The road out past the old fields wasn’t on most maps anymore. People in town still called it Hollow Creek Road, even though the creek had dried up years ago. If you asked why no one drove that way at night, you’d get the same answer every time:
“Nothing good waits out there after dark.”Of course, that’s exactly why Marcus went.
He had just gotten his license, just gotten his dad’s old truck running, and just gotten tired of people telling him what not to do. So one night, a little past midnight, he grabbed his keys, ignored the knot in his stomach, and headed out.
The town lights faded quickly behind him. Soon it was just the hum of the engine, the glow of the headlights, and darkness pressing in from all sides. The road narrowed, cracked, and bent through dead trees that leaned in like they were watching.
Marcus turned on the radio to break the silence.Static.He flipped through stations. Static. Static. Then, for a second—just a second—he heard something.A voice.“…turn back…”He jerked his hand away from the dial. The radio went dead again.“Okay,” he muttered. “Very funny.”
But there was no one else in the truck.A few miles in, his headlights caught something ahead—a figure standing in the middle of the road.
Marcus slammed the brakes.The truck skidded to a stop just feet away.
It was a girl.She stood perfectly still, her head tilted slightly down, long dark hair hanging over her face. She wore an old, pale dress that didn’t move in the wind—because there was no wind.
Marcus rolled down his window, heart pounding.“Hey! Are you okay?”No response.
“You need help or something?”Slowly—too slowly—she lifted her head.Her face was wrong.Not injured. Not bloody. Just… empty. Like someone had tried to draw a face from memory and forgotten the details.Marcus’s chest tightened. “Okay… yeah, nope.”He threw the truck into reverse—And the engine died.The headlights flickered.
The girl was closer now.Marcus hadn’t seen her move.
His hands shook as he turned the key. The engine coughed but wouldn’t start. The lights dimmed again, plunging the road into shadow before sputtering back.
The girl was now right in front of the hood.Then—she was gone.Marcus froze.For a second, everything was completely still.Then he felt it.A cold breath on the back of his neck.From the back seat.
He turned slowly, every instinct screaming at him not to.She was sitting there.Right behind him.Closer than possible.Her head tilted the same unnatural way. This time, her face had changed—features shifting, like they were trying to settle into something human but couldn’t quite get it right.
Her mouth opened.“…you didn’t turn back…”Marcus screamed and slammed the key again.
The engine roared to life.He hit the gas, not caring which direction he went. The truck fishtailed, then caught traction and sped down the road. In the rearview mirror, for a split second, he saw her still sitting there.Then she was gone.
The radio crackled.“…you brought me with you…”Marcus didn’t stop driving until he saw the town lights again.When he finally pulled into his driveway, shaking and pale, he shut off the engine and just sat there, trying to convince himself it was over.
After a long moment, he reached for the door handle.And froze.Written in the fog on the inside of the windshield, in long, uneven strokes, were four words: IM STILL IN HERE!!!
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