It had been the middle of summer, hot as ever, when the 3 small children went to play in the nearby woods. It was hot, the sun beating down, but the shade of the trees made for perfect cover. The sun seemed to break through each tree in strands, as they ran and tripped and laughed. Anna, the youngest, had short blond hair and was as bubbly and happy as ever. Sara, the middle child was kind, and caring as she had always been. and Bella, the oldest of the trio, was responsible, but sometimes selfish. The three girls ran for a what seemed a long time, until they came across something strange and out of the ordinary.
A bed, old with broken, rotted wood, lay in a small clearing. It was without a mattress, or quilt. The girls, hesitant at first, inched there way closer. Bella ran up to it, wondering where it had come from.
"Maybe there's someone around... We should go." Anna whispered.
"What's under it?" Sara examined it, overcoming any fear she had had.
"It looks like a hole!" Bella said, moving the bed aside.
"Like from Alice and wonderland?! I love Alice and wonderland!" Sara was exited now, leaning over the pit of darkness.
"I wonder how deep it is... It looks like there's no bottom!" Sara leaned over, peering into it. It was silent. Anna took a rock and through it down, hoping to hear the splash of water, or hit of rock. But there was nothing. It was just darkness.
"Sara, You're going to fall in!" Anna said, while approaching her friends.
"I won't fall in..'" She mumbled, staring into the darkness. "Maybe there's something down there..." She thought.
"It's endless! You can't go down there!" Anna warned her.
"Who said anything about-" the ground underneath the poor girl caved in, and she went flying down the hole. They reached for her, but it was too late.
"What do we do? We have to call someone! We have to help her!" Anna panicked.
"Guys! I'm ok! It's dark down here... But there's a light down this tunnel! I'm going to go see what it is!" Sara yelled. Anna sighed a sigh of relief, but realized she was going deeper.
"I'll go find a rope to pull her up. You stay here in case something happens." Bella ran into the woods, leaving the small girl alone. She sat there for a half an hour, looking at the trees listening to the birds... When she herd a scream. She stood up so quick she almost fell down again, but she dug her shoes into the ground. She looked around. Was Bella in trouble? Another scream echoed through the trees. It was coming from the hole.
She looked down into the darkness. "Sara! Sara are you ok?!" No reply. "Sara-" just then, the girl spotted movement. In front of her... A shadow. It grew bigger, as if it were coming from the hole. She stumbled back. She saw it... The shape of a man. A tall, lean man.
She didn't have time to think. The little girl turned and ran into the woods, breathing hard and trembling. She ran and ran as fast as her tiny little feet could take her. Never in her life was she so scared. She hadn't been running long when she came to another small clearing. She looked around her, checking if the monster was still there. When she knew it was gone. She fell to her knees. The grass was so soft...
In the distance, she saw a lantern moving. She realized it was dark now... Maybe what she had seen was her mind playing tricks..
She caught her breath, and went toward the light.