Mike's Wicked Bet

Mike is running. His bare feet stung on the forest floor with each step, but he can't stop. He has to get out of here. He can't let the witch catch him.

"Jamie, this is all your fault!" he yells at nobody in particular.

It's not. He knows it’s no one's fault but his own.

His foot catches on a branch, and he trips, face planting into the dirt. He feels his glasses shatter on the impact. He really doesn't have much energy left; his breathing labored from the physical activity that he's not used to. But when he hears the rustling of branches, his body's survival instincts kick in and he's back on his feet.

All this because he wanted to win the bet.

-2 hours ago-

"I bet Mike wouldn't do it."

"Huh, do what?" Mike twisted around at his desk at the mention of his name. He should have known not to engage with the voice that has mocked him so many times before.

Jamie Sanders, the most popular girl in school. And the meanest one to Mike. And yet, Mike couldn't bring himself to hate her. She's not all bad. One time she helped him pick up a pencil he dropped. Sure it doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but Mike had never seen Jamie be that nice to anyone else. That was a year ago. Ever since, Mike kept dropping his pencil on purpose in hopes that Jamie would pick it up again. Instead, Jamie would call him clumsy. So Mike would do other things to get her attention, like putting notes on her locker or sitting at her spot in the cafeteria. Soon the name calling began. It started off with just "weirdo" and "loser" but then it turned into "creep" and "dangerous." Mike felt offended at first, but then he found it all so… enthralling. He knows she'll never stop thinking about him now.

Today in the classroom, Jamie's friend taunted him with something. "Yeah Mike could never do something like that."

"Like what?" He turns around fully in his seat at that, adjusting his glasses.

Then Jamie cuts in. "The witch."

Chills run down Mike's spine.

"Do you think you could get her for me?"

"Yes!" He agrees without thinking. This is the first time Jamie has spoken to him in weeks. How could he say no to anything when he's missed her voice for so long, whether it be insults or an insane request.

“Wait really?” Jamie says with mild shock. She looks at her friends surrounding her, and they all share a look. Mike isn’t paying attention to them though, just Jamie. “Oh Mike, that’s so brave of you.” She walks closer to him and places her hand on top of his head.

Pat pat.

“Thank you so much Mike.”

-1 hour later-

He’s waiting in the forest, just a few paces away from the haunted tree. He’s heard the stories, just like everybody else. There’s a witch that lives near this tree and it stands guard for her. Mike isn’t scared. In fact, he feels protected. There were more trees planted earlier this summer so that the pathways through the forest would be clearer and less people would stray off into the forest. Still, Mike was able to follow the trail that led straight to the witch’s house, easily.

Maybe too easily.

He walks further down the trail and sees the roof of an old ugly house. He takes out his phone and takes a selfie with it in the background, capturing the rotting wood and chipped paint, covered in overgrown weeds. It was definitely an eyesore. It’s a wonder why the city spent time and effort to plant more trees but not get rid of this house. Something about the house being hard to find. Mike smirks. They should’ve asked him for help since he found it so easily.

Creak.

Mike jumps at the sound, all the bravado he had just seconds ago vanished. He inches closer to the front of the house and sees the front door is slightly ajar.

“Hello? Is the witch in there?”

The door slams shut on its own.

He wants to run. There’s no way he can fight off a witch. He needs to get out of here. He turns to sprint out of the woods when all of a sudden, he hears a familiar voice from inside the cabin

“Mike, is that you?”

Mike stops his movements and turns back to the cabin. And there, through the tiny round window, he sees a hand waving at him, almost friendly, gesturing him inside. He’d recognize that voice and that hand anywhere.

“Jamie?”

Jamie opens the front door and peeks over the edge, giggling. “Yes yes, come in Mike. I’ve been waiting for you.”

Mike is astonished. He can’t believe that Jamie is in the witch’s cabin. Is she in trouble? It doesn’t seem like it. Mike doesn’t think too much about it and goes inside to meet her.

She grabs him by the shoulders and pushes him to sit in a lonely chair in the middle of the bare room, save for some bottles and jars on a shelf on the back wall. “Congratulations Mike, you made it to the cabin! Do you want your prize?”

“I-I did? Really?” Mike laughs in disbelief and in joy. “Yes, I want my prize, what is it?”

“Hmm,” Jamie stalks around Mike, like a predator circling her prey.

“Well I can’t tell you just yet. You still haven’t won the bet.”

Mike’s joy dampens significantly.

“Remember what I said. Just being here isn’t enough.” She is standing behind him now and she bends to whisper in his ear, sending chills down Mike’s spine. “I said you have to get the witch for me. Did you?”

“No.” Mike gulps. Suddenly it’s getting hard for him to breathe, like there’s a force crushing his body.

“Can you?”

Mike tries to sit up straighter. “Yes, I can.”

Jamie laughs. But it’s not her usual sweet jingle. It’s not even the mean one that she has after a round of insults in the school hallway. No, this laugh belonged to… a monster.

Then the voice behind him turns into something he doesn’t recognize.

“You want to know your prize now?” she says with a smile in her voice.

Mike tries to stand up from the chair to see who is speaking but there are weird branches and vines circling his wrists, binding him to the chair. His eyes become wide with fear. Jamie has transformed into a witch.

The witch.

“You- You’re the witch?”

“Ah ah,” she wags her finger as if scolding a small child. “I asked you a question first. Do you want to know your prize?”

“Get away from me, let me go! Please please, let me go!”

Her fake smile and sweet demeanor suddenly turn menacing. “Why can’t you just answer a simple question?! I’ve done this so many times and yet you’re the rudest one I’ve ever met.” She shakes her head and comes around to face him. She kneels down and takes off his shoes, using the laces to bind his feet to the chair, but Mike kicks at her, knocking her to the ground.

“You ungrateful boy! Keep still if you know what’s good for you.” Jaime gets back up and dusts off her hands. “I’m doing this for your own good, don’t you know? Don’t you want to know your prize? Your prize is that you get to stay by my side forever. Isn’t that what you always wanted?” She turns her back towards him as she shuffles along the shelves of jars as if looking for something.

Mike is losing his mind; he doesn’t understand what’s happening and he doesn’t stick around to find out. He manages to loosen the vines around his wrist and bolts towards the door, mind racing as fast as his feet. Jamie- no, the witch doesn’t chase after him at first, but Mike keeps running and running.

His bare feet sting, but he can’t stop. He curses at Jamie before he trips over a branch. He gets back up until a branch shoots out in front of him and he smashes into it, falling down again. He’s breathing hard and he’s exhausted, the adrenaline is running out now.

A foot is on his back. Jamie stands over him and a witchy laugh escapes her as she pours a sticky liquid from a jar in her hands all over him.

“There’s nowhere for you to go now Mike.”

“Please, let me go. I won’t tell anyone. I promise.”

“Oh Mike. I know you won’t.” She grabs him by the hair and twists his neck painfully. “Because I’ll make sure of it.”

She snaps her fingers and wines and branches begin to slither towards him and capture every limb. The ground beneath him begins to swallow him whole and all Mike can do is scream.

- 3 days later -

“Ryan?” the teacher calls out.

“Here.”

“Karla.”

“Here.”

“Mike.”

Silence.

“Mr. Redman, don’t you remember? Mike transferred to a different school yesterday.”

“Oh yes. Thank you for reminding me Jamie.”

Ryan tuts. “Yeah, sure, ‘transferred’,” he says making air quotes while saying the last word.

Jamie turns her head to look at him. “What do you mean?”

“I bet the witch took him.”

Jamie turns to face him fully. “Do you want to make that a real bet?”