Episode 02: Fear of Clowns
“I’m actually scared of clowns, too,” you murmured, hoping the opening for a tease would distract one or both boys from each other's presence. It worked, as Cardner took the bait with a smirk.
“Oh, you think pedophile clowns are scary? I can do better.” You quirked a curious eyebrow at him as he took an empty spot next to the quiet Gidget, who gave him a weary look. It appeared Cardner wanted in on their fun after all. “You guys know that old cemetery down Eastern drive?”
Next to you, Lexi groaned. “Oh come on, not that stupid story again.”
“What story?” you questioned, unable to help yourself.
Lexi attempted a response but Cardner hushed her harshly. “Hey, I’m telling the story.” He then turned to you, his expression suddenly serious. “You moved here recently so I’m not surprised you don't know the story yet. There's a graveyard down Eastern drive that's no longer in use and is crazily overgrown. Some of the headstones are missing and broken and I heard one of people living nearby found some remains in their backyard. Even today no one really knows for sure where the graveyard ends.” Just him saying that fills you with dread. “Next to it though, is where an old couple burned alive in their home.”
A chill runs up your spine but not from Cardner’s words alone, but from the way he said it with an intense look boring into you and words low and husky. You swallowed thickly and venture on, “What happened?”
“Legend says the elderly woman used to be a witch, and the elderly man would invite strangers, normally the young and stupid, into their home but never would they come out again,” Gidget supplied. Her voice was soft and whispery, barely heard above the incessant sound of rain carrying on its efforts like a desperate stranger trying to get in. “One night a neighbor claimed to have heard would could have been a child's scream, but it was warped nearly beyond recognition. They looked out their window to see what was happening, and instead found a child plastered to the second story window, his skin dark and graying, mouth opened impossibly wide as if his jaw had been broken, and staring out into nothingness with empty eye sockets crying tears of blood.”
It was as if Gidget had cast a spell on the room, everyone impossibly quiet and deathly still, listening intently to a story they must have heard time and time again. “The neighbor screamed and the cops were called, but they turned up nothing. The elderly couple was once again getting away with whatever evil was happening in that house and the neighbors, angered and seeking justice, took matters into their own hands. Armed with fire and crosses, they smashed through the front door and stormed the house.
“No one ever speaks about what they say in the old Victorian home, only what they did. They strung up the elderly couple to two crosses and watched them burn along with their cursed house.”
“To this day, if you walk by where empty plot you can still smell the foul odor of burning flesh and inhuman howls,” Cardner finished, but he barely got the words out before a demonic growl tore through the classroom and shook the building. The group nearly jumped out of their skins, Lexi’s hands covering her mouth but failed to stifle her scream. It was Cardner who broke the tension, draping himself over the back of his chair with a hand combing through his red hair and a chuckle that sounded more nervous than amused. “Damn thunder.”
→
“...”
→
“But it's just a story right?”