The Haunted Woods

The campout had been Peter’s idea, but he was beginning to regret it. All he had wanted to do was have some of his friends over for a campout in the back of his yard. He had never wanted to pitch the tent so far from the house, but Noah had insisted they were too close to the house. Before he knew what was happening, Noah had somehow convinced everyone to move the campsite to the woods. Peter would never admit it to the others, but he really didn’t like the woods at night.

“Isn’t this great?” Frank said to the group. “It’s the first time our parents have agreed to let us camp in the backyard.” All the other boys shouted in agreement except for Peter. Peter didn’t want to stay there, but he would never admit that to the others. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, and Peter started to relax. Maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea after all. The sound of a twig snapping stopped everyone’s laughter. Three of the boys grabbed their flashlights and pointed the beams at the woods, but no one could see anything.

“Is anyone there?” Frank hollered out into the darkness, but no answer came. The boys decided it had been nothing and began to talk again when they heard another twig snap. This time, instead of turning on their flashlights, they all became quiet. They moved closer to each other, and everyone listened for any noises that might help them identify what was out there in the darkness of the woods.

Peter looked around at the group and somehow felt responsible. After all, it was his campout. Even if he hadn’t wanted to come out into the woods, everyone was here because he had invited them. Before anyone could say anything to stop him, he grabbed his flashlight, turned the beam on high, and headed towards the sound of noise. The other boys watched, frozen, as he rushed into the woods and disappeared into the darkness. Then they all jumped up, ready to help, but before they could even gather their own flashlights, Peter came back to the camp, leading his dog Jackson by the collar. Jackson barked and bounded at the boys, licking them all in the face. Everyone agreed Jackson wasn’t so scary when they could see him and not just hear him!