The Candle in the Window

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window.

It was the kind of place kids dared each other to approach, the kind of place that made the wind sound like whispers. Locals called it Hollow Pine, though no one remembered why. The forest had long since swallowed the path to its door, and the trees grew too close, as if trying to keep something in.

That night, four friends—Maya, Liam, Jordan, and Elise—were camping nearby. They saw the flicker through the trees.

“Probably squatters,” Liam said, but his voice lacked conviction.

“Or ghosts,” Elise whispered.

Maya, ever the skeptic, grabbed her flashlight. “Let’s find out.”

The others hesitated but followed. The forest seemed to close behind them as they walked, the air growing colder. The candle’s glow remained steady, unwavering.

The cabin loomed ahead, its windows like eyes. The door creaked open at a touch. Inside, dust blanketed the floor, undisturbed. Except for the candle, burning atop a table, its flame still.

“No wind,” Jordan noted.

“No, nothing,” Maya replied.

They stepped inside. The door slammed shut behind them.

The candle flickered.

“Must be a draft,” Liam said, though the air was still.

Elise approached the candle. “It’s warm. Freshly lit.”

A sound upstairs—a thump.

“Animals?” Jordan suggested.

“Only one way to know,” Maya said, ascending the stairs.

The others followed, the steps groaning under their weight. At the top, a hallway stretched, doors closed on either side.

They opened the first door. An empty bedroom, dust-laden.

The second door revealed a nursery. A mobile hung above a crib, spinning slowly.

“No wind,” Liam repeated.

The third door was locked.

“Let’s go back,” Elise urged.

But Maya was already searching for a key. She found it atop a shelf, as if waiting.

The door creaked open, revealing a study. Books lined the walls, their titles faded. A desk sat in the center, papers strewn across it.

On the desk, a journal lay open. Maya picked it up.

“It’s dated… fifty years ago,” she said.

She read aloud, “The candle must remain lit. If it goes out, the shadows come.”

A gust of wind extinguished the candle downstairs.

Darkness enveloped the cabin.

From the walls, whispers emerged. Shapes moved in the corners of their eyes.

“We need to relight the candle,” Maya said.

They rushed downstairs, but the candle was gone.

In its place, a note: “Too late.”

The door wouldn’t budge. The windows showed only blackness.

The whispers grew louder, forming words: “Join us.”

One by one, the friends vanished into the shadows, their screams swallowed by the dark.

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window.