The screen door slammed shut with a sharp crack, echoing through the quiet cornfields. Lucy Wild stormed down the steps, her party dress fluttering around her legs, her shoulders rigid with anger. Her mother’s voice chased after her—a mix of worry and frustration.
"Lucy! You’re not hearing me! Just… please be careful tonight!”
Lucy didn’t look back. Her friends were waiting, headlights cutting through the early autumn dusk, the car engine idling with growing impatience. She spotted Ashley leaning out the window, her long hair whipping in the wind.
“Lucy! You hear me?” Her mother’s voice broke, edged with something close to desperation. “Stay away from—”
But Lucy was already in the car, slamming the door and sliding into the backseat. Ashley glanced over her shoulder, curiosity lighting up her face.
“What was that about?” she asked, eyes wide with interest.
“Nothing,” Lucy muttered, folding her arms and sinking lower in her seat. “She’s just… paranoid. Thinks I’ll end up pregnant after a school dance, like she did.”
From the driver’s seat, Hailey looked back, one brow raised, a smirk tugging at her lips. “She’s gonna lose it when you head off to college next year.”
Lucy rolled her eyes, forcing a laugh that came out too tight. “It’s just a dance. She needs to relax.”
Ashley turned around fully, a mischievous grin spreading across her face. “A dance with Todd? You guys are still together, right?”
Lucy paused, her expression softening. “Yeah, of course.”
But another face flashed through her mind—someone her friends didn’t know about. Someone her mother had warned her about, even if she’d never spoken his name.
The thought made her heart race, but she shoved it aside, slipping into her familiar, well-practiced smile. “Let’s just get there already.”
Hailey laughed and revved the engine, the car kicking up dust as they sped away from the house. In the rearview mirror, Lucy saw her mother standing on the porch, arms folded tightly around herself, silhouetted against the golden fields. She looked away before the image could settle in her mind.
Tonight was about freedom, about finally making her own choices and no longer letting others decide for her.
The gym pulsed with music, the bass thudding through the walls as colorful lights spun wildly across the room. Couples danced close, holding on to each other like no one else in the world existed.
Lucy weaved through the crowd, offering smiles and waves. Her energy drew people in without effort. She spotted Todd near the punch bowl, and his grin widened the moment he saw her.
“Hey, you made it,” he said, leaning in to kiss her cheek. His hands were warm on her shoulders—comforting, familiar.
“Of course I did. Wouldn’t miss this for the world.” Her voice was sweet and smooth, almost rehearsed. She meant it—but not in the way he believed.
Todd took her hand and guided her onto the dance floor. They moved in sync, his arms wrapped around her waist, his breath brushing against her neck. She rested her head on his shoulder, letting herself get lost in the rhythm, the glow of the lights, and the soft pulse of the music. It felt easy, safe, and familiar.
But the usual thrill was missing—the spark that had once electrified her was gone.
Her eyes drifted to the gym doors, her heart skipping a beat. Was he out there, waiting for her, daring her to come find him?
Todd pulled back, his smile soft, his eyes warm. “I’m glad you’re here, Luce. I missed you.”
A pang of guilt tightened in her chest, but she pushed it aside. “Me too.” She smiled up at him, letting her fingers rest on his arm a moment longer than necessary. “Hey, I’ll be right back. Just… need some air.”
His face faltered for a second before he masked it with a quick nod. “Yeah, okay. I’ll wait for you.” She didn’t wait for him to say more. Slipping away, she moved through the crowd, her pulse picking up as she pushed through the heavy gym doors into the cool night air.
The sky stretched above her—dark and endless, scattered with stars that shimmered like distant whispers. The field unfolded ahead, pale and still beneath the moonlight.
She knew the path by heart, even in the dark. After all, this was her family’s land. Across the dirt road, through the corn rows, all the way to the old mill where shadows moved and secrets waited.
Lucy’s breath caught as she stepped off the pavement, her heels sinking into the soft ground. She glanced back once, her heart jumping when she saw someone standing at the gym doors, watching her.
Todd. His shoulders slumped, his face half-hidden in shadow. He looked so small, so... lost.
Her chest tightened, but she turned away, stepping into the corn as the stalks closed around her. She moved quickly, dry leaves brushing against her skin, the dirt cool beneath her feet.
She pictured him waiting for her, leaning against the old wooden beam, that familiar crooked smile playing on his lips. He’d probably tease her for taking so long, his voice low and knowing. A shiver ran through her, anticipation stirring in her stomach.
But the field was too quiet. Unnaturally still.
Her foot slipped, the ground giving way beneath her, and she stumbled, reaching for the corn stalks to steady herself. They snapped under her grip, brittle and dry.
A branch snapped behind her. She spun around, pulse hammering, eyes searching the darkness. The corn was too thick, shadows shifting under the moonlight.
“Hello?” Her voice barely carried, thin and unsteady, swallowed by the night.
No answer. Just the rustling of leaves, the slow sway of the stalks.
She stepped back, her heel sinking into the soft earth. Another step, and the ground seemed to pull at her, unsteady beneath her weight. Her heartbeat pounded in her chest, a sick, hollow thud.
“Come on,” she muttered, more to herself than anyone else. “Don’t be stupid.”
But the feeling lingered—eyes watching her, just beyond the reach of the moonlight.
She turned and moved faster, the dry corn scraping against her skin, shadows creeping closer.
Then, she broke through the last row, stumbling into the clearing by the old mill. It loomed above her, dark and crumbling, its shattered windows staring down like empty eyes.
She stopped, gasping for breath, her pulse erratic.
The clearing was silent. The air, cold and still.
He wasn’t there. No one was.
She was alone.
And somewhere in the corn. Something stirred.