Editor’s note: This is simply a fictional communicative submitted for the Press-Telegram’s yearly Scary Stories Contest for the mediate schoolhouse division.
“Disturbed graves”
By Elizabeth Brown,
Sixth-grader astatine Hughes Middle School
“Why are we adjacent present anyway?” Micheal says, kicking a stone into the maize stalks.
“Did we not conscionable ticker a movie, ‘The Clown successful the Cornfield?;” I say, rolling my eyes.
“Ooh, right. And James was excessively frightened to watch!” Micheal says successful a teasing voice.
“I would’ve watched it if Mom hadn’t said no!” James says. He flushed red.
It is Halloween, the aerial is crisp and the nighttime entity is clear. James and Micheal person ever been connected each other’s sides, chiefly due to the fact that Micheal was his older brother, and maine and Gemma had ever been ace adjacent — until she started liking Micheal. Then It was 3 versus 1.
I bump into Michael arsenic helium stops abruptly.
“Whoa!”
I whip around.
“It looks similar a tomb.” Gemma says, examining it.
The maize parts astir the tomb, revealing the moss and dirt. It is simply a large, worn-down cross. Pieces are missing from it; it looked to beryllium astir 1,000 years old
“Well, immoderate it is, we shouldn’t –” I commencement to say, but Micheal stomps connected the tomb.
Then Gemma, past James, each screaming and jumping up and down.
“C’mon, Kat, ya scared?” says Micheal.
“We should spell home. It’s late,” I say.
I felt a small odd.
“Yeah, I’m getting cold, Micheal,” James says.
“Ugh. You guys suck. C’mon, James,” Micheal says, smiling.
♦ ♦ ♦
Something tall, foul-smelling and boney is successful my room.
It has achromatic hair, tangled and dirty. Its tegument is truthful decayed I tin spot the rib cage, spine and feature bones. It looks restless.
I beryllium up, incapable to speak, and spot thing successful it’s hand. It’s a doll. Not immoderate doll, though — a doll of Micheal. The happening rocks the doll backmost and distant arsenic I effort to scream, but thing comes out. And then, suddenly, the caput of the doll snaps.
The doll was made retired of felt, but the drawback sounds similar existent quality bony breaking.
I aftermath up.
I’m covered successful reddish humor and sweat.
The archetypal happening I bash is lavation disconnected the humor and I wonderment however it got there, what that imagination was, what is happening. But I propulsion the thought retired of my caput and presume I’ve chopped myself oregon something. I consciousness a small relieved knowing I volition spot Micheal erstwhile maine and Gemma locomotion to school. But helium wasn’t there. The full household is gone, the location bare arsenic if cipher had ever lived there.
♦ ♦ ♦
A week passes.
In that week, I person flashes. Flashes of the dream, the grave, the cornfield. And they get worse.
At night, I person the nonstop aforesaid dream. The aforesaid boney, black-haired, decaying assemblage successful my room. I expect a felt doll of Micheal — but no. It is nary different than a doll of Gemma. The reddish hair, freckled-faced girl. And this time, a bloody coiled enters her tummy and it sounds conscionable arsenic existent arsenic the cervix of the Micheal doll snapping. A shriek goes up my pharynx but doesn’t travel out.
A shriek comes retired of maine erstwhile I awake. I americium panting. And then, arsenic I hitch my restless eyes, a sharp, achy slit enters my forehead. I americium holding a knife. The past happening I retrieve is walking on a way extracurricular successful the woods, stopping often to set to my tummy aching, arsenic if a weapon was stabbing astatine my lungs. I’m going crazy, I think. Then, I fall.
I aftermath up and I’m astatine the tomb. My past dizziness seems to person gone, but the tummy feeling hasn’t gone away.
“HLRGH!” I gag.
I consciousness thing large coming up from my stomach. And then, arsenic I instrumentality the last gasp for air, I propulsion up.
Three dolls travel retired of my throat: Micheal, Gemma — and Me.