The Whispering Nightmare

I was in this small, quiet town. I was walking down this street and saw this house that had a large sign saying, “stay out Dangerous” It stood at the end of a lonely street, its windows dark and its walls covered in creeping ivy. A cool strange breeze was blowing around me. It appeared to be spooky and haunted by the spirits of those who had once lived and maybe died there. 

Being young and stupid I moved into the house. I thought I inherited it from a distant relative and, despite the warnings, decided to make it my home. I was young and rational and didn't believe in ghosts or haunted houses. I thought the stories were just old wives' tales meant to scare children. 

On my first night in the house, I went to bed early, exhausted from unpacking. As I drifted off to sleep, I heard a faint whispering. I sat up in bed, straining to hear, but the whispering stopped. I shook my head, convinced it was just my imagination, and lay back down. 

But the whispering returned, growing louder and more insistent. My heart pounded in my chest as I listened to the eerie voices. They seemed to be coming from the walls surrounding me. I tried to ignore them, pulling the covers over my head, but the whispers grew louder still, until they were a cacophony of voices, all speaking at once. 

Terrified, I jumped out of bed and ran to the door, but it wouldn't budge. I was trapped. The whispers turned into screams, and I could feel a cold, clammy hand on my shoulder. I spun around, but there was no one there. The room was empty, but the feeling of being watched was overwhelming. 

My vision blurred, and I felt myself being pulled into darkness. I screamed, but no sound came out. The shadows in the room seemed to come alive, swirling around me, whispering my name. I felt a cold breath on my neck and turned to see a pair of glowing red eyes staring at me from the darkness. 

Those red glaring eyes have overpowered me and led me to the nearby forest. I was skeptical of the old tales and wanted to prove that there was nothing to fear in the forest. Armed with a lantern and a sturdy walking stick, I left off into the woods with the glowing red eyes. 

As I ventured deeper into the forest, the trees grew taller and the air colder. The sounds of the village faded away, replaced by the eerie silence of the woods. It felt like I walked for hours, my lantern casting long, flickering shadows on the forest floor. 

I saw a red glow in the distance. My heart raced with a mix of excitement and fear. Determined to be brave and heroic, I continued with the glowing red eyes, my footsteps echoing in the stillness. 

The red glow grew brighter as I approached, and soon I found myself standing before a massive, ancient oak tree. The tree's gnarled branches twisted like skeletal fingers, and at its base, two glowing red eyes stared back at me. 

I froze, my breath catching in my throat. The eyes seemed to bore into my soul, filling me with an overwhelming sense of dread. I tried to look away but was paralyzed by fear. The red eyes grew brighter, and a chilling whisper filled the air. "Leave this place," the voice hissed. "Or suffer the curse of the Spirits of the Forest" 

With a surge of adrenaline, I broke free from the paralysis and ran as fast as I could. The forest seemed to close in around me, the branches clawing at my clothes and skin. I ran as fast as I could, totally turned around and didn’t know which way to run. I lost the lantern and walking stick and ran as fast as I could. Fortunately, there was a large harvest moon, and this helped me navigate the obstacles of this haunted forest.  

Running I encountered a small stream. I do not remember the stream when I entered the forest. The stream was about three feet wide and maybe six inches deep. The water was cold and chilled me to the bone. I started to follow the stream because I didn’t have a clue how to get out of this forest of spirits. Running down the middle of the stream with the cold water splashing around me I slipped on the moss-covered rocks. I thought I was done, the spirits of the forest would find me. I could hear the creepy sounds of the spirits getting closer, I lay silently by the stream. Then the creepy noises started to get quieter, they passed over me and continued down the stream. When the noises disappeared, I got up and ran in the other direction on the stream. I didn't stop until I burst out of the woods and into the safety of the village. Whew! 

I was panting, trembling, and soaking wet. I could not run anymore and fell into a pile of wet soggy leaves.  I looked back at the forest. The red eyes were gone, but the memory of their piercing gaze haunted me. From that night on, will I be plagued by nightmares, each one more terrifying than the last? I noticed the change in me and will the legend of” The Spirits of the Forest” follow me into eternity.   

I woke up with a start, drenched in sweat. The room was silent, and the door was open. I could hear the faint chirping of crickets outside. It had all been a nightmare. But as I lay back down, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching me from the shadows. 

I have a warning, never venture into the forest at night. Believe in ghosts and spirits, they are real and all around you. One never knows when they will reveal themselves and change your life forever. 

This taught me not to eat mushroom ice cream before going to bed for the night.