---
Kim and Rose stumbled out into the cold night air, the music from the party muffled behind the walls. The wind was low and heavy, brushing past them as if the world itself was disappointed.
Kim rubbed the back of his neck.
"I… I think we crossed the line, Rose," he muttered. "I've never seen Sarah that angry. She's always quiet, or sad… but never like that."
Rose grabbed his wrist sharply, nails digging in just enough to hurt.
"Kim, did you forget what she did? What she said? All those stories she tells behind people's backs? The way she's been trying to use you so she can brag to everyone she finally 'caught' the cute boy?"
Kim shifted uncomfortably.
"But still… it's her birthday. And we embarrassed her in front of everyone."
Rose's eyes flickered—annoyance, then panic, then something darker.
"So what? Don't tell me you're falling for her now," she hissed. "Is that why you feel guilty?"
Kim flinched hard.
"No! No, I'm not. I just—" he exhaled shakily. "I just feel wrong about this."
Before Rose could pull him back into another desperate hug, a loud voice exploded behind them.
Lola.
"Oh my GOD, you two! Why are you hugging outside? I've been waiting for you inside!" she groaned dramatically.
Kim sighed. "We got kicked out. I think maybe… maybe we should just go home."
"Go home?" Lola laughed. "Absolutely not. We need to teach her a lesson."
Kim blinked. "A lesson?"
Lola pointed toward the back of the house.
"I saw a whole field earlier—a garden or something. Oh! And there's a scarecrow. What if we destroy the crops? And maybe paint on the scarecrow? It'll be fun."
Rose lit up immediately, eyes shining with twisted excitement. She turned to Kim, silently begging for a yes.
Kim's voice was low.
"What if she presses charges? What if we get caught? What if she tells the police?"
Rose stepped closer, brushing his arm.
"Why do you think she won't do anything? Kim… she won't tell anyone."
Her smile sharpened.
"Relax. Trust me."
Kim didn't relax. His stomach churned. But Rose's grip was firm, and Lola was already skipping off with a bucket of paint she'd snatched from somewhere. He followed reluctantly, each step heavier than the last.
---
The Field
The night had fully settled now—dark, cold, and strangely still. Their footsteps snapped leaves underfoot. The air smelled like damp soil and broken stems.
They crashed into the field, destroying vegetables, stepping on crops, laughing too loudly for how quiet the night was.
They reached the scarecrow.
It stood taller than any scarecrow Kim had ever seen—broad shoulders, long arms, an unnatural silhouette under the moonlight. Its button eyes stared straight ahead—empty but too aware.
Lola dipped her hands into the bucket of thick, dripping paint and smeared it across the scarecrow's chest.
"It looks so human," she giggled. "Creepy, right?"
Rose grabbed a tomato and hurled it at its face.
"Take that, bastard!"
Lola laughed.
"Kim! Your turn!"
But Kim didn't move.
He stood frozen, breath shallow.
The scarecrow's button eyes… they weren't just staring.
They were watching him.
Something cold ran down his spine.
He didn't understand why.
---
Inside the Party
Someone burst in—one of Adrian's close friends, face pale and breathless.
He leaned down to Sarah and whispered urgently:
"Sarah… someone in the field. They're throwing tomatoes at your scarecrow. And they're destroying your crops."
Sarah's heart stopped.
She had told them to leave.
She had begged for peace.
But now they were hurting the one thing she had left—the scarecrow she had spoken to for years, her quiet comfort, her silent friend.
And… —
No.
No, she couldn't allow that.
She ran.
---
The Confrontation
The moment she stepped into the field, her breath caught.
Half her garden was ruined. Stalks broken. Leaves torn. Paint dripping from the scarecrow's body.
Kim turned toward her, panic rising.
"Sarah—wait, I can explain—"
But Adrian stepped in front of her protectively.
"There's nothing to explain," he said coldly. "Look at what you did."
Sarah pushed past Adrian. Her voice trembled, but she locked her gaze onto Kim's eyes—deep, hurt, desperate.
"Kim," she whispered, "what have I ever done to you?"
Kim froze.
Sarah's voice cracked harder.
"We've never had a fight. I've never hurt you. I've never spoken badly about you. So tell me… why are you treating me like I'm your enemy? Why are you acting like I'm this… this stain in your life?"
Her tears slipped, but she didn't look away.
"All I ever did—" her lips trembled, "—was love you."
Kim's heart stopped.
He knew she liked him.
But love?
He had never imagined that.
Behind her, Adrian felt something inside him collapse.
He always knew Sarah had feelings for Kim… but hearing it out loud…
He wondered:
Was he always just a replacement? Would she ever look at him the way she looked at Kim? Does she still love him?
The ache hollowed him out.
Kim swallowed hard, unable to hold her gaze.
He grabbed Rose's arm.
"Let's go," he said, voice cracked.
He pulled her and Lola away with shaky urgency.
Lola stuck out her tongue playfully as she left.
"Bye-bye, crybaby!"
---
The Scarecrow
Sarah collapsed to her knees, tears hitting the earth.
She tried to remember if she had ever—ever—done anything to deserve this. Anything at all.
Adrian knelt behind her, pulling her into a deep, warm embrace. No words. Just a hug that tried to hold her together.
But they didn't see it.
Behind them, the scarecrow's painted body stayed still… but the shadows around its feet began to darken.
A slow, pulsing aura leaked out—silent, angry, alive.
Its hollow eyes didn't blink.
But they spoke.
A voice, cold and venomous, whispered—
not aloud,
but directly from the scarecrow's mind.
"Who do you think you are… touching what is mine?"
---