perhaps a name I once knew to be someone I once was fond with. "Do you, the mocking one, have a name?" "Mark Evans, Sir," he mumbles, shrinking under my gaze.

"Well, Mark Evans, Sophia spoke truth. Listen well, for this story I weave will twist your expectations, send shivers down your spines, and perhaps, just perhaps, alter your perception of the wilderness we so carelessly ignore." My voice takes on a hushed tone, drawing them in. "This is the tale of two girls, Sophie and Joyce, and how their disregard for nature's harmony intertwined their lives with a chilling supernatural web. Prepare yourselves, for this is a journey into the heart of darkness, where respect and fear collide."

Sophie's POV

As I successfully emerged from that hellish forest, my immediate thought was to share my experience with the police. I knew they would likely dismiss it as a crazy story-I didn't even expect them to believe me. However, this was a desperate attempt to save my best friend, whom I had left in that nightmarish place. I rushed to the nearest police station and provided them with detailed information, holding nothing back. I saw their faces, attentively listening to my story, which ignited a flicker of hope within me. That hope, however, was extinguished when they suddenly burst into laughter, except for one officer at the back who had been listening in secret but left immediately after the laughter.

"Kid, do us a favor and stop watching too much Scooby-Doo or any cartoon horror animations. They're not real, and you're just being delusional," teased one officer. "Me? Delusional?" I fumed internally, avoiding any disrespect as I was still wearing my ID. "Please, officer, I beg you. My friend's out there, waiting to be saved. Please, I need your help," I pleaded with them.

"Okay, kid, do you want to know why it's hard for us to believe that cartoonish story of yours? Come on, let's go outside," an officer said while walking out. "Look at that forest you told us your friend is 'trapped' in. The forest you talk about doesn't exist," the officer declared, pointing a finger. "No, I swear it's just there. I just went there; I was there. What..." I stammered in confusion.