Concrete

Trigger Warning: Fear, gore, slight blood, slight physical violence, death

The night was strangely silent as Erin drove down the lone road. The only light she had was the dim, flickering glow of her car’s headlights. The trees passed by so quickly, they were only a blur, yet their shadows seemed to linger just a little bit longer before disappearing. She sighed, a chill running down her spine.

This was Erin’s least favorite part of her trip home from work. Sure, there were other routes she could have taken, but this one was the shortest. And getting back as soon as possible was crucial since all she wanted to do was flop down on her bed and sleep after that exhausting roller-coaster of an evening shift at the restaurant.

She’d discovered this odd shortcut a month ago, after accidentally taking a wrong turn and ending up on a cracked concrete road that Erin swore wasn’t there before. Against her better judgment, she’d followed the eerily straight path and found that it conveniently led all the way to her small house.

Erin would be lying if she said it didn’t give her the creeps, but what was she to do? She didn’t want to waste time waiting for the glaring red stoplights to turn green, or deal with half-brained idiots that clearly had no idea how to drive. 

She stared ahead at the seemingly never ending path, yawning. Just a couple more minutes, then you’ll be home. You can do this, she told herself. But as she continued, Erin started to notice that something was wrong. Very wrong. She slowed the car down a bit to check her phone. The time read 9:30 pm. 

A terrible feeling grew in her gut. She was supposed to have been home fifteen minutes ago. Had she gotten lost? No, that wasn’t possible… The shortcut was just a straight road. No turns, no other paths connecting to it– just a straight road. 

The terrible feeling grew worse. No problem, she thought nervously, I’ll use the GPS. But as she tapped her car’s screen to open up her map, it violently flashed through multiple colors, bright enough to almost blind Erin. She stopped the car, opening a map on her phone. All it showed was the little blinking icon that represented her, standing in the middle of a black void. Her heart began to pound.

“Calm down, Erin,” She whispered to herself, taking deep breaths. “Just keep going.”

She knew it was probably a bad idea, but she didn't know what else to do. She could turn around, go back the way she came, but something told her that wouldn’t end well.

She pressed on the gas pedal and the car lurched forward. The trees suddenly seemed taller, more menacing, pressing in on the sides of the road. Erin gripped the steering wheel tightly. The road ahead grew narrower and narrower until the car’s wheels were right on the edge of the path. 

Taking a deep breath, Erin glanced in the rear view mirror.

That was the first mistake she made.

Her heart almost stopped when she saw what was behind her car. A tall, shadowy figure, vaguely humanoid, but with limbs too long for it to be considered human stood in the middle of the road. Its long, claw-like fingers hung limply from its arms, swaying slightly in the wind. What was even more terrifying were the eyes covering its entire form, just staring at her through the windows and mirrors. 

Erin choked back a scream, eyes darting away and foot pressing the gas pedal harder.

The car sped along the road. The outline of the trees were no longer visible. Erin’s knuckles were white from holding the wheel so tight. And the road itself? It was still just an endless path of gray concrete. 

She wanted to get home so badly, it hurt. She wanted whatever was going on to end. She decided that she would never EVER use this road again. 

Erin took one more look in the rear view mirror. The figure was gone. She let her foot gently ease off of the gas pedal, and sighed in relief.

That was her second mistake.

She closed her eyes for a few moments, letting her beating heart slow. Now to just get back ho– A loud thump broke into her thoughts, and Erin’s eyes flew open.

Staring right back at her, latched onto the hood of her car, was the figure.

Erin allowed herself to scream this time. Her hands shaking violently, she shifted the gear into reverse and practically stomped on the pedal. The car sped backwards and she had to stop herself from falling due to the motion. The creature’s claws dug into the metal, but the vehicle was moving too fast for it to hold on for much longer.

The claws screeched as they slid off of the car, leaving large gashes behind. The creature rolled onto the road. It let out a noise that sounded like a coarse laugh, and all of its eyes turned to look at Erin. Adrenaline took over. Without a moment’s hesitation, she jerked the gear to fifth, and the car shot straight towards the creature.

Her breathing quickened. Her entire body felt numb. Burning fear crawled through her stomach. Time seemed to almost slow down. Everything blurred together. The car jolted upwards for a moment, and it was over.

Erin slowed to a halt, sitting there for a few moments while her head spun. Was the creature dead? She didn’t know, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know. Yet, she still opened the door, and stepped outside her car.

That was her third mistake.

Her knees felt like jelly, still shaking from adrenaline and fear. Erin turned towards the road behind her car. She expected to see some sort of carcass, or at least blood, if the… thing even had any. But there was nothing there.

She blinked a few times, confused. She ran over it with her car, she knew that for a fact. Had she imagined the entire thing? Or, the more horrifying thought… Was it still alive? 

The hair at the back of Erin's neck prickled, and her palms began to sweat. She knew the answer before she even turned around. It lunged at her. She tried to duck out of the way, but failed. Her head hit the hard concrete, and the world began to spin.

She managed to push herself upwards, only to be knocked down again by the creature. Its claws dug into her shoulders and she tried to scream, only to find that her voice wouldn’t work. Its face leaned inches over hers, blankly staring at her terrified expression. It let out another laugh.

Erin would have cried at the stupidity of it all, if she could. Her gut had told her something was wrong, and she chose to ignore it. She had nothing else to blame except for her own impatience. And now, all she could do was watch, paralyzed, as the creature sliced open her skin with its sharp claws and tore through her insides.

Her vision darkened at the edges. Her entire body burned with cold, numb, pain, and she attempted another scream that only resulted in a choked gurgle. The nauseating smell of blood filled the air, drowning her senses. The creature laughed again, enjoying her death. 

Erin closed her eyes. Even in her final moments, all she could picture in her mind was the dreary concrete road, the same as it always was.

Empty. Bleak. Endless.