Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well! Today’s post is a short story!
I entered this into a competition, but unfortunately I didn’t make it through to the next stage. All is not lost though, because I can post it onto my blog!
The competition’s brief was to write a short story based on one of four images. I can’t attach the image because of copyright, but it was two girls. I thought it looked haunting, and I really wanted to capture that in the story.
I hope you enjoy it! Any feedback is very welcome!
It was a warm August day, and Lucy and Isabella were exploring their Guide campsite. Tall trees grew as far as the eye could see and the girls walked silently, with the gentle rustling from the leaves the only sound. The pair stopped as the path veered off, snaking through the dark trees.
“Hey Isabella,” Lucy said, pointing down the path. “Let’s go this way.”
Isabella glanced down the trail uncertainly.
“I think I’ll stay here,”she replied.
So Lucy set off alone, a sense of excitement brewing in her stomach. The path was twisty and she turned each corner carefully, the crisp Autumn leaves crunching under her Wellington boots. The thick leaves provided a canopy, with only a few rays of sunlight streaming through the gaps. Goosebumps appeared on Lucy’s bare arms, but she continued.
The trail appeared to be never ending, and Lucy’s interest soon wavered. She was just about to turn back when a low moan cut through the silence, making her freeze. She squeezed her eyes closed, praying she’d imagined it. But there it was again. Every instinct in her body screamed at her to turn back, but a strange curiosity propelled her forwards. She cautiously edged around the corner, her heart pounding in her chest.
Two girls, roughly the same age as Lucy, blocked the path. The younger girl noticed Lucy first. Half of her hair was scraped off her face and the remainder hung in loose waves. Her large eyes stared menacingly from her grubby face. Lucy turned to run when the older girl gasped. She doubled over, clutching the younger girl. Lucy rushed forwards to help lower her to the floor.
“Are… are you hurt?” she asked. The girl did not respond. Her eyelids had fluttered closed and her face was grey. Lucy rose to her feet.
“Stay here. I’m going to get help.”
“No!” the younger girl said, her voice a low croak. In a flash, she was by Lucy’s side, gripping her shoulders tightly. “Leave us alone. Forget you ever saw us.”
Lucy stared into her wide eyes. They had an expression that Lucy could not decipher. She could feel her fingernails digging into her shoulders through her thin t-shirt and her heart pounded. She looked down at the older girl, who remained motionless on the floor and her chest ached with a combination of sympathy and panic. She shook free and ran back to Isabella. She was perched on a tree stump at the fork of the path, playing with a leaf she had plucked from a plant. Lucy seized her wrist and pulled her down the path.
“There’s a girl in trouble,” she panted as they ran.
But when they reached the tree, there was no one there. Lucy checked the nearby area, but they had vanished.
“That was a mean trick you played Lucy,” Isabella said, her voice wobbling. “I don’t think I want to be your friend anymore.”
She turned back, leaving Lucy staring blankly at the trees.