Everything feels fake.
My vision blurred as I stared at the checkered tiles soaked in blood, my blood.
In front of me was my mom, well it looks like her at least.
Her face was plastered with this doting smile that if she weren't holding a knife it would have been a perfect time to ask for an extra allowance
It can copy how she looked, talked, and apparently how she cooked
My mind suddenly wandered to the chili I just ate, there were still some in the pot, maybe I could...
Thud
My body falls flat, I don't feel pain anymore I became used to it, I experienced it more times than I could count already.
Death is slowly approaching but never really catching me
"What did I do?" I asked, my face flat on the ground licking my own blood.
Her steps got closer, I could tell by the sound, is she about to kill me again?.
"Three"
"Let me rest pl-
Stab
Air escaped my lungs as the words I was about to say spilled to a groan.
The sound of steel hitting flesh resounded in the room followed by a grunt that grew weaker each second before finally stopping.
"Excuse me, do you know where James is?"
"Four" I mumbled
"Yes?" The freshman leaned closer sticking my face to a picture of a guy "I didn't quite hear that"
"So have you seen him?"
"I didn't " I took a step back before answering
"Oh ok, thank you" She said before heading towards another freshman probably asking that same question.
A sigh escaped my lips as I stared at the campus. It wasn't that large just your average countryside college, the name "Fern West College" speaks volumes about it.
Gripping the luggage tightly I took my fourth, first step on this campus.
It was crowded, with new faces arriving every minute, half of those faces I knew, I couldn't exactly forget them when they had been my classmates my entire life, but I couldn't say the same about them.
"Hey, Leo!!" I called one of those familiar faces but all I got was this polite smile before he headed to his circle of friends.
"Rude" With no choice I walked left of campus, I passed by more people the longer I walked, and finally, there I saw a dilapidated three-story building.
Pausing I hold a piece of paper in front of me
"206" it reads.
Knock knock
Creak
The door opened slowly and behind it was this buff dude wearing a black t-shirt that was barely able to contain his body
"Sup dude, you my roomie?"
I nod and he lets me pass
"Cool, cool but do know, I get the bottom"
Putting my luggage aside, I looked at him
"Sure, names West Pidder" I offered my hand
"Cool, like the direction"
"I guess"
He took my hand before introducing himself
"Well, names Zach, Zach Heins"
"Oh, almost forgot, do you know where James is?" He asked and my eyes twitched in response.
"A lot of people seemed to be looking for him" I said going to arrange my luggage
"Well yeah, he's supposed to tour us freshmen....let me help you" Zach said helping me pack my clothes
"He could be replaced though can't he, is he some important person?" I proved my heart was starting to beat faster for some reason
"Well replacing him isn't the problem bro, he straight up vanished, looking for him becomes a priority and before he's found we can't start the tour"
"Maybe he headed somewhere?"
"Bro, did you read the message on the campus site?" Zach looked at me dumbfounded
"Hm?" I took out my phone and looked at the site where a flashing red light displayed a news
It boils down to 'James was missing and was last found early morning rehearsing for the tour' and attached to the news was his face.
"Pretty spooky right?" Zack voiced to the side.
'Could it be connected' I pondered before my head snapped back to Zach
"I guess, well, I gotta go, thanks for helping me pack"
....
The campus was large enough to include two dorms to its left, a park in front, and a small field for soccer behind it
At least that was what this outdated map says.
I rolled the map and looked in front of me, it was an open field with one of its sides facing a forest while the other was facing the school.
The sun was at its highest point, making my forehead sweat as I took my phone and looked at the news for the second time.
"Yep, this seems to be the place" I muttered placing my phone side by side to this particular large tree that matches the background of James' missing poster.
Strong wind blew from the forest as if daring me to investigate.
Storing my phone, I look ahead.
"Four....I died four times not knowing anything"
Taking a breath I hyped myself
"It's time to understand why this is happening to me"
And as if to answer, the wind blew harder with a few crows escaping out of the forest in response.
A gulp escaped as I walked closer
The thin trees that are on the front have hidden the view of anything inside the forest, while the wild grasses rustle in the wind
"..."
"Bro, you have to be kidding me"
"We could be popular if we managed to find James here" I explained
"You said you have something awesome to show me" Zach said facepalming "This looks like it's home to Bigfoot"
"Doesn't it make it cool?" I asked and Zach looked at me as if I had said something offensive.
"....."
"....."
The two of us stared at each other for a few seconds before Zach finally let out a nervous laugh
"It's cool, you're right, let's go"
"Wai-
He grabbed my arm as we entered the forest, the thin trees blocked our vision as we maneuvered ourselves through the wild grass
I could only follow quietly while Zach guided me forward until a flash of light hit my face.
"Dude your right" He muttered
It was like a portal to another world, the creepy dark forest exterior had hidden its natural beauty.
Golden leaves lay at our feet and bare trunks of trees spread as far as the eye could see, while the orange light hit just enough to make the whole scene feel both amazing and eerie