"Hey Ellie," James said hesitantly.
"Do you really believe in all that horror movie stuff?"
I paused, considering his question carefully.
"Well, think about our situation. We're out in the middle of nowhere with no cell service or way to contact anyone. And shouldn't there be a teacher or supervisor from our school with us? It seems really strange that no one has pointed that out. I know I can get carried away sometimes, but this just doesn't feel right to me."
"Yeah, I get what you mean," James replied, then he stopped passing me the dishes.
His voice shaking slightly. "But I'm not talking about having some sixth sense. I talking about using your eyes , no wait I take that back. Whatever you do, don't look out the window right now. Keep your head down."
Confusion clouded my mind as I noticed
James wasn't actually passing me any dishes like we had been doing. His voice trembled with fear. Could it be...?
A chill ran down my spine. What was happening? I'm usually the type to react and fight, not freeze up. But this time, shock overwhelmed me.
It felt like unseen eyes were fixated on me. Sweat beaded on my forehead as my heart raced. Should I try to run? Could I defend myself if needed? James stayed silent.
Could I trust him? Was this some sort of prank? I didn't have answers, but my gut told me something was very wrong.
My body moved on its own, an strange urge to face whatever was out that window.
Against my better judgment, I lifted my chin and locked eyes with the most disturbing sight. It had blank white eyes, from the sclera to the pupils, and a ghostly pale face with a haunting grin. Its teeth were perfectly straight an unnatural brilliant white. It was just...staring at me through the window, smiling.
On instinct, I grabbed the nearest knife from the drying rack, clutching it defensively.
"James, what the hell is that thing?" I
demanded, my voice dripping with fear.
Doubting myself was my nature, but I needed to know if we were facing a real threat.
"Stay back. Just walk backwards slowly. Creep backwards, okay?" James urged, his own fear evident.
I followed his lead, knife gripped tightly, carefully retreating step-by-step.
James mirrored me. That ghastly face never blinked, and some primal intuition told me I dared not blink either. It was like our bodies knew blinking could mean something catastrophic.
The signals coursing through me were overwhelming.
"Should we call for help?" I whispered, , but James didn't respond, rooted in place as we backed away.
What I witnessed next chilled me to the bone. James' dark hair began falling out at a horrifying speed. His warm hazel skin transformed into that same ghostly pale as the creature in the window.
If that wasn't terrifying enough, James' neck started twitching and contorting in violent, inhuman ways. Panicking, I pleaded with him to stop.
"James, please, I don't like this! James, stop!" But it was too late.
Suddenly, my own retreat halted, not by any solid barrier, but by something soft and squishy behind me.
I refused to turn, remembering the second pale figure I'd seen reflected next to that grinning face. Another one of those...things, wearing Maddie's clothes, was right behind me. Long, spindly fingers grasped my shoulder, their unnatural length making my skin crawl. I begged for this to be just a nightmare. But some horrific part of me knew this was real.
Slowly, dreadfully, I turned to face the latest horror. The table was streaked crimson, and the blank, colorless figures that had been my friends stared lifelessly.
The elongated hands of this creature that replaced maddie began to move slowly towards my throat, at first it was gentle but soon applying more and more pressure. I felt the pain of being alone and terror, and the physical pain of suffocation to death.
"Please, God. I pray for my friends to come back. Please let this be a dream. I offer you my servitude, God. Please, if you're there, I need you," I pleaded desperately, my voice trembling.
I was struggling, trying to breathe, wanting to shout out, wanting to call for help. My legs were kicking the air as I wanted to beg to live. I didn't want to die, not like this.
For the first time since I had encountered that haunting face, I closed my eyes tightly,praying to myself. And then, everything fell silent.