Kill

The Cabin

The moment we pulled into the dirt driveway of our cabin, goosebumps rose on my arms, and my heartbeat quickened. Immediately, something didn't feel right about the place. Maybe it was how the foliage was so overgrown that it seemed to overtake the house, or that most of the windows were broken and boarded up. The wood making up the floor of the front porch had rotted out in some places, leaving gaping holes that I would have to be careful not to fall into later. The door was barely hanging onto it's hinges, and the house as a whole seemed depressed. Ten years ago it might have been quaint, even cozy, but now it was just melancholy and frankly, a little ominous.

Claudia turned off the car, but didn't get out, and instead looked over at me. She tried to hide her discomfort, but the way she tapped her fingers against the steering wheel gave it away; whatever had troubled me about the house made her anxious as well.

"It's got--character," Seth said from the back seat, breaking the silence.

I nod. "That's one way to say it."

"It's a little funky," Claudia agreed. "Lets check out the inside though. Maybe it'll surprise us."

She popped open her door and stepped outside, Seth and I following suit. The air was chilly  and the crunch of leaves under our shoes was deafening in the thick silence that hung over the cabin like a gloomy fog. The forest surrounding the house was eerily still, lacking even the small flutter of a bird's wings or the waving of tree branches in the wind. The closer we got to the cabin, the heavier my chest felt and the faster my heart raced. Something definitely wasn't right about this place, but Claudia and Seth didn't seemed bothered, and I didn't want to worry them.

The three of us stepped up to the porch and made our way to the front door, avoiding all the rotten areas. Inside, we pulled off our jackets and hung them on the antique coat rack by the door. An old faded couch was pushed up against one wall, and a vcr player on top of a small table was leaning against the other. Vcr tapes were littered all over the floor, and every surface was covered in a thick layer of dust. A small bookcase was set up in the corner, holding a few torn up books. The hardwood floor squeaked beneath our feet every time we shifted our weight, and no matter how many lamps we turned on, the edges of the room always stayed dim.

An opening to the left led to a kitchen that was just as eldritch as the last room. The concrete floor was cracked in some places, and the wooden cabinets were riddled with water damage. Faded beige wallpaper peeled off the wall, and the curtains above the chipped porcelain sink were tattered. Beside the dirty white refrigerator, a squeaky door opened up to a narrow flight of stairs.

At the top of the stairs were three doors leading to the bathroom and the two bedrooms. The bathroom mirror was damaged, just like everything else in this house, but the tile floor was oddly pristine as if it had been scrubbed clean before we arrived. As for the bedrooms, they were basically identical, containing only a rickety bed and a small dresser. One of them had a window, and Seth immediately claimed the room as his. I told him to enjoy having some mysterious bug fly in and lay eggs in his ear or something. His only response was a dramatic eye roll, and I decided not to voice the rest of my concerns.

~(+)~

The three of us headed back to the car. Seth helped me pull the bulky suitcase out of the trunk and maneuver it upstairs while Claudia drove to the nearest grocery store to pick up something for dinner. It took us about ten minutes for Seth and me to fully unpack, and another fifteen for us to clean off the kitchen countertops so Seth could prep dinner. By then, Claudia still wasn't back from the store, and I was beginning to worry. The sun was getting low in the sky, and the roads here were windy and narrow, not ideal for driving at night.

I was just about to pull out my phone and call her when I saw a flash of car headlights. I glanced over at Seth and saw that he was  rummaging through the vcr tapes scattered all over the living room floor, no doubt looking for something to watch. Since he was going to make dinner, I decided to exempt him from unpacking the groceries and headed outside myself to help Claudia carry in the food. It was darker than I had expected, and it took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust. When they did however, Claudia and the car were nowhere to be seen.

"Claudia," I called out. "Where are you?"

Suddenly, I heard a rustling in the trees behind me and I whirled around. Nothing was there.

"Claudia, this isn't funny."

Abruptly, the rustling sound stopped. I crept closer to the vegetation where the sound had seemed to be coming from. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and my heart thundered in my chest. I was leaning foreword, just about to peek behind the foliage when the porch lights turned on and I was blinded with it's intense brightness.

"Ruth, what the hell are you doing?"

Hi there. I'm ForkSquad. Also known as Face of Horror McCrusty Funk. Some people also refer to me as, "that Satan worshipping lesbian with scissors." You can call me whatever you want, be creative.

I hope you're enjoying my story. It's actually my first original work of fiction so if you could leave a comment telling me how I could improve, that would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading and I hope to see you in the next chapter.