Katie sat quietly between the two boys, rolling her eyes each time one reached over to poke the other. She shook her head and turned to watch the scenery flying by. She absolutely refused to let herself get dragged into the boy's poke war. 'For twenty-five year olds, they sure act like they're twelve,' she thought absently.
"Kaaaayyyteeee," Seth whined, giving her his best puppy dog pout. "You love me right?"
She tilted her head slightly and raised an eyebrow at him.
"See, she loves me better," Andy said as he nudged her side.
The boys gave each other dirty looks and exchanged bruising pokes again. They had been poking each other for three hours and fighting about whose side she was on. Katie was getting annoyed at the constant jostling and noise. All she wanted to do when she got to Crystal Lake was take a walk through the pristine and quiet forest.
"Both of you shut up!" Sarah shouted, glaring into the rearview mirror. "The next one who speaks has to walk home."
Seth and Andy clamped their mouths shut and traded horrified expressions. Knowing Sarah, she WOULD make them walk all the way back to Ohio. Katie smiled slightly and focused intently on the picturesque image of Crystal Lake in her mind.
"About damn time," Jake muttered from the passenger seat, "Finally…Gaze in wonder and awe at Nowheresville, West Virginia."
Riveted, the five stared at the tiny main street. A small hardware and general store, boutique, and diner were nestled between empty and graying storefronts. No people walked the street, no children played on the derelict playground. The few houses they had passed as they entered the town limits were as shabby and silent as the center of town seemed.
"The entire town became Jason's victim…" Katie said quietly.
No one in the car could take their eyes off the passing homes as they continued to the supposedly cursed campgrounds. After the slaughter in Washington several years ago, the town had died a slow death. Not even the government had the guts to go after the masked killer.
No one had seen even a drop of blood spilt by Jason Voorhees in over five years. Excitement seekers had even started to camp on the banks of Crystal Lake and survived. Rumors passed around ranged from Jason being dead to being imprisoned in a secret government facility. Still, people were living to tell the tales of their night at the famed camp.
Katie wondered why she had agreed to go along in the first place. The legends themselves were terrifying, let alone all the damage one man did to the nation's capitol. She would have loved nothing more than spending the weekend curled up with her latest romance novel but Sarah was very persuasive. And the thought of wandering alone through untouched wilderness, the night sky brilliant with stars, was extremely enticing. She knew both couples would be off…doing whatever and she would be left to her meditation alone.
Sarah finally pulled the jeep off the main road and onto a worn dirt path that was walled in by trees. They bumped and ground their way for a few minutes before breaking into large clearing. The predetermined campsite was not far off, very near to 'Camp Blood' where the legend of Jason started. One by one, they exited the car and stretched their cramped limbs. Katie took in a deep breath of the clean air, drawing in the scents of pine and damp leaves. To her, the mixture of scents were like heavenly and filled with the promise of a good weekend.
Jake popped the trunk and the three boys started to unload the equipment. To say that they had over packed was an understatement. When the jeep was finally unpacked, the pile on the ground had reached a ridiculous height. The five stared at the over large pile with disbelief and a hint of fear.
"Why did we think we needed all this crap?" Sarah said, placing her hands on her hips.
"Because Seth couldn't live with out his whole freaking wardrobe," Andy said gesturing at a mass of duffle bags.
Seth sniffed and glared at his boyfriend. "And Andy couldn't live without the whole damn grocery store."
Katie nodded behind Sarah, agreeing with Seth that they had certainly packed plenty in the way of food. She picked up her one backpack and gathered some of Seth's lighter bags to carry. He gave her a smile in thanks as the group started to head to their site. Luckily, it was close enough that they didn't have to worry about making multiple trips.
By mid afternoon the tents had been erected, sleeping bags had been unrolled, and lunch was being made. Everyone was soaked with sweat from striking camp but each one was brimming with excitement. After lunch they were finally going to get to explore the famous camp. Rumor had it that most of the original buildings were still intact. They buzzed and passed around stories and myths they'd heard about Jason Voorhees. After they had cleaned up their meal, they started out toward the site of the birth of the legend.
On the other side of the lake, the hulking figure of a man paused in his trek. He lifted his head and turned in the direction the group of friends were camping. He always knew when someone had entered his forest and where they were at all times. He started walking again, this time with a sense of purpose. The light summer breeze swirled strands of fine ashen hair around the faded hockey mask. He paid no mind to the sounds or surroundings. His focus stayed on the energies of the intruders, the quiet voice of his beloved mother whispering encouragement in the back of his mind.