John inched the car along the gravelly road through the fog in search of a place where he could stop and rest, and resume his lengthy drive up the coast in the morning. Drowsy-eyed, he continued to direct the car toward the ever-growing light which, seconds before, had pierced through the fog like a star in the dark wilderness. When John reached the crest of the hill, the light that was beckoning him forward now mingled with his headlights and illuminated a house which seemingly drifted in the fog, not 50 feet from where John now got out of the car. As he approached the house, John noticed that everything was very still, but eerie. He kept walking towards the house. He couldn't help but feel that this house was very familiar. He stopped to look around the area. There were vines crawling up the side of the house, giving a vacant feel to it. There were rows of dead rose bushes with dead petals fluttering in the wind. There was a forest with echoing shadows that moved through the night. Bats were flying overhead hunting for food. John could hear a lone wolf howling with the wind somewhere in the distance.
After about a minute or so he started to walk towards the house as it groaned in the stillness of the night. He noticed a black cat sitting on a rock, staring at him. The cat was thin with a rugged body. John walked closer to the cat. The cat purred and jumped up into John's arms. He walked to the stairs and set the cat down. The cat pawed at John's arm trying to pull him back to his car as if telling him to leave. He pushed the cat away and then started to walk up the stairs.
When he reached out to knock on the door a raven swooped down and clawed his arm. After a trip back to the car and four more animal attacks by a raccoon, a crow, a bunny and a snapping turtle, and he finally made it back to the house. He started up the stairs again.
The old house creaked with each footstep as John ascended the steps towards the guiding porch light. The wind picked up, blowing the fog silently across the moonlight which shone down on the house. As he reached out to knock on the door, he became aware of his heart pounding, just as it had done that late October night when he and his friend had gotten lost. They were about thirteen and had skate boarded down the same street John was just on. They had walked up to a house and knocked on the door, no one answered so they opened the door to go in. They walked through the musty house, looking for the people who lived there. After a minute or two they started up the stairs. At the top there was a door with the lights on in it. They walked into the room.
On a rocking chair in the corner of the room, there was what seemed to be an old man sitting in the chair, staring out the window like he was in another world. The boys walked closer to the man when all of the sudden he turned into a giant red gummy bear. The gummy bear got up and started chasing the boys. John remembered the bear had a gun with him. He kept running even faster than his friend. It all happened so fast the running, gun shot, the cries and even the blood curdling screams that rang through the night. His friend had been killed. All of the sudden a scream came from the forest brought him back to reality. That's why this house was so familiar. He knocked on the door. With no reply, he knocked again.
The second knock was answered by a feeble, ''Come in.'' John slowly opened the door starting towards the living room. He looked in seeing cobwebs and dust covering the stair rail. He walked in a few feet into the room and saw all the old paintings lining the walls with shimmering cobwebs in the frames. The floor moaned with every step. Bats hung sleepily from the rafters. John walked slowly through the rooms one by one looking for anyone. Finally, he started up stairs to the top floor where the bright light beckoned him closer. He walked into the room on the right seeing there was nothing in there he walked to the next door over. In this room was the black cat, he had crawled through the window. He had a note in his mouth. John took the note and read it. It said, "TURN BACK WHILE YOU STILL CAN, JOHN!" John wrote back, "Why?" The cat walked closer to John and looked as though he was reading the note. The cat said, "John if you don't get out of here it will be too late." John replied," You just talked. This can't be real. Cats can't talk." "Well I can, but you must hurry out of here before it hears you!" "No, I will not leave I want to find the people who live here so I can talk with them." The cat suddenly looked frantic, "I warned you John the people are next door, but remember I warned you." With that the cat jumped out the window. John walked over to the door where the people were, and he took a step in.
Within this room sat what appeared to be an elderly lady in a rocking chair, her back to the doorway, seemingly content to stare out her picture window into the drifting fog. As John approached her, he noticed that she had very wrinkly skin. She was wearing a floral dress with a white apron. The room smelled of green apple. In a tiny voice she said, "I've been waiting for you, John."
Her wrinkly skin began to turn smooth and turn green. The next thing John knew, he saw the old lady turn into a giant green gummy bear. The gummy bear got up and faced John. She had a rope and knife with her. John ran for the door.
Five days later, they found John's body hanging in a tree. John's girlfriend filed a missing person's report four days earlier. His body had been stabbed multiple times and was covered in what seemed to be green gummy bear goo and blood. In the house they found the knife that he was stabbed with. They found no other signs of life besides the lights on.