What's Your favorite Scary Movie?

By Evelyn Matias

I remember very little of that night. I don't feel like remembering. My last night there seemed like decades ago. It's a cold place. Silent. And the air was heavy. I drove down a hill past the big sign next to the highway. It read “54” and I checked my phone. No service. It was weird. There was service 30 minutes ago. The sun was setting, it was around that time it got darker sooner. After a mile or two it was completely dark and I hadn't seen a single gas station. Actually. I hadn't seen anyone. No cars, no buildings, no people. With the same dirt fields on each side. “The road seems to never end.” I thought. Until…I saw a woman. She walked down the road in dirty bell bottom jeans and a striped shirt, her blonde hair parted in the middle with a distant look in her eyes. As I drove past her she stared at the car. She stayed still as she watched, I stared at her until she was a dot on the rear view mirror. I swear I saw her smiling. When I looked back at the road I noticed a building. It was what looked like a convenient store. I pulled over. When I came in I felt weird instantly. I looked up to realize the man staring at me, he smiled. I looked away from him as I was not very social. I noticed a woman in the store too. Blonde hair parted in the middle. Dirty bell bottom jeans. And a…striped shirt. Eventually I came up to the counter and he smiled at me again as I put my drink down. I could stop looking at her. She smiled at me. “It’s a wonderful day, right. Eric” he said. “Yea-” I took my eyes off her. He said my name. I heard my name. When I looked back she had walked over to the dark hallway that led to the bathrooms. “What did you say?” I said. “Are you ok, sir.” He said with a confused look on his face. I looked over at her. With her back facing us, she started scratching her head with both of her hands. Her nails repeatedly, going back and forth into her scalp. “Are you ok, sir.” the man repeats. She scratched and scratched until I swore I saw something peak out of her scalp... “Are you ok, sir.” the man repeated. “What the fuck?” 

I ran out of there. Got in my car and I sped off. I was not gonna stick around to whatever that was. After a couple of hours I felt safe enough to calm down. But before I could I heard sirens from behind me, a police car was following me, red and blue lights spinning around. I parked the car to the side of the road and waited for him to walk next to my window but he never did. “Do you know how fast you were going?” He spoke in a country accent from the window farthest from my seat, his chest the only visible part of him. I jumped, letting out my breath I've been holding in. “I'm sorry I'm a little…tired.” I said. “Licience and registration, please.” he said, dismissing me taking out his note pad and clicked his pen. I searched for my papers. “The radio has been acting up…Is there no service here?” I asked him as I handed him my papers. He laughed. “...You're not from here are you?” he said. “No. I'm from-” I responded simply. “Michigan.” He laughed again, clicking his pen. “Yeah. I was heading west…” I responded. “You were…” He laughed and paused as if he was waiting for something. “...Have a good night, sir” He said. I watched him as he walked away to his car. He got in and sped past him. I drove off as soon as he was out of sight. The road was silent, vacant. Too silent for my liking. I turned on the radio, tuning through the stations as I drove looking for any type of music but there was nothing but what I made out as distorted 1940 music and preachers... And something else underneath faint sounds of some kind of animal? I was creeped out to say the least. 

Suddenly a red truck appeared out of nowhere. I hit the right light as I swerve into a sign. Avoiding the truck. It stops in the middle of the road. I lift my head up from the wheel and take a couple breaths before I move. I watched from my mirror as the man inside got out and walked… but something was not right. He walked a couple steps and then side to side and then would repeat the same movements. His back turned, he walked away from the wreck, like his bones were too heavy for his body. 

I got out worried for the man but soon that worry turned to fear as he started to make a sound so inhumane and animalistic. Then fell to the ground. I stood there terrified. After what seemed like an hour I walked closer to him. He wore tapered clothes that seemed to have been put on inside out and his face…his face…To this day I can't forget his face. His eyes wide open, his mouth slightly opened and… black tongue. Sometimes I see his face in the dark. It looked… horrified. I ran to the door of the motel and knocked on the door. An elderly woman and man answered. “Please help me!” I screamed. They looked confused. “What's wrong?” The old woman asked. “What do you want?” The man said, annoyed. “Shh. Shh” she said, grabbing my face. “There's a man outside!" I said, leading them outside but he was gone. My car still crashed into the “vacancy” sign. “Where?” He said, looking towards the road. The man stopped as if he realized something… and laughed. I turned behind me and she was laughing too. “It's ok.” she said, leading me to the motel. I asked for a room. That's all I could think to do. I wasn't going to go on that road until sunrise. “That was quite a crash. Do you wanna lay down on the couch?” the man said. “No, I'll lay down…in my room.” I rejected the offer. My eyes darted around the room at the dead animal head on the walls. “It's ok to be afraid. We were all afraid.” He handed me a key with a red tag- on it had the number 54 written on it. His forced smile wiped off his face. 

I took it and headed to the room. I threw up as soon as I entered the bathroom. My stomach hurts. My head was dizzy. I laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. Soon I was asleep and I woke to knocking. It was the old man. In my room, mumbling to himself, his face covered by shadow. “Sir, wha-” I said. “Shh. The night is listening.” He said, laying his elbows on the rocking chair. “I don't understand why you're in my room.” I said with the strength I could. “This room is not ours…it's not from here. It never has been…but sometimes it lets us speak.” he stops rocking the chair. He shakes in his seat. “We have been here for a long time. It doesn't let us rest. We just let it do what it has to do.” he says crying. “What…Please… get out of my room.” I said, confused. “So many horrible things happened here and this place remembers everything.” he said, swigging back and forth. “No. I can't. I can't…” he stopped and went silent suddenly, folding his hands in front of himself, and started to rock in his chair again. “Are you ok?” I said. He starts to laugh, standing up from his chair, folding himself backwards. Dislocating his limbs at unnatural angles. Something came out of his mouth... Something red? No someone…I don't want to remember. I can't.