Noah grabbed his chore list from the basket and began looking over it to see what he needed to get from the market. "Okay, so I need to get 3 tomatoes, a watermelon, 3 cucumbers, and a chicken," he said to himself.
(I'm too lazy to write the part where he goes and gets the stuff and puts it away at home :p)
"Hey dad, I finished all of my chores for today!" Noah says stepping out of the kitchen and into the living room.
"That's good, Noah. You can go ahead and play with your friends, now, if you'd like," his father says.
"Yay! Thanks dad!" he says, waving and running back out the door. Soon, he gets to the river, where he sees his friends. "Hey guys, what do you wanna do today?"
"We should go check out the spooky crying well!" Simon, one of Noah's friends, says.
"No thanks, I want to be able to sleep tonight." Anna, Noah's other friend, complains.
"C'mon, it's going to be fine!"
"No, you idiot. There were cries coming from the well!"
"It's just an old tale that comes with every strange village in a forest."
"Really? Would you like to be part of those mysterious cries?"
The two kept arguing back and forth, until Noah finally cut in, saying "Seriously, you two, I think you can handle yourselves to not argue over something as simple as a well." They both look at Noah and mutter half-hearted apologies. "Good. Now, we can check out the well, but we'll leave as soon as something start going wrong, okay?" Both of them grumpily nod and Noah looks satisfied with himself. "Okay, guys, let's go!"
The group starts walking through the village, towards the well. Gentle clicks come from their shoes as they step on the stone pathway. After just a few more minutes of walking, they reach the well.
"Oh, look. Walk to the mysterious well and all of a sudden the animals stop chattering. That's not a bad sign at all," Anna says, sarcastic and slightly annoyed. Simon ignores her obvious hints that she believes the well is dangerous, and notices a thin layer of mist around it.
"Guys, look at the mist," Simon says. The other two notice the spooky, purplish mist trailing from the inside of the well. "So cool, right!" Noah gives a little shrug, unsure whether to think the fog cool or ominous. Anna disapprovingly scowls at Simon's statement. Noah walks closer to the well and runs his hand over the vines growing on it. The vines squirm from his touch and he pulls his hand away, wary of the well and it's cohabitants.
"Yeah, pretty sure we don't want to be here any longer," Anna says. She looks at the forest, and a sense of unease and dread comes to her. She feels the gazes of many, none of which were animal, yet not quite human. "Can we go now? I feel like some kind of... things watching us."
"C'mon, Anna, I'm sure it's just your nerves!" Simon says, with a slightly teasing tone. Anna shoots him an angry glare.
"Uh, actually, I agree with her," Noah says. He peers down the well, noticing that the water is black and murky, not just from lack of light.
"You two are just scaredy cats!" Simon mocks the two. Then, he looks up at the sky, realizing he and Anna would be late if they didn't leave. "C'mon Anna, it's getting late, we need to go," Simon says, grabbing Anna's arm and dragging her.
"Alright, bye Noah!" She says, waving as she's dragged away. Noah continues looking down into the well, oddly fascinated with the creepy feel. The darkening sky only adds to this. He tries leaning in to get a better look, and loses his balance. He desperately grabs at the well's edge, but it's covered in a thin layer of wet moss. His hands slip right off, and he falls into the inky water.
(1st person)
I start to flail my arms in panic, feeling the water envelop me like a heavy blanket. All that happens is I sink lower and lower. I begin worrying that I won't reach air it time, but just as I think I'll drown, I don't feel the same slow falling feeling. I realize I'm not in the water anymore, and thud onto solid ground. It hurts, but not enough to distract me from my situation. Where am I? It's so dark. The only light comes from small, white, glowing fishes in a stream of water. This whole place has an ominous feeling of impending doom. Faint whispers come from the walls. I try to ignore them, and start following the stream of fish.
Water drips from the ceiling, adding to the gently moving stream and whispers. I enjoy horror stories, but it's a lot less enjoyable when you're the victim. I continue walking until I notice that the dripping has stopped. I'm probably not under a source of water anymore. I hope this tunnel leads under the village, so someone can hear me, but it's unlikely. I'm too far from the surface to hear anything from it. No animal chatters, no footsteps. There's not even any tree roots. All the walking I've done leaves me tired, and I trip on my own feet. I hit the ground with a thud, and I feel fatigued as I try to sit up. I should've eaten, or at least drank, before going to my friends. I assumed we'd just hang out at one of their houses and eat there. I crawl towards the tunnel's wall and lean against it. I'm too tired to pay attention to what the whispers are saying, but they're louder now. The fish seem to glow brighter, hazy light surrounding them. I want to get up, keep walking, but I can't even lift my arms anymore. Eventually, I give in to sleep, imagining that the fishes are nightlights, and the whispers a soothing lullaby.
I awaken to a cold feeling on my ankle. Something is wrapped around it. Wait. My senses are still cloudy, but there's definitely something on my ankle. It's dragging me towards the stream. There's a large gathering of fish, and the whispering is so loud, I can barely hear the sound of my heart pounding. The whispers of tortured souls, calling for me to join them. I try keeping to the ground, but I'm dragged closer to the stream. My sock gets soaked in the cold water, and I thrash, absolutely DISGUSTED by the wet sock. I succeed in getting away, but the thing still had my sock and shoe. Good riddance, you can keep my soggy sock of sadness. I run away as fast as I can, ignoring the desperate whispers and the rocks poking my foot. My barefoot catches onto a rock, cutting it. I start slowing down, wincing in pain. Dirt and small bits of rock lodge into it. I don't want it to get infected, so I use the stream to clean the cut, even though every part of me says not to. As soon as I see all the muck come out, I get up, proceeding at a slower, more careful pace. I see a dim light from another source. Perhaps I'm finally near an exit. I hear the whispers again, now in the form of loud cries. The cries of the lost. Of those who couldn't get out. Shadowy hands leak through cracks in the wall, grabbing for a way out, but only getting air. I panic and start sprinting near the stream, occasionally ducking from the hands and jumping over rocks. The light grows brighter and I close my eyes.
It's completely quiet. No eerie whispers, no running water. Here I am. Back at the well. I stand for a few moments, in shock. Slowly, the forest comes back to life. Birds chirp as they wake from slumber, singing happily at the rising sun. Leaves rustle, animals prowling within. And the well? It looks completely normal. Perhaps a little overgrown with vines. I peer in again, and water sloshes. No strange fog, no inky water, no ominous feeling of impending doom. Just a normal well. As if it wasn't the places that had claimed the lives of many, leaving their spirits to roam in eternal unrest. Trying to phase through the roof of the tunnel, screaming for help. Yet it only comes out as whispers to all above it.
The Well
Începe de la început
