After Nightfall

It was pitch-black inside the forest. As we walked between the trees, flashlights in hand, leaves crunched beneath our shoes. Crickets chirped in the distance, and there wasn’t another human in a five-mile radius. The treetops concealed the sky, allowing only slivers of moonlight to filter through the branches.

It was a beautiful yet creepy night. After all, it was Halloween, and exploring haunted mansions, abandoned buildings, or sometimes forests was our tradition.

“It’s so quiet here,” Jack, my best friend, whispered, as if someone might hear us.

“It’s a forest,” I replied matter-of-factly.

We were deep in the woods, despite the strict warning against entering the forest after dark. When we’d first arrived, we’d spotted a sign at its edge that read:

No one who enters the dark forest after nightfall ever returns. Those who wander too close swear they can hear whispers coming from within, calling their names. Entering the forest after dark is strictly forbidden. And for good reason.

Remembering those words sent a chill down my spine. But I’d never believed in such superstitions, and neither had Jack. That was precisely why we were here.

There was something thrilling about exploring forbidden places. I’d always loved doing things I wasn’t supposed to—breaking rules, sneaking out at night without telling anyone, and setting off in search of my next adventure.

Jack adjusted the strap of his backpack and glanced over his shoulder.

“Just so you know, if anything happens to us tonight, this was entirely your idea.”

I laughed. “Relax. What’s the worst that could happen?”

He shook his head, muttering something under his breath, and continued walking.

As we ventured deeper into the woods, the warning began to seem like nothing more than a myth. Everything looked perfectly normal. Crickets chirped, owls hooted somewhere in the distance, and leaves rustled in the breeze. The sounds were almost hypnotic.

I was so lost in the eerie beauty of the forest that I didn’t notice when the crickets fell silent.

Suddenly, everything was still. The silence was so complete that I could hear my own breathing.

We reached a clearing. Through the darkness, I thought I saw someone moving at the far end. I immediately turned my flashlight in that direction, but there was no one there.

“It’s so still, as if the forest is holding its breath,” Jack murmured, scanning the trees.

“Maybe we’re just overthinking this.”

Even as I said it, something about those words felt wrong. A strange uneasiness settled over me, as though something terrible was about to happen.

I swept my flashlight across the clearing, searching for any sign of movement.

Then I heard it.

At first, I thought my imagination was playing tricks on me. But when the voice came again, I knew I hadn’t imagined it.

“Noah… I see you… You shouldn’t have come here… Now you’re never going back… I’m going to take you…”

The voice was barely more than a whisper, yet it seemed to come from everywhere at once.

“Did you hear that?” I asked, turning to Jack.

He stared at me, his face pale. “Where the hell did that come from?”

My mouth went dry. The voice had known my name.

I frantically swept my flashlight across the trees, trying to locate its source. But the whispers only grew louder, closer.

“We need to get out of here,” I said.

Jack nodded, his face slick with sweat, his hands trembling around his flashlight.

And then we ran.

Branches whipped against our faces as we raced through the darkness. I could hear footsteps pounding behind us, growing closer with every passing second. The whispers followed, overlapping one another until I could no longer make out the words.

Coming here had been a terrible mistake. Then something growled behind us.

It didn’t sound human. It was a deep, guttural sound that seemed to rise from far beneath the earth, the most terrifying thing I had ever heard.

I glanced over my shoulder, but all I could see were trees and shadows. For a moment, I thought we’d lost whatever was following us. Then I heard footsteps again, only this time they seemed to be coming from somewhere beside us.

I risked another glance sideways. For a split second, I thought I saw a tall figure moving between the trees, keeping pace with us. I blinked, and it was gone.

“DON’T STOP!” Jack shouted.

I faced forward and ran harder.

Through the trees, I could finally see the edge of the forest. My heart hammered against my ribs as sweat trickled down my face. Jack was several steps ahead, and I pushed myself harder until I caught up.

The edge of the forest was only a few feet away. I pushed myself harder, desperate to escape whatever was chasing us.

“Come on, Noah!” Jack shouted from ahead.

We were almost out when Jack suddenly stopped just short of the boundary.

“Jack, what the hell are you doing? RUN!”

He wasn’t looking at me. His eyes were fixed on something behind me, his face drained of colour.

I skidded to a halt and turned around.

A figure stood between the trees, tall and unnaturally thin. Its head hung at an impossible angle, but its eyes… they looked like empty sockets; there were no eyes. Only a dark, endless abyss was fixed on mine.

Then it smiled.

I turned back towards Jack and reached for him. “We need to get out—”

Something cold coiled around my ankle.

I fell hard onto the forest floor, my flashlight slipping from my hand and rolling several feet away. Its beam landed on the figure.

It hadn’t moved. Yet somehow, it was closer.

“NOAH!” Jack lunged towards me, stretching out his hand.

Before he could reach me, a voice whispered directly into my ear.

“Noah…”

It was Jack’s voice.

I looked up at him. He was still standing several feet away, his mouth open in terror.

The voice beside my ear chuckled.

“Wrong one.”

Something yanked me backwards, dragging me away from Jack and deeper into the forest. I clawed at the ground, desperately trying to hold on, but the leaves slipped beneath my fingers.

Jack screamed my name as the darkness swallowed me.

Then, from somewhere deep within the trees, another voice called out.

My voice.

“Jack… help me.”