ghost story

“Thereʼs no other way to tell the story. You have to start at the beginning.

"She was plain, almost boring. Everyone hated to say it out loud, but it was true. Nothing about her was distinctive. No discernible personality traits, no striking physical features. She wasnʼt ugly, but she wasnʼt pretty either. She was, very much, just another face.

"No one gave her a second glance. She hated it. She hated feeling invisible. She hated feeling ignored. She hated them for making her feel those things.

"At some point, she got brave enough to try to do something to change how she felt. She approached a group of her classmates to try to talk to them, to make friends so she wouldnʼt feel invisible, but her words failed her, and they laughed. Her attempt was useless. He hatred boiled anew. There was no hope for her anymore.

"She hiked to the lake, bright green with algae, one dark, moonless night. The wind whispered fiercely through the branches of the naked trees as she waded into the water until she couldnʼt touch the bottom, and she made herself sink. All she saw was unending blackness.

"Even though she lay motionless underneath the surface of the water with bright green algae, as soon as the sun retreats from view, she rises from the depths, alive with the power of her hatred and misery, doomed to roam the earth for a million nights. Her only purpose in this realm is to bring her rage upon those who still ignore her. Thereʼs no other way to tell the story except as a warning: Donʼt go into the lake, and donʼt ignore anything around these parts. You may die hahahahaha”

The leader clicked off the flashlight he had been holding underneath his chin with an over dramatic cackle, and several students shrieked. Most of them eventually started laughing along when their leaderʼs laugh change to a more natural sound. The campfire in the middle of their circle crackled happily.

The sounds echoed deeper into the woods that served as a barrier between the campgrounds and the lake, overpowering the noise of something heavy snapping branches as it drew nearer. Water dripped from its soaked figure, marking a wet path as it moved from the lake.

Thinking the sounds from the woods must be some animal, the campers ignored it.

Mistake.