Milan leaned against the crumbling brick wall. The chilly autumn air hitting his face as he tried to calm his breathing.

Usually, the house was pleasant and tranquil but tonight was very different, the house seemingly darker than normal. No light was anywhere to be found, not even the alluring stars he normally saw through the holey roof. The sconces that hung along the walls filled with aged spider webs. Leftover dried candle wax hanging from them.

The house smelled as if an old man had sprayed his stale and musty cologne everywhere, reminding Milan of his deceased grandfather. Milan’s nose scrunching in disgust as he breathed in again, the smell growing stronger as he thought about it. Mold was probably somewhere in the house, from what Milan could smell but he couldn’t see any.

Milan’s eyes wandered as his friend picked up random knickknacks. By the amount of dust on all the small and delicate items, Milan was sure this house hadn’t been touched for decades, maybe more. The house was quite creepy, maybe it was the cracked walls or the way everything in the house creaked like an old swing set. Every move Milan made in the home made a creak, every step he took creating a different sound… if that was even possible.

Besides the creaking of the house, it was inordinately quiet. The silence of the home was spine-chilling to Milan. Caution was written all over his face as he continued taking steps further into the home.

His fingers tracing the cracked lines on the walls. Stepping onto dried leaves and sticks that must’ve fallen into the house. Milan’s mind wandered as he took in the small yet very decorated building. Wondering what this rundown place had looked like in the past. The walls were now a decaying brown color but Milan was almost sure the brick was once a vibrant red. The pictures in the picture frames on the walls were now almost black but Milan was sure they used to be beautiful photos, too bad they had been ruined by nature.

Nature was a mysterious thing to Milan, usually beautiful but also abnormally destructive. Nature ruined beautiful things. Like the home, for example, Milan knew the house used to be beautiful but now the cracked walls, holey roof, and smell of decaying furniture really ruined all senses of beauty.

Milan shook his head as he covered his nose, the smell finally overwhelming him. Milan turned to walk back out of the house for some much-needed fresh air but as his hand fell on the door he realized it had become completely silent. Not even his friend’s breathing could be heard. Confusion going on Milan’s face as he looked over to where his friend had been.

The brunette girl was now gone. 

“Safija,” Milan spoke, as his hand fell from the doorknob.

His eyes slowly scanned his place. If he knew his friend he knew she’d try and scare him. It was Safija’s thing to do but as Milan looked around the small home he realized she was nowhere to be seen. Wondering if maybe she had just walked outside for a breath of fresh air, maybe he had been so zoned out that he didn’t hear her open the creaky door. Shrugging, not too worried yet, he put his hand back on the wooden door, opening it though as he pushed the door open it had felt like somebody had pushed him through the door. 

A sudden brightness stunning his eyes, Milan stumbled forward dramatically as his eyes suddenly burned.