She was just staring at me like normal, like nothing had happened.
I mean, I guess nothing had happened yet… at least not since camp.
Did she know we know something was up?
No. She couldn't have.
"You okay?"
I hear the words coming from right in front of me. They break me out of it.
"Yeah, sorry."
I've been zoning out a lot recently.
"You coming in?" Clover asked.
"Oh… yeah."
She steps to the side, and I walk in.
The house was nice. All of its lights were on. In the living room there was a TV mounted on the wall with a fireplace underneath it—one of the gas ones mostly used for looks. There was also a sofa facing the TV. On the floor sat a circular rug with a round glass table in the center. A small basket sat on top of it, used to hold the remotes.
Layla was now sitting down, looking over at us.
"Can we talk in private for a minute?"
Clover looked a bit confused by my question. She tilts her head a little.
"Yeah, sure."
We walk over to the kitchen.
"What did you want to talk to me about?"
I look to make sure Layla didn't follow us.
After seeing she hadn't, I begin to speak.
"I thought you weren't supposed to hang out with her until tomorrow."
"I wasn't, but I texted her and she said she was free tonight, and I just thought the sooner the better."
"Well… she needs to leave."
"What? Why?"
I look again to make sure she's still in the other room.
"My dad showed me the test results from the blood in the cabin… it came back as Layla's."
"What? What are you saying?"
She looked even more confused, but also scared.
"I'm saying that whatever is in your living room… isn't Layla."
"No, that can't be. I know I saw the puppets, but she's acting completely normal."
"I know it sounds crazy, but my dad said the amount of blood found was easily enough to cause death from blood loss."
She looks toward the living room.
"Okay… I'll tell her to leave."
She walks out of the kitchen.
I stay there for a moment.
Then I hear the door open…
…and then close.
I walk into the living room.
Clover was standing there alone.
The sound must have been Layla leaving.
"Okay, she's gone," she said.
"I have to go too. I'll see you tomorrow, and we can talk more then."
She nods.
I walk out of her house, down the porch steps, and to my car.
I sit down and start the car.
She seemed normal, I thought.
But something also feels off every time I see her. Like a darkness fills the room. I can't put my finger on it.
I shake it off, then put the car in drive and pull out of the driveway.
The ride home was uneventful.
I made sure to pay attention to the road this time. That scare earlier was enough to make me a little paranoid about driving for the rest of the night.
I make it home, then go up to my room.
I fall onto my bed.
The next thing I knew, I was asleep.
I was in that field again.
The emptiness of it was eerie, yet calming.
I turn around.
The cabin was behind me, but it was closer this time.
I was already at the bottom of the steps.
I walk up.
Last time I was here, a noise rang out when I made it onto the porch.
My foot lands at the top.
No noise.
I had made it further than last time.
I walk toward the door.
Standing outside of it, I look at the handle.
My hand starts to move toward it…
…but I wasn't doing that.
My hand was moving on its own.
I grab the handle and twist the knob.
The door wouldn't budge at first.
I push a little harder.
A pop rang out, and I tried not to stumble as the door became unstuck.
I go to push it open…
…then the same static sound fills my ears.
I wake up.
I check the time.
Two hours had passed.
It was now 11:00 PM.
I also had three texts from Jacob.
"Yo, you taking a shower yet, or am I good to go?"
"???"
"Okay, I'm taking one then."
That last one was sent fifteen minutes after the others.
I sit up out of bed and look at the door.
I yawn, not wanting to stand, until a thud comes from the hallway.
Thinking maybe a picture fell, I decide to get up.
Once at my door, I reach for the handle and open it.
The hallway was dark and silent.
The only light was what was shining from underneath the door to my left.
Jacob was in the shower.
The sound of it was all I heard.
It wasn't loud, but it was enough to fill the silence.
I look into the darkness of the hallway.
I couldn't see much.
My eyes weren't adjusted yet.
But at the end of the hallway…
…there was something.
Near our spare room.
A dark shape.
Darker than the rest of the room.
I pull out my phone and turn my flashlight on.
I froze.
One of those puppets was standing at the end of the hallway.
It was standing there, its feet black and skeletal, leading into skinny yet strong legs.
Its body was also skinny, but it had a slight triangular shape to it.
It was hunched over, too tall to fit inside the room.
Its arms hung low, all the way down to its knees, ending in long fingers.
Then there was its face.
Held up by a long neck.
Its head was oval-shaped, and unlike the rest of its body, its face was white.
It had two eyes
Dark pits with no end.
But its mouth was the worst part.
It was just barely open in a smile.
A smile that, from the moment I saw it, was burned into my mind.
We stood there looking at each other for what felt like forever.
Then…
The shower stopped.
The puppet's head jerked over in an instant, now looking at the bathroom door.
Then back at me.
I noticed something.
Now that the shower noise was gone…
…there was static.
It was faint.
and it was coming from the direction of the puppet.
Then I realized.
The speaker on its neck.
That was where the sound was coming from.
After what felt like hours in that hallway…
…there was movement.
A shadow moved from underneath the bathroom door.
The puppet noticed it too.
It then began to move into the spare room.
Its movement was jagged, yet smooth.
Then it disappeared into the darkness of the room…
Closing the door behind it.