It was a perfect day.
The wind was blowing through trees, birds were singing, and a school was having a field trip in a peaceful forest.
Students were running around, teachers were talking; getting things ready for eating and playing.
A girl in 7th grade with soft-black hair and wore a black and white outfit— whose name was Alice Miller—was having a talk with her friends.
Alice was a socially anxious and quiet girl, but one thing she loved was listening to the people she knows talk. It made her laugh, it made her optimistic, and it helped with her struggle of socializing.
Alice, Michelle and Lana were sitting in a circle; admiring the gorgeous view of nature.
Alice had her pencil in her hand, scribbling on her sketchbook. She examined the forest, and looked back down at her book.
"This forest is so beautiful…" Michelle spoke in an amused tone.
"I know right?" Lana replied optimistically.
Alice looked at her surroundings, it really was a beautiful forest.
"It really is," Alice said with a soft smile. "It's beauty is incredibly amazing, not even I can draw it well."
Michelle chuckled at Alice's statement about her drawing skills. "Your talent is as amazing as this forest."
Lana nodded.
"Absolutely." Lana spoke in a gentle voice.
While looking and admiring the beauty of the forest they were in, the sound of footsteps were heard.
Alice stopped scribbling on the paper of her book and turned her head around, seeing that it was Vanessa and Diana.
Alice smiled at the sight, she cannot hold the feeling of when her friends are around.
It warmed Alice's tense heart.
Vanessa and Diana came up to the three of them.
"Guys, I'm bored. Can't we explore or something?" Vanessa asked, sounding desperate and weary.
Diana's eyes were roaming around; then she caught a teacher of one of her favorites.
"Wait, I'll go to one of the teachers real quick." Diana spoke, then ran to one of her favorite teachers with a wide smile—for the third time this day.
Vanessa rolled her eyes as Diana walked away.
"And by that she means her favorite teacher…" Vanessa murmured to herself; she looked down at the three.
"Guys, come on," Vanessa said, sounding impatient. "Let's go."
"To where?" Michelle questioned, wondering why Vanessa was in such a rush for them to go along with her to 'somewhere'.
"I don't know, I just want to look around this forest, I'm bored." Vanessa replied, she was getting more impatient as they asked questions.
"Won't we get in trouble for going too far?" Alice asked Vanessa, feeling worried and nervous.
"We will just find our way back, it's not a big deal." Vanessa replied to Alice. "Plus, I won't let you guys get distracted in going far." Vanessa added.
Lana's brows slightly furrowed upward in confusion at Vanessa's statement.
"But, what if the teachers catch us?" Lana said in a soft tone, a hint of worry in it. "They always have eyes on the back of their heads."
Vanessa thought about it for a moment, she took a glance at the teachers before looking back at her friends.
"…Fine, I'll go by myself." Vanessa's voice was slightly irritated as she spoke.
Alice's eyes widened, she stood up, letting her pencil and book fall to the ground to grab Vanessa's wrist before she could leave.
"Are you crazy," Alice exaggerated.
"What if you get injured or lost?" Alice spoke, being serious.
Vanessa paused for a moment. "You wanna come with me or something?" Vanessa said, her voice softened a bit.
"Yeah, you need someone by your side," Alice's grip on her hand tightened. "You might get lost, even if you know you won't." Alice furrowed her brows downwards as she looked at her.
Vanessa looked at her for a moment and shrugged. "You can come, just don't freak out from any bugs." Vanessa sarcastically told her. She took her own hand away from Alice's embrace and started walking.
Alice looked slightly offended by Vanessa's saying, even though it was true that she would be startled by insects.
Alice ran up to Vanessa, trying to catch up.
Alice slowed down her pace as she was right next to Vanessa.
Her gaze laid on the forest to observe, it was nothing special.
Just birds chirping and the breeze blowing the trees.
Vanessa had her hands in her pockets. She looked at Alice, then her gaze followed her line of sight.
"Nature is amazing," Vanessa looked back at her, "Isn't it?" Vanessa said— sounding gentle.
Alice glanced at her, then nodded with a small smile. "Always has been."
Vanessa kept walking with her. She thought about Alice's words, and Alice was right. Nature has always been amazing.
Alice started to get a little bored due to the two not having a proper conversation, and it was slowly getting awkward.
"So…" Alice tried to break the ice— fidgeting her fingers as she spoke.
Vanessa landed her gaze on Alice as she spoke. "So?" Vanessa replied, one of her brows rising up, wondering what Alice had to say.
Alice let out a sigh, and pinched the bridge of her nose, "This is really awkward…" Alice muttered, she was starting to get annoyed.
Vanessa noticed how she was slightly frustrated by the fact that they both weren't talking much, so she placed her hand on her shoulder.
"To be honest, I thought you were gonna start rambling facts about animals or plants," Vanessa spoke, then looked down at the grass.
"After all, you're smart at science, right?" Vanessa asked, having a small smile on her face as she glanced at Alice again.
"Yeah, I guess," Alice replied.
"But not in a way where I would become a doctor only because I'm smart at biology," Alice spoke in a slightly irritated tone.
Vanessa chuckled, and patted her back. "You're thinking about your future job right now?" Vanessa questioned her.
"Yeah, ask my parents why." Alice responded, her voice growing even more irritated.
Vanessa's smile faltered.
She moved her hand away from her back, noticing how she slightly got angrier.
Vanessa glanced at her for some minutes, then back at the grass. The silence walked in again; the only thing being heard were the birds and wind. Alice's expression softened, then she turned to look at Vanessa.
Alice felt guilty for snapping out of nowhere, also feeling guilty for bringing up her own parents.
"I-I'm sorry…" Alice spoke in a quiet voice.
Vanessa tilted her head up hearing Alice's apology.
"No, it's okay," Vanessa said with a small smile, trying to cheer her up,
"It's not like you have upset me or anything." Vanessa said.
A few seconds later, Alice smiled softly.
She was glad Vanessa wasn't thinking that she's some kind of sensitive person.
They both continued walking, but then the sounds of footsteps were heard. Alice and Vanessa stopped to listen to the footsteps.
They turned around, trying to see which direction the sound was
coming from.
Alice squinted her eyes and saw that it was Michelle.
Michelle seemed to be running towards the two with her arms opened wide.
Alice screamed and Vanessa gasped when Michelle hugged them—they almost fell down.
"Michelle, don't run into us like that!" Alice said, her tone of voice sounding surprised.
"Not cool!" Vanessa exclaimed and moved out of the hug after squirming for some seconds."I almost got a heart attack!" Vanessa exclaimed again.
Michelle laughed; she let Alice go. "You guys are boring..." Michelle said with a chuckle and a wide smile on her face.
While Alice was slightly tugging her black overall skirt down, she curiously looked at Michelle.
"Wait, Michelle," Alice spoke,
"Didn't you say you weren't coming?" Alice asked Michelle.
"Nope, I didn't say a single word because I was pretty hesitant," Michelle replied.
"Anyways, where are you guys going?" Michelle asked out of curiosity, putting her hands on her hips.
Vanessa looked around for a moment, then back at Michelle,
"We're just going wherever we want to go." Vanessa replied and shrugged.
Michelle's expression slowly turned dull, expecting a more exciting answer.
Vanessa furrowed her eyebrows in annoyance whilst noticing her expression.
"Don't look at me like that,". Vanessa spoke in a vexed tone,
"I said 'explore', not plan on where we're going." Vanessa said.
Michelle exhaled. She turned around to examine.
Michelle's eyes roamed over the forest they were in. As she had been observing the forest, something caught her eye…
"What the?" Michelle muttered to herself and slightly squinted her eyes, making sure what she witnessed was real.
Alice and Vanessa started walking; Alice halted when she took notice of Michelle squinting her eyes in curiosity and confusion. Alice stood there for a minute, then got curious herself.
"What are you looking at?" Alice asked.
"…I see dead trees." Michelle replied and pointed towards where she saw the trees.
Alice's brows furrowed in confusion, she looked back at Michelle and back at the tree to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Alice turned to Vanessa, gesturing to her to come forward. Vanessa walked towards Alice and Michelle. Michelle just stood there, until curiosity lit up her eyes.
"Come!" Michelle yelled.
Michelle then unexpectedly grabbed Alice's hand, and ran to where the dead trees were. Vanessa quickly ran with her, her eyes wide with mixed feelings. She was really confused with Michelle.
"Michelle, where the hell are you going?" Vanessa asked, while running.
Michelle didn't answer, it seemed that the dead trees really did catch her eye. Vanessa got even more confused at the fact that she wasn't answering her. In fact, she felt a slight annoyance towards her too.
"Damn it…" Vanessa muttered to herself, then continued running.
Alice was trying to keep up with Michelle; she was trying her best to not slow down her pace, meanwhile Vanessa was doing fine. After some minutes, Michelle stopped sprinting, trying to catch her breath. Vanessa noticed that Michelle halted, she lazily walked and placed her hand on Michelle's shoulder.
"What was that all about?" Vanessa asked.
Michelle shrugged as a response to Vanessa's question, but then she answered as she exhaled.
"I wanted to see if it's just a hallucination or not…"
Vanessa's expression turned into one of confusion.
Vanessa glanced at Alice, noticing that her eyes widened.
Alice just stood there, in shock.
"Guys…I think there's more than one dead tree." Alice spoke in a surprised tone as she stood in front of a large, creepy-looking forest.
Vanessa looked at the forest, her brows furrowing upward and her lips slightly parted in shock at the sight. Vanessa stood still, Michelle tilted her head up, and her face shifted into a shocked expression. Vanessa looked around the forest, she was still flabbergasted at the view. Alice suddenly walked forward; Vanessa glanced at her as Alice walked past. Alice sat on her knees, slowly touching the withered grass with her hand. She was in disbelief at the sight.
"What happened here?" Alice quietly asked, her face blank.
Vanessa observed her expression, noticing that she looks upset, it made Vanessa slightly frown. Michelle sat on her knees with Alice, knowing that she's sad. Michelle placed her hand on Alice's shoulder.
"Are you okay?" Michelle politely asked.
"I am," Alice replied.
"It's just that I feel…disappointed. This is my first time seeing a dead forest." The corners of Alice's mouth dropped slightly.
Michelle frowned, she tried to think of something that will comfort her a bit, knowing that Alice hates these types of things. Michelle then remembered the reason why the three of them even strolled away from the school's camp.
"Uh…how about we explore?" Michelle said with a small convincing smile, then stood up.
Alice hesitated for a moment; then she stood up as well.
"Explore?" Alice asked, her expression softened.
Michelle's eyes roamed across the forest, and then glanced back at Alice.
"Yes," Michelle nodded and held Alice's hand.
"Explore." Michelle moved her hand, telling Vanessa to come with her and Alice.
Alice hesitated as she glanced at the dead forest.
"Uhm…Sure?" Alice said.
Michelle smiled widely at her response and started walking at a fast speed.
Alice was being dragged as soon as Michelle walked at a fast pace. Alice expected her to walk more slowly.
Vanessa walked with them; she felt like they went too far, now she was starting to worry.
"Don't you think we're going too far?" Vanessa asked Michelle in worry.
"Don't worry, I know the way back!" Michelle replied by shouting.
Vanessa was a bit skeptical about Michelle knowing the way back, but she tried to shake it off and mentally tell herself it will be alright.
Michelle slowed down slightly as she saw the amount of dead trees decreasing. Her brows tilted down in curiosity whilst observing her surroundings and tightened her grip on Alice's hand.
Alice also took notice of less dead trees; she couldn't think properly due to the fact that she was low on stamina because of their previous stroll.
Alice began to pant, she let go of Michelle's hand to stop and catch her breath.
Michelle halted herself, she turned to look at Alice in confusion, wondering why she stopped.
"Can we just walk please?" Alice politely asked, panting slightly.
Michelle desperately wanted to walk fast, but she felt guilty for Alice. "Fine," Michelle said—letting out a sigh.
"Vanessa, we're gonna walk slower this time." Michelle told Vanessa as her and Alice started to walk.
Vanessa slowed down when Michelle told her to walk. Her mind went everywhere due to the fact that they get so easily distracted.
Michelle walked with Alice and Vanessa; looking around the dead forest. Michelle paused as she had an idea. She turned to look at Alice and Vanessa.
"Guys, how about we split up?" Michelle suggested. "This forest seems really…exciting to explore," Michelle said with a confident smile. "And we'll tell each other what we have found."
Alice confusingly glanced at Michelle as she said: 'exciting to explore'.
"…Sure," Alice said, "Just be careful of yourselves." Alice reassured them, worried about them getting lost.
"Okay, mom." Vanessa replied sarcastically, putting her hands in her pockets.
Alice's expression shifted into annoyance at Vanessa's response, but she rolled her eyes and smiled, knowing that she was just joking.
All three of them split up, each of them going to a different direction in the dead forest.
Vanessa was walking east, Michelle was walking west, and Alice was walking north.
Silence filled up the place, the only thing being heard were the crunching sounds of sticks and leaves being crushed with each step.
Vanessa only observed the dead trees. She was looking at the one in front of her for a while, but the moment shattered when Vanessa heard a cracking noise.
The branch of the tree was gonna fall. Vanessa's eyes widened and she quickly jerked out of the way as the branch fell down. Vanessa stared at the branch, relieved that she moved away.
Meanwhile, Michelle glanced down at the dead plants underneath her.
She was pretty bored, but slightly sad at the sight in front of her. Michelle let out a sigh and walked to another area.
Alice was still walking forward, after a bit she took notice that an insane amount of dead trees appeared, making it dark and hard to see.
Alice accidentally tripped over a log, making her fall down on her face— more specifically, her mouth.
"Ow…" Alice muttered to herself as she stood up and covered her mouth with her hands.
Alice let it slide, and continued walking. She looked down, trying to be more careful.
Alice started to feel a little scarred from the dark atmosphere as she looked up at the tall withered trees.
She had a bad feeling about what she was doing right now, until her thoughts were interrupted by a loud, crackling sound after she took a step.
Alice then screamed as she fell down into the hole— she stepped on a pitfall trap by the looks of it.
Her scream echoed through the forest and outside of it.
Michelle and Vanessa quickly looked at the direction where the scream came from; their eyes widened as they both instantly knew it was Alice who had been screaming. Michelle seemed to be a lot more scared for Alice than Vanessa, as Vanessa was trying to process if that was Alice or not.
"Was that Alice?" Vanessa asked Michelle as she looked at her in fret.
Michelle looked at Vanessa in disbelief. "No, it was a skinwalker, " Michelle said sarcastically. "OF COURSE IT WAS ALICE!" Michelle shouted.
Michelle didn't hesitate to run. She immediately ran towards the enormous forest Alice went into, her mind filled with worry.
Vanessa let out a sigh and ran with Michelle. She was getting more annoyed by her lately.
Michelle grabbed Vanessa's hand so they both were able pick up the pace.
They entered the forest, a bunch of branches were blocking the way, making them hobble. Michelle used her arm to protect herself from the branches.
Vanessa didn't know there were branches. She had plenty of confidence until a large branch hit her face.
Vanessa yelped; she covered her face with her hand.
Vanessa shook her head slowly and looked up again, being more aware this time.
Michelle had been so focused on finding Alice, she didn't take notice of where she was going and how fast she was running.
Michelle then accidentally fell into the pitfall hole, while Vanessa held herself back by holding onto a rock and gasped.
Michelle's scream echoed through the hole as she fell.
"MICHELLE!" Vanessa shouted out her name, her expression was filled with worry as she was peeping into the hole. It was really deep, which raised Vanessa's worry even more.
Vanessa lifted herself up to the surface, trying to catch her breath from what just happened.
"Damn it, Vanessa!" She muttered to herself in irritation, "Why did you let go?" Vanessa scolded herself in guilt.
Vanessa looked back down into the hole, wondering if the two are still in there. The best Vanessa could do was get some help back in the school's picnic area. She began to run at a really fast pace.
Meanwhile, in the hole, Alice slowly opened her eyes, finding herself on a pile of soft flowers and bushes that softened her fall. Alice touched her head and looked down at her legs in surprise, but was relieved that she had no injuries.
"I must've fainted…" Alice spoke to herself. "I didn't get hurt, that's good-"
Alice's thoughts were disrupted by someone screaming. She looked up and her eyes widened. Michelle was gonna fall down— even worse, Michelle was going to fall down on her. Alice moved out of the spot she was in to make way for Michelle.
Michelle fell down on her stomach and let out a groan.
She weakly lifted herself up and as she did, to her surprise, she saw Alice. Michelle's eyes lit up with fret and anticipation as she sat up to take a better look at Alice. Michelle let out an exhale of relief seeing that Alice was okay, and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Thank goodness you're okay…" Michelle spoke, her voice sounding raspy from screaming.
Alice scooted closer to Michelle, feeling more safe. Alice then observed her surroundings, realizing that they fell into a cave.
"Where are we?" Michelle's tone rose up in fear.
Michelle glanced down, seeing a bunch of flowers beneath her.
Her eyebrows shot upwards as she touched them, the feeling…was something she had never felt before.
"I-In a cave I think." Alice spoke, her voice shaky from the realization.
Michelle then realized that Vanessa is still up there.
She looked up to see the entrance of where they came.
Michelle put both her hands beside her mouth and inhaled, preparing herself to shout.
"VANESSA!" Michelle shouted out her name, hoping she would respond.
Michelle's voice echoed throughout the entire cave, yet no response.
Michelle held her head in fret; she started to pant unsteadily. Alice frowned at the sight of her panicking, she tried patting her back as a way of comfort.
"Michelle, it's okay. Breathe," Alice reassured her. "We're gonna just stay and try to wait for Vanessa." Alice looked up, her heart beating fast.
"…I'm also kind of scared." Alice quietly said.
While looking around, Michelle took notice of green grass, shaped like some kind of path leading somewhere. It made Michelle think that they can find a way out.
"We can get out of here." Michelle said. "We can get out of here, I'm sure of it, look!" Michelle repeated and shook Alice in anticipation.
Alice looked at her in confusion; she observed the cave. Alice's eyes lit up in surprise as she saw the grass pathway in front of her and Michelle.
"Are you sure that's gonna lead us out?" Alice asked, a bit skeptical about some grass leading the way out. "I mean…maybe you're right. If there's grass, there's sunlight and water." Alice said, feeling uncertain.
In a swift move, Michelle quickly got up and crouched; she was smiling in hope. Michelle followed the grass pathway, trying to look for an exit.
Alice's eyes widened, she got up and followed Michelle.
Alice's expression shifted into doubt, her brain saying to convince Michelle to wait, but her heart said to follow.
"Michelle, are you completely sure about this?" Alice asked Michelle in worry.
"Yes, I'm completely sure." Michelle responded with confidence.
Alice looked around, she got slightly scared and took a glance at Michelle.
"Can I come front? I'm…a little scared." Alice said, slightly embarrassed of herself.
Michelle stopped; she turned around and looked at Alice.
"Sure…but tell me if you found something." Michelle then went behind Alice, letting her take the lead.
"Thank you." Alice smiled at her, and started walking again.
Alice and Michelle were walking for a while, until Alice noticed that the cave was getting bigger, at least big enough for them to stand up. Alice and Michelle stood up to walk better. Alice took a step, then tripped over a rock by accident.
"AGH-" Alice fell and rolled downhill.
Michelle's eyes widened; she tried to run after her.
"MICHELLE!" Alice shouted her name.
Alice was about to fall off an edge. She tried to hold on to something, and her eyes wide in fear.
She was holding on for dear life, but her hand slipped.
"ALICE!" Michelle shouted back, her voice trembling in fear.
Alice then fell down on another pile of flowers.
She slowly lifted her head up, seeing that she fell on a pile of flowers again.
Alice's eyes roamed around to see where she landed. Whilst looking around, Alice saw…a small pond in front of her.
It was really strange, the water seemed to be clean as well—it even illuminated slightly.
Alice's eyebrows furrowed as she looked at the pond in confusion. Alice crawled towards the pond and stared at it for a good while.
The water seemed so clean…almost too clean.
Alice wanted to test the water, but she was really hesitant.
After a moment of thinking, she lifted her hand, and kept it by her side as she was still hesitant.
Minutes passed, Alice moved her hand towards the pond; she tried to put her finger into the water to test it.
Small waves were flowing away from her finger as she put it inside the water.
Alice let her finger linger in there for a moment, until she felt something strange.
Wind was blowing the tip of her finger.
Alice's eyes widened and she immediately took her finger out, she had also noticed that her finger didn't get wet.
Alice got very confused and curious at the same time, her head spinning around.
"What on earth…" Alice muttered to herself while looking at her hand.
Alice looked back at the pond, wondering if she should put her whole hand into the water.
She slowly moved her hand towards the pond again, her mind filled with mixed feelings about what she was doing right now.
The tip of her fingers touched the water, wonder and anxiety filling up the air.
Alice finally put her hand into the water.
There it was again, fresh wind blowing her hand.
Alice waved her hand slightly, then took it out.
"ALICE MOVE!" Michelle shouted out loud.
Alice glanced up, seeing that Michelle was preparing herself to fall down.
Alice jerked out of the way, making space for Michelle.
Michelle screamed as she leapt off and fell down. Once again, she landed on another pile of soft bushes and flowers. Michelle groaned…then wondered why she even groaned when she didn't feel any pain.
Alice glanced down at her; she put her hand on Michelle's shoulder.
"You okay?" Alice asked, making sure she's well.
Michelle lifted herself up with her arms and sat.
"Yeah…" Michelle dusted her arms.
As Michelle finished dusting her arms, she took a look at the pond in front of them, thinking it was normal…until she stole a glance once again when she noticed it illuminating slightly.
Her gaze lingered on the pond, then she looked at Alice.
"Is that pond glowing?" Michelle questioned, wanting to know if Alice was seeing the same thing.
Alice nodded, knowing that Michelle was also confused.
"Trust me, I'm also puzzled about it." Alice said, taking another look at the pond.
"While you were not here, I put my hand in it, and you might not believe me, but my hand didn't get wet, and I felt a breeze blowing through." Alice explained.
Michelle slightly raised her brow, not fully believing in her saying.
"Your hand didn't get wet and you felt a breeze?" Michelle summarized Alice's explanation.
Alice nodded.
"You can put your own hand in the pond if you don't believe me," Alice said politely. "And do not worry, the water is clean." Alice reassured Michelle.
Michelle took a look at the pond. A part of her wanted to see what Alice had said about the pond and what she had experienced was true, but a part of her thought she was just playing some kind of joke with her.
"…Are you sure you weren't hallucinating?" Michelle questioned.
Alice paused as Michelle asked her that question.
"I don't think you can physically hallucinate…actually, there is this type of hallucination called sensory hallucination-"
"Okay, okay, I didn't need a whole explanation for hallucinations."
Michelle cut Alice off, the explanation of physical hallucinations left unwanted. "I'm gonna put my hand in." Michelle said, crawling forward to the pond and lifted her hand.
Michelle was about to put her hand in; she put her hand back and looked at Alice.
"Can you put your hand in to make sure you weren't hallucinating?"
Michelle asked Alice, feeling uncertain.
Alice sighed and nodded.
Alice crawled forward, lifting her hand up to prepare herself for shoving it in the water.
Alice put her hand into the water, once again, she let it linger in there.
But this time…Alice didn't feel wind, instead she felt long claws touching her hand,
Alice squealed and took her hand out. Her eyes wide in both fear and surprise.
Michelle jerked as Alice squealed and backed off. Her eyes widened as well.
"What happened?" Michelle asked.
Alice was still glancing at the pond with wide eyes.
"I-I felt some…claws! It felt like the claws of a bear!" Alice replied in exclamation.
Michelle furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.
"The claws of a bear?" Michelle asked.
The two froze as they heard a muffled voice coming through the pond.
"Do not be afraid! I mean no harm!" said the anonymous voice.
Alice crawled backwards, wondering to herself if this is a dream or not.
Michelle started to feel even more puzzled, but her eyes widened in surprise.
Then muffled footsteps were heard…and the sound fainted.