The whispering continued to grow louder, a soft hum that vibrated through the cool night air, settling deep into their bones. The trees around them rustled again, but this time, it wasn’t just the wind. It was more deliberate, like something—or someone—was moving within the shadows. Lila’s eyes darted nervously from one tree to another. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and she could feel the faint pulse of panic rising in her chest. "I don’t like this," she whispered, barely audible "It doesn’t feel right." Maya frowned, her usual sass fading as the atmosphere around them seemed to thicken."Yeah, no kidding, Lila," she muttered, her voice tinged with uncertainty. "Maybe we should go back. This is getting weird." Sam, the one who usually would’ve scoffed and rolled her eyes at anything that scared her, stood still. Her lips pressed into a tight line, and she glanced nervously toward the woods. There was something in the air tonight, something she couldn’t shake. She didn’t want to admit it, but the truth was starting to sink in: there was something here something that didn’t belong. The whispering grew more distinct. The voices sounded like... names. but with an eerie twist. And they were so close. "Lila... Maya... Sam..." All three of them froze. It was hollow, and filled with a deep sadness. Lila, took a slow step back, feeling the icy chill wrap around her like a blanket. "No... it’s not just the wind," she said, her voice a whisper Sam stared ahead, her usual bravado slipping just enough for her to finally admit what was happening. “I don’t know what this is... but we need to leave, now.” But before they could move, —a shadow twisting between the trees, almost like a figure just out of sight. The shape was tall, its form barely distinguishable against the dark backdrop of the forest, but there was no mistaking the presence that radiated from it. It was moving toward them. “What the - is that?” Maya whispered, her bravado completely gone. “Is that... real?” “I don’t care if it’s real or not, we need to go!” Sam’s voice was tight, her usual sharp edge gone, replaced with raw fear. She grabbed Lila’s arm, pulling her toward the path. "Move, now!" But the figure didn’t let them go so easily. As if responding to their fear, it lurched forward with unnatural speed, sending a wave of cold air crashing into them. The shadows around them seemed to grow longer, stretching toward them like fingers reaching for their ankles. “Maya! Sam!” Lila cried out, her voice trembling with panic. “We need to run—” Before they could make it more than a few steps, the ground beneath them shook with a deep, resonant sound—like something ancient, something old and forgotten, awakening beneath their feet. The whispering turned into a screeching wail, and all the trees The shadows twisted and swirled, almost alive with hunger. "Run!" Sam shouted, her voice nearly breaking. She wasn’t sure if she was trying to save them, or herself. All that mattered was getting away from whatever it was in the woods. Maya, Lila, and Sam bolted, running through the dark, their breath coming in ragged gasps. But the whispering followed them. No matter how fast they ran, no matter how many turns they took, the sound of those voices seemed to chase them, always just behind them. Suddenly, the ground beneath Lila gave way. Her foot slipped into a hole in the dirt, and she screamed, tumbling down into a shallow pit. Her friends stopped dead in their tracks. “Lila!” Maya cried, rushing back toward her. Sam hesitated, her eyes flicking to the woods, the shadows still closing in. But she couldn’t leave Lila behind. Not again. She dropped to her knees, grabbing Lila’s hands and pulling her back up. They were barely back on their feet when a loud snap echoed through the forest. They all froze. The figure—they could see it now, its form shifting and expanding, as though the very darkness had taken shape—was close. “Get up, get up!” Sam shouted, practically lifting Lila to her feet. “We’re not dying out here.” The air around them felt suffocating, like it was trying to crush them. They could feel the weight of something older, darker, just waiting for them to give up. The whispers clawed at their minds, gnawing away at their resolve. Maya, the sassy one who usually wouldn’t admit to being scared, felt it then—the chilling realization that they weren’t going to outrun this thing. The figure was faster than them, and it was everywhere, its presence smothering them from all sides. "Shut up and run!" Sam snapped, pulling her friends through the gap just as the figure reached them. The shadows were so close they could feel the cold brush against their skin. The whispers grew into a maddening chorus, louder and louder, until it was all they could hear. And then, just as quickly as it had started, everything stopped. The figure vanished, the whispers falling silent, and the air grew still. But the danger was still there...
me <33 !!
