We arrived at a clearing and just like that, the feeling of being watched vanished. It was… beautiful. Too beautiful a clearing to be left in seclusion. Seb thought the instant his gaze landed on it.
Sebastian's eyes drifted around the place, settling on the most conspicuous thing in sight. If you hadn't guessed already — it was a tree.
Crooked, its trunk adopting a serpentine curl, coiling until its canopy hovered so low it almost brushed the ground like a bowing, submissive maid.
The clearing was roughly circular, though the edges were uneven, as if nature got bored halfway through drawing it. The centre held an island of light surrounded by the dappled shadows of the trees. Those trees themselves leaned ever so slightly. Outward, giving the impression they were trying to get away from the clearing — impossible, of course, considering their roots.
Wildflowers and scattered leaves covered the ground, though surprisingly few for an unkempt land. Almost like someone's maintaining the place… but who would bother cleaning fallen leaves in a forest? He wondered.
Seb's gaze returned to the isolated tree at the centre, its shape strange enough to provoke suspicion.
Do trees normally grow like that… or was it forced? his thought spiraled through the many possibilities
"Alright," he muttered, "what's the story of this place? Someone died, right? Something gruesome?" He glanced at Chloe.
She looked… stunned. In awe? not at the question but at the place
Wait— were they the first to pay a visit to this creepy abode?
Fuck seems like where the beta testers of this place.
He decided to ask again, hoping that it was just his assumption and that others had been here and this was most important, that they had left the place in one piece
"Chloe," he tried again, taking a cautious step forward, "are we the first ones here?"
A smile spread slowly across her face before she spun towards him.
"Your job is to stand there and watch for anything unusual." she ordered.
"Unusual? Hmph. You're one to talk—literally the embodiment of unusual."
She ignored him continuing with an explanation
"And to answer your first question — YES, someone died here. Violently of course" she smiled. "A serial rapist killed one of his victims here, That I think is the story being told about the place"
Seb gulped. "Bro why are you smiling. Like just saying shouldn't you be showing a different expression, you no like sadness or like some pity for the girl "
She paused, her gaze piercing as she looked at him. "I see. I'll keep my mouth shut."
She smiled then continued.
"The facts around her death aren't public, but ghost fanatics know this spot. I read on the website that a price had been placed on the place. Whoever managed to get something from the place and pictures to prove it could sell it for a lot."
"How recent? and how much" he asked .
She sat down, already pulling out a sketchbook from God-knows-where, drawing while casually snapping photos.
"Mm… three years ago, maybe. Then a company bought out the whole reserve. Actually," she paused, tapping her pencil against her chin, "the fanatics didn't care until the company cordoned this area off, last year as you've probably inferred from climbing the barricades."
She shut her notebook and tucked it away.
"So your in need of money?" he asked, his brow furrowed
"No...Just interested in strange places". He looked down at her to check if she was joking just interested she said. fuck am with a potential serial killer. He noticed that she wasn't drawing anymore. This confused him as although he wasn't an artist or anything but wasn't that too quick.
"You're done?" he asked. "You drew so fast? Let me see."
"No." She stated flatly, ignoring him walking past into the clearing. She then took out a camera proceeding to take pictures of the tree from different angle.
"Why not?" Seb followed while asking. "Just a glimpse will suffice"
She shot him a dirty look which stopped him in his track. She continued to take pictures then paused to look around. She then walked closer to the only flower in the clearing which happened to be near the tree.
She began looking at it from different angles nodding from time to time. Proceeding to then produce a small shovel and container.
Seb blinked. "Where did you even get those?" He asked crouching besides her.
"Watch the surroundings," she said flatly. "I need to harvest this flower."
"Sure" he stood up resuming an alert state. This got interrupted by a curse from Chloe. "Fuck how does a flower have such stubborn roots" she swore. He looked down angling his eyes to see the root system---- they where deep
"Some flowers have deep roots," he offered. "Sunflowers can go 5–10 feet down. Just cut it above the stem, no need to excavate half the forest. The organisation that owns this place probably has rules against—"
"I told you," she snapped, sitting back, exhausted from digging, "I want it alive for now, okay?"
"Do you have shears?" he asked. She nodded.
He held out his hand. "Hand it over."
She passed them reluctantly.
He took it then lined the shears—
"Wait!" Chloe frantically waved.
"What now?" he groaned. He seriously wanted to get this done and be out of here. God knows what was waiting for them to come out. No need giving it enough time to prepare for them.
He paused, An interesting thought had just invaded his mind. What stopped the creepy gaze he felt on his back, did the thing not see them enter or maybe is this place...
"I want the whole plant. To pot, you fool!." she interrupted his thinking with a rather high pitch scream
He stared at her like a teacher staring at a self proclaimed genius who decided one plus one surely was eleven not two
"Is your brain like a bag of Walker's Crisps?. Obviously heavily Inflated but disappointedly empty? If you want to grow the bloody flower, just cut a piece and replant it. Did they not teach you that in school?"
She glared. "Who are you calling a bag of crisps? You're the airhead. I told you — I want the whole thing for aesthetic photos. And look at where you were about to cut it, you donkey. You'd remove all the pretty parts!"
She snatched the shears and tried to cut it herself from the roots end…The roots didn't budge
"The roots are pretty." He asked, a bit confused by her exclamation. "what the fuck," he added "those shit look so creepy. What sort of twisted sense of beauty do you have."
She huffed in exhaustion. She then turned to him with pleading eyes. "mind helping" She asked, her voice filled with hope.
He sighed, rolling up his sleeves.
He then took the shears aiming to cut it.
Nothing. Not even a dent.
Chloe burst into heavy laughter.
The switch for pitiful to full blown mockery. His expression turned nasty.
"They're blunt," he muttered, trying to salvage what was left of his pride."Yes. Too blunt," she wheezed.
"They're new," she added.
Seb straightened. "Enough humiliation let's go. This plant isn't normal might be special planted. And this place gives me goosebumps. Listen— no birds, no crickets… nothing."
He had noticed it when thinking of the reason why he still felt uncomfortable with the place, even though the gaze on him had stopped.
Chloe also paused, only noticing it when Sebastian had pointed it out.
She brushed off her clothes and packed up. "Don't panic, wimp. I read insects avoid areas with big temperature differences. And look around — almost no vegetation. That might also be a reason."
She finished packing and headed out. Seb followed very closely. Pride be damned.
They reached the barricade again and climbed over, heading through the shrubs intending to leave the creepy clearing. Well...they walked straight into another breath-taking clearing.
"Wow," Chloe breathed.
Another tree. Another impossibly perfect circle. Another too-beautiful, too-quiet space.
Seb frowned. "Why does that tree look exactly like the other one?"
"Maybe the organisation made multiple clearings like this," Chloe suggested.
He turned to leave, but she stopped him with a tug.
"What now— don't tell me you want to draw again. If you do, I swear I'll slap you unconscious, tie you up, and drag you out. Forget the law."
She gave him a look of pure disdain, then pointed to the ground.
The flower. The disturbed soil.
His blood ran cold. He rushed to the far side of the clearing— same tree. Same flower. Same eerie silence.
He paused to think then he grabbed Chloe's wrist and dragged her to the barricade while he thought rather hopefully that maybe just maybe if they rushed out it would be just a case of coincidence.
They turned left this time, pushing through the packed brush—
Another clearing. Same tree. Same flower. Same horrifying stillness.
Chloe's voice shook slightly. "Seb...it seems something is wrong."
"Wrong? Something is wrong?
He threw his hands up dramatically.
"Wrong your grandmother! May your rice forever be slightly undercooked!" 🍚
following his outburst he sank to the ground in defeat close to tears.