Slasher Summer(53)
The woods at night teemed with shadows and sounds. The gentle hoot of an owl and the creaking of tree limbs. The occasional drip of rainwater caught on cedar needles. Despite the fullness of his surroundings, Jason barely registered any of it. He was too busy stewing in the black hole of his unnameable feelings. Trying to sort them like an overflowing basket of laundry. Every step he took grew harder, as if the terrain was reflecting his personal challenges.
He remembered when he and Tiffany had first met. He’d been an earnest thirteen-year-old helping out at a high school football practice. He’d gotten involved in order to spend more time with his dad and brother, since Dad was the coach and Billy a quarterback. Their lives revolved around football, and Jason hadn’t wanted to be left out.
The popular girl from Jason’s middle school had been watching the practice from the bleachers. She pointed to the field like she was choosing a flavor of ice cream, turned to her dark-haired friend and declared, loud enough for everyone to hear, “I’m going to marry that boy one day.”
That had been Tiffany, and her friend had been Jennifer de la Fuente, before Jen’s parents had split up and she’d chosen Wednesday Addams as her role model.
It would be another couple of years before he and Tiffany started dating. He’d assumed she’d been pointing at Billy that day, until he noticed she was always smiling and giggling when he was near. Despite her intentions, she’d stubbornly resisted making the first move. But once she’d joined the cheerleading squad and dropped some not-so-subtle hints, he’d finally mustered the courage to ask her out.
At first, he reveled in the thrill of “winning” her, like she was a tournament trophy. Just as she’d intended. Tiffany Podemski, the prettiest girl in town, was dating him. His reward for being the most popular and well-liked guy in school.
But Tiffany wasn’t a prize if Jason no longer wanted to play the game.
He rubbed his cheek and his thumb came away dark. He’d been so lost in his own head that he hadn’t felt the sting of a scratch. His arms and legs ached like he’d just run a marathon. He must have blacked out and lost track of time and place. Trepidation tightened his chest. He’d been having more of these moments lately, disassociating when he couldn’t hold back the storm anymore.
“Mikey?” he called out, ashamed he’d forgotten the real reason he was out in the woods. “Tiff?”
He should have caught up to her by now. Sweeping the flashlight around, he suddenly realized why his walk had increased in difficulty. Because it had. Instead of following the shore, he’d strayed up the ridge that bordered the lake. He was literally taking the high road after his confrontation with Tiffany and couldn’t see the water anymore. Fuck.
Mentally berating himself, Jason checked his phone on the off chance he could get a signal this far from the cabin. A chill spread over his skin as he noticed the time. He’d been walking for over an hour. He’d told the others to meet back at the cabin ten minutes ago, and now they were going to think something had happened to him. Would Freddy flip out? Would Jen argue they give up and head to town? Would Carrie get upset, thinking her ex Daniel had hurt Jason in a jealous fury?
Jason hoped Patrick would be able to keep everyone calm. But knowing Patrick, he would send everyone out again to find him. Jason had to hurry back, with or without Tiffany and Mikey. It had been a mistake to split up. He should’ve listened to Freddy’s insistence they stick to the horror movie rules.
Studying the compass, Jason did his best to loop back toward the cabin. His knees and quads ached as the terrain roughened and sloped downward. But at least he was headed in the right direction. The scent of lake water was growing stronger. He caught a glimmer between the dense trees, as glittering as the stars above.
Thank God the lake was nearby. He’d follow the shoreline back to the cabin and stop the others from splitting up again. It would be easier if they all remained in one place, like Patrick had originally suggested. Hopefully Tiffany had checked the time and headed back as well. If she remembered to stay close to the lakeshore, she’d be able to find her way without the compass.
Jason quickened his pace, half jogging between the trees as if he were dodging the opposing team’s defense line. A near-hysterical laugh escaped his lips, a sound that would’ve shocked Tiffany if she’d heard it. All that football turned out to be good for something.
The flashlight’s nimbus bobbed in front of him—and caught on a large, angular shape in the distance. Jason stopped and rubbed his eyes, trying to figure out what he was seeing. The old fire tower? No, that was in the opposite direction from where he and Tiffany had started out.
He padded a little closer, turning off the flashlight. His instincts screamed at him to stay hidden, and those instincts had served him well on the football field. When a bunch of burly guys were trying to mow you down, you had to trust and obey your gut.
To his surprise, the shape solidified into the ruins of a cabin. Just how long had he been wandering in the woods? Then he realized the structure was more basic than the Slasher cabin’s family dwelling. It was little more than a shack, the roof partially caved in and splintered gray logs snarled by moss and saplings. Now this looked like it belonged in a horror movie, not the picturesque rustic getaway of the Slasher cabin. If Freddy were here, he’d babble about hillbilly cannibals or vengeful forest witches.
Jason was much more logical. It made sense there might have been people living here before Park Services had put the forest under their protection. He grew hopeful. This sign of human settlement meant he was getting closer to the lake.