It was a cool autumn evening, my friends and I decided to go on an adventure to kill boredom.
We had heard rumors about a mysterious haunted forest located just outside our town. As we
were curious teenagers, we couldn’t resist going and exploring it.
Instantly, we packed our backpacks with flashlights, snacks, excitement and curiosity. As we
entered the forest, the tall trees seemed to cover us as if we were in a tunnel. The crunch of
leaves beneath our feet felt louder as we cautiously stepped deeper into the woods.
Nightfall arrived, and we found a perfect place with no trees to stay this night.
“This is the perfect place to stay in!” exclaimed Daniel enthusiastically.
As we were preparing our tents and the campfire, the sound of nature surrounded us, singing
birds in the distance and the rustle of leaves as the smooth wind passed by them. Once the fire
was heated, it created mysterious shadows on the trees around us.
As we sat around the fire, sharing jokes and laughter, a strange feeling surrounded us. It
seemed as if we were being watched. Itchy goose bumps appeared instantly on my skin and a
soft shiver ran down my entire body. I looked around whilst I exchanged nervous looks with my
mates.
“Can’t you feel that?” asked Adrian.
Anyone replied. So we shrugged and kept with the boy´s night. But nothing was the same as
before.
Suddenly, a soft growl echoed in the darkness, this alarmed us all, causing to an immediate rise
on our heart beats. We automatically prepared whenever in case if this thing appeared. That’s
when we saw it; a creature like anything we had seen before slowly emerged from the
distance.
Its eyes gloomed in the darkness due to the reflection of the firelight. It had an enormous
muscular body covered in thick, black fur and its long, sharp claws were threatening towards
us. Without hesitating one second, we turned and ran as fast as our legs could. The creature
also started sprinting towards us without any mercy; its heavy footsteps stomped behind us.
Fear rushed through my veins as we zigzagged through the forest searching a way to distract
the creature.
Rapidly, our hope began to decrease as the creature came closer to us. One by one, my friends
were being caught and dragged by the monster. I could hear their voices desperately yelling
“Help!”
Even though I hated this idea, I had to carry on if I didn’t want to be his next victim.
Finally, what felt like a lifetime, when my heart was at the border of its limit, thankfully I found
a cave. I silently crawled deep into the darkness of the cave, hoping the creature wouldn’t find
me. The seconds felt like minutes and the minutes like hours. As I held my breath, listening for
any sign of danger the sounds faded away.
I knew I couldn’t stay in the cave forever. With my legs shaking to fear, I emerged unsteadily
from my hiding place and quietly making my way to the campsite. I couldn’t believe that
everything that remained were the tents and burnt logs from our abandoned campfire.
Once I returned back home by my own, a mix of heartbroken and happy thoughts flooded my
heart. I had survived, but now I was by my one, all my friends were gone. I will be always be
haunted for the rest of my life by the memory of that late night in the woods.
Since that day, I appreciate every moment in life and grateful of every day. The forests had
secrets that went far beyond our understanding. I had faced a creature which anyone else
could understand and believe until once you experience on a cool autumn eve.