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Word Hunt Challenge- lightning/Jungle/claws

By Sara WilsonPublished 10 months ago Updated 10 months ago 23 min read
4

Caroline ran her straightener through her hair one last time. She could never get her hair quite as straight as she wanted. She had inherited the family curse of wavy hair and she couldn't be more upset by it. Caroline wanted the soft sleek shiny hair she saw on all the other girls her age. Not the frizzy blonde mess she always woke up to. "Well..." she sighed, "Guess that's as good as it's gonna get."

She brushed some peach-colored blush on her cheeks and applied her cherry lip balm. "Bye mom!" She shouted, grabbing her backpack and tossing it over her shoulder as she stepped through the front door. Jessica waved from across the street. "Morning Jessie." smiled Caroline. Her friend waved and smiled, flipping her long, dark, perfectly straight hair over her left shoulder. Caroline could feel a fire start in the pit of her stomach. Why couldn't she have that hair? It wasn't fair.

Caroline thought that Jessica was perfect with her shiny chestnut hair, her icy blue eyes surrounded by thick black lashes. She didn't even need makeup. Her cheeks flushed naturally, and she had perfect skin. No fair at all thought Caroline.

Jessica gave Caroline a hug. "Something wrong?" she asked. Caroline shook her head. "So..." began Jessica, "Ryan told me that he and Chris are skipping school today." "Why?" asked Caroline. "They wanna go check out that new store in town. The one with the candle on the sign." "Ok... so what?" Caroline looked confused. "So..." replied Jessica, "They invited us to meet up with them." Caroline smiled. She had been crushing on Chris since the fourth grade. "Well then let's go meet them!" She said, excitedly.

-

"Babe!" Jessica leaped into Ryan's arms and kissed him full on the mouth. Caroline blushed. She was used to Jessica and Ryan's public displays of affection, but it still made her a little bit uncomfortable. She smiled shyly at Chris, who stared down at his shoes. Ryan put his arm around Jessica's shoulders and the four began walking down the street together.

They stopped in front of the black door. There was no name on the door. Just a picture of a flickering candle. The windows had heavy black and silver curtains covering everything that was inside from public view. Chris turned the handle and the four stepped inside. It was dim inside, lit only by candles. The smell of burning sage hung heavily in the air.

"It's a witches lair." laughed Ryan. He pulled Jessica along behind him as he began to examine the contents of the shelves. Caroline began to look around herself. There were beautiful stones and sticks of incense. Glass figurines and big heavy books written in other languages. She dragged her finger down the spine of one of them. There was no title. Just a big black book. She opened it up and began to flip through the pages. Blank. Every single one of them.

"It's a dream journal." came a raspy voice from behind her. Caroline jumped. "It's very cool." She half smiled. "What are you looking for?" asked the woman. She was wearing a flowy purple dress and had her silver hair in a neat bun on top of her head. "Nothing really." replied Caroline, just looking around." "I see." said the woman, arching one eyebrow. She stared at Caroline, who felt uncomfortable. The woman's eyes were almost the same silver shade as her hair. "Perhaps this will interest you." The woman held up what looked like a small antique handheld mirror. Where the glass should have reflected your image back, was a swarm of purple and black clouds that seemed to be moving.

"What is it for?" asked Caroline. "You seek beauty." The woman replied. "This can give you exactly what you seek." Caroline eyed her suspiciously. "How do you know what I seek?" The woman laughed. "Darling, you reek of envy." She looked towards Jessica. "You wish to be more like your friend over there." Caroline shook her head. "I don't." "Don't lie, my dear. Take the mirror." "I don't need it." Caroline pushed past the woman and made her way towards her friends.

"Can we go? " She asked. "There's nothing I want here." shrugged Jessica. She grabbed Ryans hand and made her way towards the exit. "You may want to put those things back, dears." The woman at the counter was putting various herbs into jars and hadn't even looked up upon speaking to the group. Caroline and Jessica looked at each other. "It's in your best interest." the woman sighed. "Not mine." Jessica pulled Caroline to the exit, "She's crazy. Let's go." "I've got it." said Chris, approaching the counter. He pulled his wallet out while Jessica pulled her friends through the door laughing.

-

They had already made themselves comfortable on the grass in the park when Chris came along and sat down beside them. "You guys are the worst." He said, shaking his head. "Check these out." said Jessica. She opened up her backpack and dumped the contents on the grass. There were several candles and a purple velvet bag filled with stones of various shapes and sizes. "What are they for?" asked Ryan as he picked up a small pink stone and turned it over in his hand. "I don't know." said Jessica, "But they're pretty." She snatched the stone and dropped it back into the bag.

"I can't believe you stole all of that." said Caroline. "I can't believe I had to pay for it." Chris said, snatching a small black rock from Jessicas pile. "Income Tax." he said, sliding it into his pocket with a smile. " "I can't believe you're judging me for stealing you little snake!" shouted Jessica, snatching Caroline's bag. "What's this, huh?!" Caroline's eyes widened. In Jessicas hand was the small mirror the woman had offered her in the store. "I didn't take that." said Caroline. "Oh, right. It must've just jumped into your bag." Jessica shook her head, "Hypocrite." She laughed.

"I didn't do it!" said Caroline. "You don't have to lie." laughed Ryan, "It's not like we're calling the cops anytime soon." Caroline shook her head and stood up to leave. "Where are you going?" asked Jessica. "School." said Caroline, flinging her backpack over her left shoulder. "Oh, boohoo." laughed Ryan. "Go cry then." "Hush Ryan." chimed in Jessica. "Caroline..." "See you later, Jess." she said.

-

She had already made a good amount of progress when she heard him calling her name. "Caroline!" Chris called out. "Wait up!" She didn't stop or slow down. He was quickly filling in the distance between them anyway. "Didn't you hear me?" he asked, catching up with her. He was out of breath. She watched her feet as she walked, not replying. "Do you want some company?" he asked. Her ears grew hot. If only he had been asking her this question another time. Not when she had just been accused of being not only a thief, but a liar as well. She shrugged and the pair walked together in silence for a few moments.

"Look, I really didn't mind paying. I always come prepared with extra cash." Chris chuckled. "I didn't take it." Caroline snapped. Chris lifted up his hands defensively. "Ok. Ok." They walked along the road, their feet the only sound breaking the uncomfortable silence. "We aren't really gonna go back to school, are we?" he asked, half smiling in her direction. Caroline's heart did a little flip in her chest. "Come on, let's go grab some lunch."

-

They spent the next few hours laughing, eating, and getting to know each other. Caroline had soaked in every detail Chris had been willing to share. His favorite color was orange. His favorite band was Green Day. His favorite animal was a jelly fish. She didn't want the day to end but was flattered when Chris had offered to walk her home. "Thank you." she said as they stepped up onto her porch. "For everything." He smiled at her, "No, thank you. It's been cool to just be able to chill." She smiled at him and nodded her head. This had to be it. The moment she had been fantasizing about since she first set eyes on Chris. The perfect first date was about to be complimented by the perfect first kiss.

She leaned forward just a bit to show him she was ready. He bit the side of his lip and delivered that little half smile one more time. "You're a good friend, Caroline." he said. "Thanks for playing hooky with me today." He patted her on the shoulder. "See ya around." Caroline could feel her face wrinkling up in confusion. What had just happened? She turned to watch as Chris marched down the sidewalk, never looking back.

-

It had been hours since Caroline had made a total ass out of herself. The sky was completely dark except for the occasional lightning bolt flickering behind the clouds. She had spent the last hour or so laying on her bed with her pillow over her face replaying every embarrassing moment in her mind. She needed to get out of her head. It's not like reliving the kiss that never happened would delete it from existence. She reached into her bag and pulled her phone out, maybe scrolling social media would distract her for a while.

She laid back down and began scrolling through her feed. Jess had set all her candles up and was posting pictures of them. Pictures of Ryan and her sharing kisses in front of the display made her want to gag. Why couldn't she be posting these photos with her crush? She was sick of it all. She continued scrolling until she came across something that made her jaw drop.

A collection of photos of Chris kissing a girl who definitely wasn't her littered her newsfeed. The girl had sleek black hair and almond shaped eyes. She was stunning. Chris had his eyes closed and his lips planted on the cheek of this beautiful girl, her perfect smile filled up the screen of Caroline's phone.

What in the world was happening right now? Why spend a whole day chasing her down and trying to get to know her if he had a girlfriend? What kind of sick joke was this? Caroline was livid. What kind of sick person would do something like that? She tossed the phone into her bag. *clunk* What was that?

She turned her bag upside down, dumping the contents onto her bed. Out plopped the silver antique mirror. "You again?" Had she not left this with her friends in the park? "How do you keep coming out of nowhere?" She picked it up, feeling the weight of it in her hands. She gazed at her reflection and gasped, dropping the mirror. She slowly picked it back up, turning it over to look at herself again.

The reflection was her, but it also wasn't. Her hair, usually a tangled jungle on top of her head was suddenly as sleek and beautiful as Jessica's. The blonde strands looked as if they had been woven of silk. She ran her hair through her hands. The strangest thing was happening. In her hands, her hair looked and felt just as it always did, but in the mirror? Pure silk. She thought about what the old lady in the shop had said. 'You seek beauty.' Did this mirror show her what she wanted to see? What was the point of that? She set the mirror on her dresser.

Her reflection was still inside. She watched it like a tiny TV playing a video, her eyes wide. Reflection Caroline ripped a strand of hair out of her head and wrapped it around the mirrors handle. The mirror absorbed the single strand and reflection Caroline ran her fingers through her sleek shiny hair. Real Caroline tried to run her fingers through her hair. They caught on all of the twisted waves and tangles. She reached up towards the roots, plucking a single strand. She stared at it for a few moments before wrapping it around the mirrors handle. Nothing happened. She felt stupid.

She tossed the mirror in the trash and laid down on her bed. What a stupid day. What a stupid thing to do. She turned her thoughts over in her head, forcing her eyes shut to fall asleep and face whatever tomorrow would bring.

In the trash can, the single strand of blonde hair absorbed into the mirrors handle.

-

The next morning, Caroline's eyes fluttered open. Her alarm seemed to be screeching louder than it ever had. She wasn't looking forward to whatever today was going to bring. She just wanted to curl up in bed and never be forced to leave. Grudgingly, she sat up and rubbed her eyes, yawning. She reached up, pulling her clip from her hair and got ready to face her day. Today was different though, she didn't feel the tangled waves fall across her back. She reached behind her and pulled her hair forward to lay eyes upon the sea of silk cascading down to her waist.

She practically flew from her bed and gazed upon her reflection in her bathroom mirror. Not a single hair out of place. She was stunning. Suddenly yesterday didn't matter. She knew once Chris saw her, he wouldn't be able to keep his eyes off of her. He would regret leaving her standing there like an idiot. He would easily realize his mistake. She had never been more excited to get to school.

-

Caroline walked into home room wearing a baseball cap over her beautiful new hair. Her eyes scanned over everyone in the classroom before taking a seat in the front row. Jessica came in and sat next to her. "Still mad, brat?" she laughed. Caroline smiled at her and shook her head. "So why didn't you bring me the homework yesterday after school then?" "I never made it." Caroline blushed. "Oh?" Jessica raised an eyebrow. "Where did you go then?"

The bell rang just as Chris ran through the door, his breath heavy. "You know the rules, Caroline." said Mr. Chaplan, "No hats in the classroom." "Oh, sorry Sir." she smiled. Caroline removed the hat, letting her locks pour down over her back like golden rain. She smiled as she watched Chris double take and felt her cheeks warm up when Ryan wolf whistled at her. The class erupted in laughter. "Settle down." said Mr. Chaplan.

Jessica shot Ryan a dirty look. "If you were going to get your hair done, you could have told me." she whispered at Caroline. "I would have loved to go with you." "I didn't." Caroline shrugged her shoulder and opened up her history book. "Yeah, ok. Sure." Jessica slammed her book on to her desk and angrily flipped the pages to the right chapter. "I'm sorry, Jess. You're not... jealous, are you?" "Psh. No. " Jessica rolled her eyes. Caroline couldn't help but smile.

-

At lunch, Caroline sat happily waiting for Chris to approach her. He never did. In fact, he didn't even say hi to her. He sat at a completely different table across the cafeteria with his girlfriend. She tried to hide her anger as she chomped down into her apple. Why wouldn't he look at her? What did that girl have that she didn't? She could feel her forehead contorting in frustration.

"What on Earth are you staring at?" asked Jessica. "Nothing!" Caroline snapped. Jessica scanned the room and looked towards where her eyes had lingered the past twenty minutes. "Oooh." she realized. "Is that what this is all about?" She rolled her eyes. "Girl. Give it up, he clearly has a girlfriend." She bit into her own apple, "Didn't you see his news feed?" "Shut up, Jessica!" Caroline hissed. "Excuse me?" Jessica wiped the apple juice from her lips, "Do you have some kind of problem today?" "No." spat Caroline, "But I don't need advice from someone with a boyfriend who can't keep his eyes to himself." She winked across the room in Ryans direction and gave a little wave.

Jessica shot up from her seat and pushed her tray onto the ground. "New hair doesn't fix your crooked teeth." She shouted flipping her off and stomping towards Ryan. She grabbed his hand and pulled him along behind her. Laughter exploded in the cafeteria. Caroline spent the rest of her day at school hiding under the hood of her sweater.

-

She sat at her vanity later that night twirling the mirror over in her hands. She looked at her reflection. The hair was as gorgeous as ever. But was Jessica right about her teeth? She had never paid much attention to them before. Now as she stared at herself, she couldn't help but notice the inconsistency. There was space where there shouldn't be. Some teeth were longer than others. Had she always been this hideous? Hair was one thing. How did you fix a mouthful of hideous teeth?

She gazed into the mirror, waiting for an answer. It didn't take long. Reflection Caroline reached into the back of her mouth and when she pulled her hand out, her fingertips were covered in blood. She set the shiny white molar onto the flat surface of the glass and watched it absorb. Then she smiled with her new set of perfectly shaped teeth. Not a single one out of place.

Caroline let out a heavy breath. She couldn't just rip a whole tooth out. Couldn't that kill you? Would it even come out? She stared long and hard at reflection Caroline. She didn't seem to be in any pain. Maybe the ripped-out tooth would grow back? There wasn't any sign of blood on her lips. "Screw it." She reached into the back of her mouth and tugged. Nothing happened. That tooth was in there good. She looked into the mirror again and watched as reflection Caroline pointed towards the top drawer of her vanity. She opened it and peeked inside.

Her eyes settled upon the tiny pink pair of jewelry pliers. Last summer, she had taken up earring making but had given up one week in when she decided she didn't want her ears pierced. She'd held on to all of the supplies in case she changed her mind later. She reached into the drawer and pulled them out, opening and closing the jaws of the pliers carefully.

Caroline closed her eyes and pressed the pliers against the molar in the back. She held her breath and tugged. Hard. Out popped the molar and the new hole gushed out blood, quickly filling her mouth. She closed it tightly and dropped the tooth onto the mirrors surface. She ran to the bathroom spitting a mouthful of blood into the sink. Caroline reached into her bathroom drawer and pulled out a bag of cotton balls. She grabbed a few and began shoving them one by one into the back of her mouth.

Within a few moments, Caroline noticed that her mouth no longer tasted like she had been sucking on pennies. the warm liquid was no longer flowing. She quickly spit out the mouthful of cotton and looked at herself in the mirror. There it was, her beautiful new smile. "Eat your heart out, Jessica." she smiled from ear to ear, a fire burning hot in her belly.

-

Caroline walked into class the next morning with her head held high. The smile on her face hadn't dissipated all morning. She stepped into home room like a shark, eager to show off her perfect set of pearly whites. She walked right past Jessica and straight to the back of the classroom to take a seat next to Ryan.

"Hi there." she smiled. Ryan smiled back at her, "Do you have a death wish?" he laughed. "I'm not scared of Jessica." She retorted. She could feel her eyes burning a hole right through her. "Is this all because she called you a thief?" "I completely forgot about that." she giggled, "but no. I just wondered if you might look over my homework for me?" "You want me to look over your homework?" he arched an eyebrow at her. "I haven't done my homework all year Caroline." She giggled nervously. "Look," Ryan sighed, "You're cute, but I'm with Jessie. You know this. I don't know what your deal is but work it out." He leaned back in his desk and winked at Jessica.

"Besides," he tossed a ball of paper at Jessica, "Look at her. Girls got a butt that won't quit. You can't compare to that, Caroline." Everyone laughed as Mr. Chaplan stepped into the room.

-

Twice. Twice in one week. Caroline had been turned down for someone else. Why? What was so wrong with her? She had beautiful hair. Perfect teeth. What else did she need? A bigger butt? Is that what Ryan meant when he said, 'a butt that won't quit'? What did she have to give the mirror to get that? She had been staring at it for the last half hour. It showed her. The perfect her. The lips were a little fuller. She had curves in all the right places. A flat stomach. There was nothing left in that reflection to suggest she wasn't perfect.

She sat the mirror flat on her vanity desk and began plucking and pulling and tearing. She ripped off a fingernail and set it on the glass. Her hands magically grew ten strong, perfectly manicured fingernails.

Using a pair of sewing scissors, she sliced a small piece of skin from her face and set it on the glass. Every blemish, every discolored piece of skin, every scar on her face disappeared completely. Her cheeks had a perfect sun kissed glow and her skin shined in all of the right places.

She ripped out eyelashes and dropped them onto the glass. Full black lashes erupted in place of the severed ones. She took her sewing scissors and began sculpting her perfect body. She watched as the bits of lip she chopped off burst into a full perfect pout. Her thighs, her bust, her butt, all filling out perfectly. Her stomach flattened in all of the right areas. She loaded the mirror up with her blood, sweat, and tears and watched as her eyes morphed into the perfect shade of milk chocolate.

After a few hours, she finally stepped away from the antique mirror and admired her new body from every angle. She was perfection. There wasn't a thing anyone could say to her now. There wasn't a person more beautiful than her in this world. No one could deny her now. She would have anything and anyone her heart desired. Period.

She plopped down onto her bed and let out a deep sigh. She was exhausted. She was also excited.

-

The next morning, Caroline rolled out of bed. She didn't even bother checking herself in the mirror, she was perfect. She knew it. No need for makeup. Clothes didn't matter. You didn't need to hide perfection. She slipped on a pair of jeans and a tank top, stuffed the mirror into her backpack and headed towards school.

Every person she passed along the way stopped and stared at her. She didn't care. Her eyes were set on one thing only. Chris. Today was the day she would have him.

-

Caroline stepped into home room. All of the chatter completely came to a stop. Every eye was on her as she made her way across the classroom. Jaws were hanging open. People began to whisper behind their hands. Caroline didn't care. She stepped right up to the desk where Chris sat. He looked up at her and gave her the same passive aggressive half smile he had been giving her since day one.

Caroline grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled his mouth towards hers. To her complete and utter shock, Chris turned his head and pushed her hands away from him.

"What are you doing?!" she shouted. "I have a girlfriend, Caroline." He retorted, "What are you doing?!" "Who cares?!" she screamed. "I am perfect!" The whole class was staring. She threw herself at him again. "Caroline, stop!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Damn." laughed Ryan. "Plastic surgery makes a girl go crazy!" Laughter peppered the room. Everyone was pointing at Caroline and chuckling. She covered her face and screamed into her hands. The laughter grew louder. She covered her ears. Her eyes darted from one snickering mouth to the next. The room was spinning. Jessica stood up and ran to comfort her friend. "Stop!" she was yelling. Caroline closed her eyes. She ripped her backpack from her shoulders and threw it at the wall. Her eyes opened, full of fire.

She gazed around the room. The laughter had stopped. Now the only look on everyone's face was pure terror. "Caroline?" Jessica breathed. The sound of cracking glass filled Carolines head. Why was it so loud? She turned towards Jessica; her eyes were still full of rage. Her teeth bared like a wild animal. "Caroline, are you ok?" Jessica was approaching with caution.

Caroline could feel hot liquid leaking down her face. She wiped her hand across her forehead. her fingers dripped with blood. She glared at Jessica. "What did you do?" She snarled. Caroline stepped towards her with her arms outstretched. "Keep your claws away from her you freak!" shouted Ryan, stepping in front of her. Caroline gasped when she saw her own hands in front of her, the fingernails were ripped off and big holes oozing pus were in their place. She tried to hide them.

"Ugh," gagged Ryan, "What did you do to your face?!" So many people were staring at her. Some people were covering their eyes as if she was too hideous to look at. Caroline reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She turned the selfie camera on and looked at herself.

She couldn't believe her eyes. What had happened? The beauty. It was gone. In its place was an ocean of ruin. Her hair was falling out in clumps. Her skin was covered in pus and scabs. She was bleeding from her nose, her mouth, her ears. Her teeth were bleeding at the gums. Down the middle of her forehead was a big gaping crack. Thick yellow pus was oozing out. Caroline fell to the ground clawing at her own face. "Caroline!" shouted Jessica, "Stop!" Caroline looked up through eyes that had been torn to shreds.

She stood up and threw herself from the window falling quickly to her death.

-

Everyone blamed it on drugs. She must've been on something. There was no other explanation. None were found on her body, in her bedroom, or in her backpack. The only thing found was a silver antique mirror that had a crack running right down the middle.

Horror
4

About the Creator

Sara Wilson

Lover of the strange and unusual. I write mostly horror or true crime. I occasionally publish other things, but try not to write only for the sake of having content. Feedback is always welcome and appreciated!

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  1. Compelling and original writing

    Creative use of language & vocab

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    Well-structured & engaging content

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    Original narrative & well developed characters

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Comments (4)

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  • HandsomelouiiThePoet (Lonzo ward)9 months ago

    🖤👣

  • Omggg, this was so terrifying! I think the scariest part for me was when she just nonchalantly pulled out her tooth! Like whoaaa! And ewwww, the pus! That was such a creepy mirror! I loved your story!

  • Lamar Wiggins10 months ago

    Great story, Sara. I loved the character building. Overall it It was very written and held my attention. Chris was a dick! Lol.

  • Tiffany Gordon 10 months ago

    WOW Sara! That was phenomenally written! I am going to nominate it to be chosen as a TOP STORY in the RAISE YOUR VOICE chat on Thursday! You truly did an awesome job! The dialogue was so realistic. This story really showcased what the pressure to look a certain way can do to a person's mindset. Awesome work my friend!

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