It was loud.
You never liked loud places. Too many voices. Too many people saying things that never really mattered.
But here you were.
Winter break. Cold air. Mountains stretching white and gray against the sky.
Your friend Kiel had invited you.
You weren’t sure why you said yes.
Maybe because he asked like it mattered.
Maybe because you were tired of watching life from the side.
So you came.
And when you arrived, you saw the others.
Victor, already laughing about something stupid.
Ashton, checking gear like he was leading some expedition.
Ashley, smiling politely at everyone, trying to make the group feel like a group.
And then there was Cyrene.
Ash-blonde hair. Perfect posture. Perfect confidence.
She looked at you once.
Then looked away.
Like she had already decided what kind of person you were.
You didn’t mind.
You were used to that.
These weren’t the kinds of people you normally spoke to.
But they were the ones you’d be with for the next four days.
Four.
That was the plan.
Simple.
A camping trip in the mountains of Sweden.
Cold air biting your cheeks as the tents went up.
Six teenagers pretending they knew what they were doing.
The first day passed easily.
Too easily.
Victor told jokes around the fire.
Cyrene complained about the cold but laughed anyway.
Ashley passed around snacks she had packed.
Ashton talked about hiking trails like he’d memorized the whole map.
Kiel sat beside you once.
"You glad you came?" he asked.
You shrugged.
But you stayed.
And for a moment, it felt normal.
Like the world wasn’t so complicated.
Like this trip might actually be… good.
Then the second day came.
Rain.
Not gentle rain.
Heavy rain.
The kind that made the forest smell like wet bark and old earth.
Victor had an idea.
A stupid one.
"Let’s check out the woods," he said.
A journey.
A short one, he promised.
Just a quick walk.
You followed anyway.
Now the forest surrounded all of you.
Dark trees.
Branches clawing at the sky.
The path had disappeared somewhere behind you.
The only light came from a small flashlight in Ashton’s hand.
It barely touched the ground.
Everything beyond it was shadow.
Cyrene groaned behind you.
"What the fuck is wrong with all of you?"
Her voice echoed strangely between the trees.
"Let’s just find somewhere to rest. Because I am not going to be walking through this disgusting forest all night."
Ashley sighed, raising her hands slightly.
"Calm down. Arguing isn’t going to help anybody."
Ashton kept moving.
Pushing branches aside, glancing down at the compass in his hand.
"Quit whining," he muttered.
"We’ll be fine."
Victor laughed again.
But the laugh sounded different now.
Thinner.
The forest felt wrong.
Too quiet.
No birds.
No insects.
Just the rain tapping softly against the leaves.
Your boots sank slightly into the mud as you walked.
Then you saw it.
A tree.
Carved.
Not initials.
Not something tourists would leave.
A symbol.
Deep grooves cut into the bark.
Old.
The wood around it had darkened with age.
You slowed.
Nobody else noticed.
They were too busy arguing ahead of you.
You looked closer.
The carving almost looked like… antlers.
Or hands.
You weren’t sure.
But it made your stomach tighten.
Further ahead, Ashton suddenly stopped.
"What?"
Cyrene snapped.
He didn’t answer immediately.
He was staring at something hanging from a branch.
A small bundle of sticks tied together with red thread.
Victor tilted his flashlight toward it.
"A charm?" he joked.
Nobody laughed.
The wind moved softly through the trees.
The bundle twisted slowly.
And for a moment—
Just a moment—
You thought you saw something move deeper in the forest.
Too tall.
Too still.
Watching.
You blinked.
It was gone.
Kiel turned back toward the group.
"Relax," he said.
"Probably just locals messing around."
Nobody argued.
But nobody looked relaxed either.
The rain grew heavier.
And somewhere deeper in the woods—
A branch snapped.
Not from the wind.
Something large was moving.
Something that had already noticed.