A Spooky yet Thrilling Adventure

“A Spooky yet Thrilling Adventure” is one of the outstanding stories of the first biannual International Short Story Contest 2018 written by Divyansha Kirola, The Indian Heights School, India.

A Spooky yet Thrilling Adventure

As I walked through a desolate street, I spotted an ancient house with archaic architecture at the end of the road. It looked jaded yet beckoning. I wanted to marvel its beauty forever when I spotted an inscription mentioning that it was built half a decade back. The house wore a forlorn look and hence I entered without giving it a second thought. As I approached the rusted gate that once was a sentinel to the house, opened by itself. I walked through the front yard tangled with overgrown grass and reached the door.

The door swung open with a creak revealing the outmoded furniture covered in a thick layer of grime, swinging cobwebs, peeling wallpaper, cockroaches scurrying around on the floor. A gloomy narrow flight of staircase in ruins called out to me to explore the rooms above. As I climbed up, a shadow whipped past me and the door of the adjacent room squeaked open. The curtains were old and ripped; and the windows of the room were smashed with glass pieces everywhere. I turned away from the room and walked. A stench hit me and I realized that I was in the kitchen.

The drawers were opening and closing as if they were trying to box someone but all I thought was that house was a bit unusual and strange. Then suddenly I heard thunderous footsteps on the stairs so I rushed to see who was making it and realized it was only a cat. But I was suspicious that a cat could be so tumultuous. I moved on and went to another room. I could sense that something was wrong but my curiosity to explore this strange house couldn’t stop me. I was examining a piece of china kept in the showcase, when I heard the television speak “go back”! I was petrified and my heart skipped a beat. I stumbled on something and found a piece of paper wrapped around a creepy figurine on the floor. I read it out to myself “heed my warning or it will be your doom, leave this house and never come back.”

My heart came out of my chest when creepy thoughts flooded my mind like a lightning bolt. I heard a little voice from the washroom “DIE.” I saw a bright light flashing in a room at the end of the corridor. I swallowed my fears and gathered all my strength and bravery and strode towards the room. There was an eerie silence in the corridor and the floor had some red spots which added to the creepy macabre ambience. As I approached near the room, I could hear screeching noises. I nearly jumped out of my skin and was filled by a feeling of immense dread. Now I was sure that this was a ‘haunted house.’ But as I turned back to run away at lightening fast speed, the room door opened and I heard shrilly laughter. It took me some time to come to terms and realize that there was a shooting going on in that house. I took a breadth of relief that I was safe but I thought to myself that how silly I was not to apply my panoramic vision and connect the dots. This thrilling spooky adventure will always stay in my memories and will always bring laughter whenever I narrate it to someone.