Chapter 1
The campfire crackled as Luna held a marshmallow over the flames. Her best friend, Maya, was roasting a marshmallow as well, while Freddie and Jude were opening a pack of hot dogs.
It was dark out. The sun had just set. There was a slight chill in the air. That was nothing out of the ordinary considering it was the middle of October.
“So who wants to go first?” asked Freddie as he plopped down beside Maya. The two of them weren’t dating but they often liked to act like they were. They were constantly flirting back and forth whenever they were together.
“I’m not good at telling stories,” said Luna.
“Me either,” Maya said.
“That doesn’t matter,” said Jude. He took the remaining seat that was on the other side of Luna. “It’s just fun seeing what you can come up with.”
“Yeah, plus there’s tons of urban legends,” added Freddie. With a hot dog now firmly stuck to a stick, he lifted it out over the rippling flame.
“Like what?” asked Maya with a teasing smirk.
Freddie grinned back at her. “I don’t know… What about bigfoot?”
“Bigfoot isn’t an urban legend,” said Luna.
“Why not?” asked Jude. His hot dog had joined Freddie’s, hanging over the fire.
“Urban legends are like…” Luna paused for a moment to think of one. “Like that story about the guy hiding in the back seat of that girl’s car.”
“Oh yeah!” said Maya. “Or what about the one where there was a hook hanging from the car handle?”
“Isn’t that the same story?” asked Freddie.
“I don’t think so,” said Maya.
“What about the one where someone flashed their lights at a car with no headlights on?” asked Jude.
“Why are they all about cars?” Maya scoffed.
“Because they’re all made up. They’re just cautionary tales to make people more aware of potential dangers when you’re driving alone,” said Luna. As she spoke, she spun her marshmallow over to toast the other side.
“Of course Luna thinks they’re made up,” said Freddie.
“Because they are. Google it,” Luna replied.
“And you think bigfoot is made up too? What? To make you play it safe in the woods?” Freddie asked.
Luna rolled her eyes. “No, I think people just mistake bigfoot for something else. Like a deer or a bear.”
“Tons of people have seen it. You think they’re all seeing things?” asked Jude.
“Maybe. If you get something in your head, your mind can play tricks on you,” said Luna.
“I don’t know…” Maya said. “I mean, the woods are pretty big. Anything could be out there.”
Luna looked at her best friend in disbelief. “You’re saying you believe in bigfoot??”
“Of course she does. Because he’s real. I know a guy who’s seen him,” said Freddie.
Luna scoffed. “Yeah, right. Who?”
“The guy that runs that gas station back there. His name’s Pervus. He showed me pictures. They looked real.”
“Oh my gosh. Some guy named Pervus showed you bigfoot pictures and you believe him?” laughed Luna. That was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard.
“You don’t believe me?” asked Freddie.
“I saw them too,” said Maya.
Luna gave her friend a look. A ‘you’ve got to be kidding me’ look. “You can’t seriously believe there’s a bigfoot out there!”
“What if there is?” asked Jude.
“Then we’re all idiots. Because we’re camping out here!” said Luna. She had a grin on her face because she couldn’t take any of this seriously. A bigfoot? Really? It was so stupid!
“The guy said he doesn’t come around as long as you’re in a group,” said Freddie. “But he also said that we need to make sure you two girls don’t wander off alone. Because he likes the ladies.”
“Hey! He didn’t say that!” said Maya.
“Freddie, you’re full of it!” Luna laughed.
“Alright, alright. Maybe he didn’t say that. And maybe the pictures were bullshit. I don’t know. But I don’t think it’s impossible that something’s out here,” Freddie said.
“Yeah, I mean, who knows?” Jude said. “Maybe we’ll catch a glimpse… Then we’d all be famous!”
“If bigfoot exists, I don’t think I want to see him. I’m just happy with him being a figment of my imagination and nothing more,” said Maya.
“Yeah, if you guys actually saw one, you’d freak out!” said Luna.
“Maybe. But I’d be sure to get a picture first,” said Freddie.
“Oh, you’re so brave, Freddie…” teased Maya.
“Hey, you know it. I’m not about to miss my shot at fame,” said Freddie.
“I was being sarcastic,” said Maya.
“Oh…” Freddie replied.
His reply made Luna laugh even more. “If you’re so brave, maybe you should go look for him right now.”
“You dare me?” asked Freddie.
“I do,” said Maya. A smirk played on her lips.
“I do too,” said Jude.
“Cool. I’m not afraid,” said Freddie. He stuck his hot dog stick in the ground and stood up. “But when I catch the shot, I’m getting all the credit.”
“Fine by me,” said Luna. “Because I know you’re not gonna find anything.”
“We’ll see about that.”
The group watched as Freddie scooped up a flashlight and disappeared into the woods. Luna half thought he was bluffing. She figured he’d act like he was going into the woods and back out. But nope. When he disappeared, he was gone.
“He’ll be back,” said Maya.
“Right? I can’t see him staying gone long,” Luna agreed.
“Our luck, he’ll get lost in there and we’ll have to go look for him,” said Jude.
“I’m not looking for his ass,” said Maya. “He gets lost, he’s good and gone.”
Luna and Jude laughed. Several minutes later, they had each eaten their roasted treats, and still, Freddie hadn’t come back.
“He’s doing this on purpose,” said Maya. “He just wants to scare us.”
Luna was inclined to agree. Freddie was the ultimate prankster. But then again, they were in the middle of nowhere and Freddie disappeared in the dark. There was a small chance something could have happened to him. Maybe not bigfoot but what if he ran into a bear?
“Probably…” she agreed, despite her inner thoughts.
“Yo Freddie! You can come out now,” Jude called out.
There was a brief silence between them. Nothing could be heard but the crackling of the fire and the sound of leaves rustling in the wind. Each of them looked around, expecting Freddie to pop out any second. But he never did.
As more time passed, the three of them grew worried.
“If this is a prank, he’s really waiting us out,” said Jude.
Maya scoffed. “Yeah, but you know Freddie. He’s always doing shit like this.”
“I don’t know,” said Luna. “It’s really dark out. What if something happened?”
“Nothing happened. He just wants us to come looking for him so he can scare us!” said Maya.
“Jude?” asked Luna, hoping he would side with her.
“Maya could be right… But I don’t know. I don’t think he’d wait this long. It’s been an hour… going on two? What could he even be doing out there?” said Jude.
“I think we should go look for him,” said Luna.
“What? No. I’m not falling for his trap. You guys can go. I’m staying right here,” said Maya.
Luna frowned. “Well I guess someone should stay here, in case he comes back.”
“Yeah, probably a good idea,” said Jude.
“Guys, seriously, you know he’s just messing around,” said Maya.
“Maybe. But if something’s wrong, I don’t want to just leave him out there,” said Jude.
“Me either,” Luna said.
Minutes later, the two of them each had a flashlight. Jude also had a flare gun.
“If anything is wrong, I’ll shoot this into the air. Then you call 911,” said Jude to Maya.
Maya scoffed. “Okay, but when he jumps out at you, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“We’ll be back,” said Luna.
With a flashlight held firmly in her hand, she disappeared into the woods with Jude.
