Dear Diary,

Today has been an okay day, but my boss is still a total bear. The ride to work today was smooth. My nerves are still on ten because of Sheriff Russel going missing. Plus the missing dog posters at the bus stop. That is really odd for Shenandoah Valley Virginia, don’t you think? And aside from that, my trash cans have been raided every night this week! If this rain keeps up, the river is going to floo–

“Chanel, get back to work!” roars Mr. Bates.

“Ok!” I reply as I put the diary and pen in my pocket and walk out of the kitchen and into the dining hall. The door is always squeaky, so guests always know when food is coming. I walk up to the table and serve the food.

“Ma’am, I asked for no tomatoes,” says a man.

“And I asked for extra tomatoes,” exclaims a woman.

“Can’t you just switch plates? You ordered the same thing,” I reply. They switch and give me a dirty look. That’s another bad review, and the next thing you know I’m going to get fired, I think to myself. 

 A few minutes later…

“You’re fired!” yells Mr. Bates. I storm out and slam the door. While I’m walking to my car I hear loud rustling in the dumpster. It’s hard to see through the pouring rain, so I walk towards the sound. The dumpster rocks back and forth, while trash spews from it. Screech! The commotion ceases, and the rain comes to a sudden stop. Bang! Stomp, stomp, stomp! The dumpster explodes, and garbage rains down around me. I walk behind it to find a massive hole and strange, bird-like footprints leading away. A police officer who had been eating in the restaurant runs out and says, “Ma’am, please back away from the scene!” in a demanding tone.

“Yessir,” I reply. My day cannot get any better from here, I think to myself. I’m too tired to worry about these strange weather conditions.

The next morning…

“And there have been six reported missing. The police are investigating local suspects, but there are no current leads,” blares the news in the background as I wake up. With all the commotion on the news and the loss of my job, I’ve had enough. Maybe I should take a hiatus, I think to myself. I text my friends: hey, do you guys want to play hide and seek at that creepy old farm?

heck no, that place is haunted, texts Gina. 

aren’t we a little old for hide and seek? texts Chris.

I reply, come on, for old time’s sake. Their replies include: sure, fine, and ok. I meet up with them that afternoon to talk about what happened to the farm and why it was abandoned.

“I think it was ghosts!” says Gina.

“No way, I think it was the government,” exclaims Jermaine.

“Nah, it was definitely aliens,” Chris states.

“Aliens–now that is the silliest one yet!” I shout.

“You’ll see, just wait a bit. There will be handwritten proof that I’m right!” Chris replies.

Later that evening…

We arrive at the farm. It’s dark and misty like a graveyard. The open fields dotted with bushes and worn-down fence posts don’t make for good hiding spots, but we’ll make it work.

“Alright, who’s it?” I ask.

“Not it!” everyone says as they touch their noses.

“Haha, you’re it,” Jermaine says to me. The group runs off to hide as I count to thirty. I quickly find Gina, a terrible hider, who has jumped behind a hay bale. Jermaine is not much of a challenge either. He always hides behind or in cars. Although the two are easy to find, Chris is always the best hider. Minutes become hours as we all keep looking for him, and a fog rolls over the night.

 “You win, come out!” we all shout.

“Ahhhhh!” Chris screams in the distance. We rush over to the sound, and as we peer through the bushes we’re horrified to find nothing but a pool of blood and a severed hand with Chris’s watch still on the wrist.

“Omg, is that what I think it is?” I say as I turn away from the scene.

Gina speechless, gasps in horror. Thump! I look down to see that Jermaine has passed out. 

Screech! We hear a strident scream in the distance. A chill crawls up my spine as I say, “We gotta go!”

“Wha-what?” Gina stutters. We grab Jermaine’s limp body and drag him to the house, hoping we will be safer inside. My heart races my feet as we quickly stumble through the wet grass. We swing open the door and lay Jermaine on the couch. The farmhouse is dark and cramped. The only things we can see are illuminated by moonlight shot through the windows and holes in the wall.

“What happened to Chris?” Gina asks.

“I don’t kno–”

Stomp! Creak! I’m interrupted by a horrifying noise. I whisper, “Hide,” then run down the hall and crouch down in a doorway. Bang! The front door flies off its hinges and crashes to the floor! Stomp, stomp, stomp! A massive, haunting creature appears. Almost ten feet tall, its bone-white skull is stained red. What is that? I think to myself. it looks like a dinosaur. Wait, there’s no way it’s a dinosaur. Maybe Chris was right? Maybe it is aliens. 

Stomp! The creature sniffs Jermaine’s body and continues to look around as if it can’t see him. It has no eyes, I think to myself. Jermaine wakes up and gasps loudly. Screech! The creature roars, bites him on the ankle and flings him down the hallway. Jermaine’s face says a thousand words before he disappears into the darkness. 

I run into the closet. The scent of old leather caresses my nose. The screams stop. There’s silence. A feeling of dread drapes over the walls. Stomp! “Omg, what am I going to do?” I whisper. Stomp! Am I going to die? Where’s Gina? What is happening? I think to myself.  Stomp, stomp! Its presence fills the room. Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk. The creature makes a sound like a taser going off. I peer around the corner, and it looks straight at me. It’s faceless and shows no emotion as it walks toward me. Stomp, stomp, stomp! Its shadow slowly creeps up the wall. It’s so close now I can smell it! Thud! Screech!   Stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp!

“Aaghhh–” Splat! Gina’s screams are interrupted by the jaws of the monster.

Am I next?  I think to myself. I’m gonna die today if I don’t do something. I gotta find something to defend myself. I rummage through the damp and dingey closet and find a small box covered in dust. I open it to find some Jack Daniel’s and a collection of lighters. I’m going to light it on fire, I think to myself. Stomp! My courage drops like a rock. Omg, it’s coming, I think to myself. Stomp, stomp! I grab the liquor and the lighter and tip-toe out of the closet. All of a sudden, the beast stands before me. I sense it studying me despite its lack of eyes. I do the same. Its breath stinks of death and its jaws are lined with it. Stomp, stomp! I back up and it pursues me, the walls quickly boxing me in. There is no time to waste, so I strike the beast in the head, smashing the bottle and flicking on the lighter! Whoosh! The room lights up like a Christmas tree as I dive out of the way. Screech, screech, roar! It screams and writhes around the room. Amongst its tantrum, it strikes me in the ankle and storms away.

Ten minutes later…

I’ve been hiding under the bed for what seems like an eternity, and my ankle is throbbing with pain. I muster up the courage to crawl from under the bed. I limp through the dusty old house and out the front door. The night is silent, and the night sky is oddly void of stars.

“Where’s the ca–” Suddenly, the muddy ground beneath me is painted onto my face! I’m being dragged by something powerful through sticks and mud. I try to see what it is, but I cannot. Bang!

I wake up in a dark room. The ground feels damp and cold. I can’t see a thing and a dim light flickers in the distance. I can’t get up. I have no feeling in my legs. Several more lights flicker on and off until they all illuminate the room. The lights appear to have little creatures inside, like tiny versions of the beast that attacked me.

Suddenly it dawns on me.

“I’m in the nest!”  Crack! Chirp, chirp, chirp…