The Tale of Lake Lanier

The air was thick.

The air was thick in a way that felt warm against the sun, the rays of the sun radiated deep onto their skin. However, the heat of the sun was not overwhelming, as the breeze from the sea provided a comforting coolness. The combination of the heat and the breeze was just enough to bring them to thirst, but that is what summer days are for... Being at the prime of youth, spending your summer afternoons under the sun lakeside with fruity drinks with names that can’t be remembered.

They were at the prime of their youth, each of the six, was just twenty-two years old. As they were facing their last year as college students, the six of them took one last summer trip to a lake. It was a day to cherish their youth, to be free of worries and care, to feel what it felt to be free. In a world like their own that feeling of freedom was often replaced by a feeling of constriction.

The six of them went out to the lake in the early morning, just before the sun was rising in the sky. It was empty, however, it was calm and peaceful in this way, it felt special to the six of them. As the day went on, the crowd followed gradually, until all that was heard was the sound of laughter and children playing.

“Hey Chet, can you put sunscreen on my back?” Lisa, the oldest of the group said to her boyfriend of three years, Chet. Lisa’s skin was golden, glowing, and she looked warm and beautiful. Chet happily complied and gently massaged the sunscreen into her skin.

“Lisa and Chet, hurry up already! My brother said five more seconds and he’s leaving you two on the shore!” Rebecca called from the newly polished light blue boat, her voice hard to hear as it was drowned out by the other sounds that surrounded them. The boat was at the dock with music thumping through the speakers.

Lisa and Chet ran to the boat. The boat was beautiful, a perfect example of wealth. With their first step in the boat, they were hit with a rush of cool air. Lisa instantly sighed out of relief and fell back onto a sofa that was closest to the door.

“So ladies and gentlemen, are you ready for a night on the water? We’ve got every drink you can think of, literally name it, and I have it.” Rebecca bragged, holding a wine glass in her right hand. She was drunk, her movements and even the way the words slipped off of her tongue were loose.

“Let’s get going, Captain,” Lisa said.

The night grew darker as the boat drove them against the lake until they were so far that the boat could not be found insight. The music that blasted through the speakers also faded out, until it was no longer heard at the land. The six of them were lost in joy, lost in this moment. It was the perfect way to end the summer and the perfect way to welcome in their last year of College.

“Lisa! Lisa! Take a shot!” Katy, the third to Lisa and Rebecca’s trio, said. She is the youngest of the three, and was lively and sought out adventure at every chance she got. She is the opposite of Lisa in every way, she lives without holding herself back.

“Ah, Katy, I think that I’ve had enough to drink already. The room is spinning more than I’d like,” Lisa said, laughing at the end, surely knowing that Katy wouldn’t drop it easily.

“Lisa, take a shot, you’re the soberest person here. Don’t be a buzz skill, just two more shots... Okay, one more shot please.” Katy said. She looked up at Lisa, giving her the stare that she usually did, the one that reminded Lisa of a younger sister.

“Fine! One more shot!” Lisa said, quickly taking the shot, as she thoughtless about the taste of more of simply getting it over with. She hated the taste of alcohol and barely enjoyed the feeling,” I’m going to go to the bathroom. I need a minute.” Lisa adds on before removing herself from the boat’s lounge area.

Lisa walked through the large boat, the hallways barely lit. She used her hand to guide her through the hall until she finds the bathroom, a small bathroom that is on a level lower than the lounge area. She turned on the light, the mirror showing her a reflection of herself. Her face was covered in sweat, her hair matted to her forehead. She giggled to herself, and immediately turned on the sink faucet, gathering water in the palm of her hands just to throw it onto her face. She removed the hair from her face and splashed one last handful of water onto her face. Her skin was deeply tanned from the summer, she liked when it looked like this.

As she turned to exit the bathroom and rejoin her friends, Lisa felt hands gently press against her shoulders. Shocked, Lisa turned around to see who had followed her to the bathroom. Yet there was no one there. She aggressively pulled the showers curtains back, expecting to see Chet there.

“Hello? is there anyone there?” Lisa called out, only to not receive a response,” I must have had a lot more to drink than I thought.” She said to herself.

After rejoining the party, Lisa sat next to her boyfriend Chet and turned to him.

“Hey Chet, when I was in the bathroom, I felt something touch me. Did anyone go down there?” Chet glanced at her and shrugged his shoulders. He was too drunk to form a proper thought.

“Didn't see anyone leave. Maybe you imagined it.” Lisa accepted that as being the reason for feeling that she was touched, however, at the back of her mind she knew that the thought was still lingering.

And as the night went on, the party went on as it usually would. After midnight, the six of the friends all went into their separate rooms to get rest. The three couples were paired up across the three separate bedrooms, and with the radio finally, at a pause, there was peace on the water that night.

As Lisa slept next to Chet, the late August night winds roared violently as the boat peacefully went through the waters. The two slept peacefully, truly comfortable in one another’s arms until there was a piercing scream heard down the hallway. Lisa quickly jumped out of bed, in search of where the scream came from. Chet followed closely behind her, advising her to stay behind him.

“He's Dead!!” Rebecca shouted. Nervously, Chet ran into the bedroom that Rebecca and her boyfriend Zachary shared, immediately collapsing onto the floor at the sight.

“ What happened?!” Lisa shouted. Kathy and her boyfriend both looked into the bedroom, Kathy collapsing to the floor just as Chet had. Zachary was dead, it was like a scene out of a horror movie.

“There was- there was someone in the room, I Could barely see them... Th- They were covered in mud, dripping in water. I couldn’t see their face. Just the mud and the water. And then they killed him. And I barely escaped them, I jumped under the bed, and then they were gone. “ Rebecca was in a panic, her voice breaking with every few words. She ran into the room, sat down at Zachary’s side, and held his hands in her own. There wasn’t quite another feeling like the one she had.

“Where did they go?“ Chet shouted.

“I don’t know. They disappeared in just a second. It was so quick, I have no idea what happened.” Rebecca said, tears falling down her face. She began to sob, begging Zachary to wake up. She pleaded with him as she had never pleaded with someone before, wanting him to open his eyes one more time.

“Alex, we have to find who did this before they hurt someone else. Rebecca where is your brother? We need his help.” Chet asked.

“ He's stirring the ship.”

“We will find who did this, and we will make them pay.”

Chet, Alex, Lisa, Kathy, and Rebecca’s older brother accompanied each other as they searched the ship from the top to the for who was responsible for Zachary’s death. However, what the friends did not know, was that they would never find who was responsible. The one who did it would visit them one by one in their sleep until the last one takes their last breath. For this was Lake Lanier, and the souls were disturbed that night and would leave with them that night. The lost souls on Lake Lanier we're awakened that night, and we're thirsty for the collection of more souls. It begins with Zachary and will not end until the last one has fallen. That is the tale of Lake Lanier, it will follow you home until your home is in the afterlife.