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- 40
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- Grek
The Cabin
The sounds of the bar had died down as it approached midnight. “Last call!” the barkeeper yelled, his gaze scanning the near-empty room until it fell on one man sitting alone at the bar, empty mugs around him, staring in what seemed like oblivion. He approached him. “You don’t drink that much unless you're try'n to forget something. What happened? Your best mate took your girl or something?”
The man stared into his glass. “If it were just that... at least then they'd still be alive.” The bartender took a step back. “You didn't?!” A grimace crossed his face as he reached for a panic button.
“No, I...” His eyes told more than his words. “I couldn't. I... I had to.” The bartender studied him for a moment, then grabbed a couple of mugs. He poured the man another drink before pouring one for himself. “How ’bout you start from the beginning, eh?” The man took a long drink.
“My friend, Frank, was throwing a party. He had found a cabin in the woods. I've seen horror movies, but this was real life. I brought my girlfriend, Heather, and my best mate, Ken.” His voice was shaking lightly. “We arrived a little late. As we drove up, Heather stared at the cabin through the windshield. ‘Doesn't it kinda look like it's watching us?’ she said. I looked at her. ‘What?’ She then pointed at the second floor. ‘The windows, don't they look like the cabin's eyes?’ Ken laughed, I laughed, even Heather started laughing. But now... anyway.” He took a sip of his drink. “Everyone was already drinking, dancing... you know, party stuff as we came in. Well, except Jake. He was leaning against the wall and seemed off, just staring into his cup, like he was waiting for something to happen. So I went up to him and asked what's up.
“‘It's this cabin,’ he started. ‘I don't remember seeing it. I walk these woods all the time.’ I blew it off at the time, said something about the woods being big and something like this could blend in with the woods easy enough. Didn't even think how easy it was for us to find it on the drive. He just nodded. ‘Yeah, you're probably right, but this place just gives me the creeps.’ That should have been my ‘This ain't right, time to go’ moment, but I ignored it. That's when Ken came back with a drink for me.” His hands were trembling as he pulled his collar like his clothes were fitting too tight.
“It wasn't long before people started complaining ’bout how hot it was, how humid it felt, but that stuff happens all the time when you got that many people in a small place. Ain't like the cabin had AC. Samantha was the first, I think. As the party went on, she just disappeared. Last anyone saw, she had gone to the bathroom. But no one remembered seeing her since. Gideon suggested she'd probably just left early, after all she wasn't one for parties or people.
After a while, I lost track of Heather and Ken. Viki said she had seen them going into one of the upstairs bedrooms. I got scared, but mostly angry. I went storming up those stairs, thinking ’bout what they could be doing up there. As I got to the top, Heather stepped out of the bedroom, closing the door behind her. I went right up to her, damn near yelling, demanding to know what she was doing in there.
“‘It's not what you think,’ she said, ‘Ken's drunk. I took him up here so he could lie down.’ I tried the door, locked. I yelled through the door at him, started pounding on the door, calling his name. By this time, I had drawn a crowd. Suddenly, the door flew open and I fell inside. His clothes were scattered all over the room. The window was wide open. Ken was gone.
“‘You son of a bitch!’ I yelled. Everyone started piling into the room, looking around. I figured he jumped out the window and ran. So I headed back down the stairs, with Heather grabbing my arm, telling me she doesn't know what happened to him, that he was clothed when she left. That he couldn't even get out the window. He was too big. I had stopped on that, in the middle of the stairs, as my thoughts got pulled away by Jake.
He had yelled, asking if Samantha left. The others looked at each other and, in different ways, said yeah. That's when Jake dropped the big one. Why is her car still here? He started on something about how foggy the windows were, but I had my thoughts elsewhere. Where was Samantha, and Ken? Sure, he was great at football, as long as it was a video game. If he managed to go out the window, he would be on the ground, probably with a broken leg or arm. I couldn't tell you for sure, but I think that is when Gabby went missing, during all the commotion. Don't remember seeing her after that.
It was at that time a loud pop sounded and the lights went out. Someone said it was probably a fuse or something. Viki and Wade went down to the basement to check it out. It wasn't long before the light came back on. I continued down the stairs, heading to the front door, until I stepped on the long carpet with a wet squish sound. I thought someone had spilled something on this dreadful red carpet. I didn't realize that the entire carpet was soaked, and now that I think about it, I don't remember seeing it when we came in.
I thought I heard Jake say something, but when I looked up the stairs, he was gone. I called to him, but no answer. I looked around, and that's when I noticed. Gabby, Viki, Wade. None of them were here. It was just Frank, Ash, Heather, and me. Heather clung closer to me. I thought it was some big prank, everyone just hiding and waiting for one of us to freak out, so they could jump out and try to scare the shit out of us.
Frank went upstairs to look around. Then we heard it, a crunch. Something glass had broken underneath his foot. Frank called back down. ‘Dude, it's his watch.’ That's when it really hit me. Jake had told us about that watch. He had gotten it from his father before he deployed overseas, and he never came back. He would never leave that watch lying on the ground, not for a joke. Not for anything.” He stopped, his hand tightening around his mug before taking another drink.
“I... I had to leave. I grabbed the door and pulled, but it wouldn't budge. I started slamming into the door. Again and again, I heard Frank running down the stairs behind me. Heather was crying. After... I don't know, four or five slams, the door finally opened. I mean, swung open. I fell through and down the steps outside. Then I heard Heather scream. ‘Please, help me!’ I looked back and saw it. The rug had wrapped around her leg and was dragging her deeper in. I couldn't move. I... I didn't know what I was seeing. Heather was screaming, reaching for me. God, I remember the terrified look on her face, the tears, as she was being pulled farther. Ash and Frank... I didn't see them. I don't know what happened to them, and the door slowly closed. The creak. I can still hear it now. Then there was nothing.
I ran. My keys were in my jacket, and that was inside the cabin. I wasn't going back, I couldn't, so I just continued running. I ran and ran until I got here. And well...” He gave a weak chuckle as he stared into his now-empty mug. “Here I am.”
Sweat ran down the bartender's forehead. For a moment, he just stared at the man, then he laughed. “That was a good one. And just in time for Halloween.” He set his mug down and shook his head. “But if you are going to say you left your jacket behind, you probably shouldn't be wearing one.” The man's empty chuckle left, his eyes looked up to the bartender. “Wha... What? What jacket?”
The sounds of the bar had died down as it approached midnight. “Last call!” the barkeeper yelled, his gaze scanning the near-empty room until it fell on one man sitting alone at the bar, empty mugs around him, staring in what seemed like oblivion. He approached him. “You don’t drink that much unless you're try'n to forget something. What happened? Your best mate took your girl or something?”
The man stared into his glass. “If it were just that... at least then they'd still be alive.” The bartender took a step back. “You didn't?!” A grimace crossed his face as he reached for a panic button.
“No, I...” His eyes told more than his words. “I couldn't. I... I had to.” The bartender studied him for a moment, then grabbed a couple of mugs. He poured the man another drink before pouring one for himself. “How ’bout you start from the beginning, eh?” The man took a long drink.
“My friend, Frank, was throwing a party. He had found a cabin in the woods. I've seen horror movies, but this was real life. I brought my girlfriend, Heather, and my best mate, Ken.” His voice was shaking lightly. “We arrived a little late. As we drove up, Heather stared at the cabin through the windshield. ‘Doesn't it kinda look like it's watching us?’ she said. I looked at her. ‘What?’ She then pointed at the second floor. ‘The windows, don't they look like the cabin's eyes?’ Ken laughed, I laughed, even Heather started laughing. But now... anyway.” He took a sip of his drink. “Everyone was already drinking, dancing... you know, party stuff as we came in. Well, except Jake. He was leaning against the wall and seemed off, just staring into his cup, like he was waiting for something to happen. So I went up to him and asked what's up.
“‘It's this cabin,’ he started. ‘I don't remember seeing it. I walk these woods all the time.’ I blew it off at the time, said something about the woods being big and something like this could blend in with the woods easy enough. Didn't even think how easy it was for us to find it on the drive. He just nodded. ‘Yeah, you're probably right, but this place just gives me the creeps.’ That should have been my ‘This ain't right, time to go’ moment, but I ignored it. That's when Ken came back with a drink for me.” His hands were trembling as he pulled his collar like his clothes were fitting too tight.
“It wasn't long before people started complaining ’bout how hot it was, how humid it felt, but that stuff happens all the time when you got that many people in a small place. Ain't like the cabin had AC. Samantha was the first, I think. As the party went on, she just disappeared. Last anyone saw, she had gone to the bathroom. But no one remembered seeing her since. Gideon suggested she'd probably just left early, after all she wasn't one for parties or people.
After a while, I lost track of Heather and Ken. Viki said she had seen them going into one of the upstairs bedrooms. I got scared, but mostly angry. I went storming up those stairs, thinking ’bout what they could be doing up there. As I got to the top, Heather stepped out of the bedroom, closing the door behind her. I went right up to her, damn near yelling, demanding to know what she was doing in there.
“‘It's not what you think,’ she said, ‘Ken's drunk. I took him up here so he could lie down.’ I tried the door, locked. I yelled through the door at him, started pounding on the door, calling his name. By this time, I had drawn a crowd. Suddenly, the door flew open and I fell inside. His clothes were scattered all over the room. The window was wide open. Ken was gone.
“‘You son of a bitch!’ I yelled. Everyone started piling into the room, looking around. I figured he jumped out the window and ran. So I headed back down the stairs, with Heather grabbing my arm, telling me she doesn't know what happened to him, that he was clothed when she left. That he couldn't even get out the window. He was too big. I had stopped on that, in the middle of the stairs, as my thoughts got pulled away by Jake.
He had yelled, asking if Samantha left. The others looked at each other and, in different ways, said yeah. That's when Jake dropped the big one. Why is her car still here? He started on something about how foggy the windows were, but I had my thoughts elsewhere. Where was Samantha, and Ken? Sure, he was great at football, as long as it was a video game. If he managed to go out the window, he would be on the ground, probably with a broken leg or arm. I couldn't tell you for sure, but I think that is when Gabby went missing, during all the commotion. Don't remember seeing her after that.
It was at that time a loud pop sounded and the lights went out. Someone said it was probably a fuse or something. Viki and Wade went down to the basement to check it out. It wasn't long before the light came back on. I continued down the stairs, heading to the front door, until I stepped on the long carpet with a wet squish sound. I thought someone had spilled something on this dreadful red carpet. I didn't realize that the entire carpet was soaked, and now that I think about it, I don't remember seeing it when we came in.
I thought I heard Jake say something, but when I looked up the stairs, he was gone. I called to him, but no answer. I looked around, and that's when I noticed. Gabby, Viki, Wade. None of them were here. It was just Frank, Ash, Heather, and me. Heather clung closer to me. I thought it was some big prank, everyone just hiding and waiting for one of us to freak out, so they could jump out and try to scare the shit out of us.
Frank went upstairs to look around. Then we heard it, a crunch. Something glass had broken underneath his foot. Frank called back down. ‘Dude, it's his watch.’ That's when it really hit me. Jake had told us about that watch. He had gotten it from his father before he deployed overseas, and he never came back. He would never leave that watch lying on the ground, not for a joke. Not for anything.” He stopped, his hand tightening around his mug before taking another drink.
“I... I had to leave. I grabbed the door and pulled, but it wouldn't budge. I started slamming into the door. Again and again, I heard Frank running down the stairs behind me. Heather was crying. After... I don't know, four or five slams, the door finally opened. I mean, swung open. I fell through and down the steps outside. Then I heard Heather scream. ‘Please, help me!’ I looked back and saw it. The rug had wrapped around her leg and was dragging her deeper in. I couldn't move. I... I didn't know what I was seeing. Heather was screaming, reaching for me. God, I remember the terrified look on her face, the tears, as she was being pulled farther. Ash and Frank... I didn't see them. I don't know what happened to them, and the door slowly closed. The creak. I can still hear it now. Then there was nothing.
I ran. My keys were in my jacket, and that was inside the cabin. I wasn't going back, I couldn't, so I just continued running. I ran and ran until I got here. And well...” He gave a weak chuckle as he stared into his now-empty mug. “Here I am.”
Sweat ran down the bartender's forehead. For a moment, he just stared at the man, then he laughed. “That was a good one. And just in time for Halloween.” He set his mug down and shook his head. “But if you are going to say you left your jacket behind, you probably shouldn't be wearing one.” The man's empty chuckle left, his eyes looked up to the bartender. “Wha... What? What jacket?”