Blackout

When I was in high school, Meredith and I and another friend, Sarah, began spending time out at Sarah's family's lake house, Aberdeen.  We never did anything particularly exciting and we certainly never entertained the thought of drinking or doing anything of the sort.  We were rather atypical teenagers, I guess.  (This is from my writer's notebook but I'm trying to revise it as I type because I used this story as a how to be descriptive lesson).

Aberdeen was extremely isolated.  We drove down a long, twisty dirt driveway that was surrounded by miles of trees.  The car would jerk and bump over exposed tree roots and potholes the further we went into the forest.  If I had seen "Wrong Turn" or "Cabin Fever" in high school, I never would have gone to Aberdeen.  After probably 10 minutes of driving through miles of pine trees, we finally got to the clearing where the lake house sat.  It was a Swiss style brown building on stilts with stairs leading to the front door.  The entire front of the house was windows, allowing for an uninterrupted view of the endless woods.  Soft rock music blared out from hidden outdoor speakers.  Sarah's family always left a radio playing to deter possible thieves.  

Sarah struggled with the sticky lock but finally the door opened and we entered the musty, still living room.  The decorating scheme of Aberdeen was permanently stuck in 1977.  Brown striped couches sat against paneled walls and an ancient TV set sat on a stand.  If you dared to enter the bathroom, you were blinded by the florescent orange counter tops.  In the kitchen was a brown refrigerator and cabinets and a round table sat in front of the windows. 

As dark settled in, we set up the VCR (pre-DVD players!) and got comfortable.  We had already scared ourselves several times by pretending cars were coming down the driveway or "hearing"noises so we were all a bit on edge.  I tried to ignore the the intense darkness pressing against the wall of windows.

Suddenly, with a slight buzz from the electrical transformer outside, we were plunged into utter darkness.  The power had gone out!  Panic exploded in my chest as my heart beat faster and faster.  Sarah bellowed, "SOMEONE'S CUT THE CORD!" as visions of a dark figure sneaking under the house to the electrical wires flew into my mind.  Was someone out there? Who could it be?  Had they been watching us?  What would happen if we left?  Were they going to try to kill us?

Sarah ran to the circuit breaker and screeched, "The switches aren't thrown!" Meredith and I screamed at the tops of our lungs as Sarah yelled, "LET'S GO! WE'VE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE!"  We fumbled through the dark, feeling for the doorknob.  Gasping for breath, Meredith and I clutched at each other's arms as we stumbled down the dark stairs.  I frantically wondered if the person who turned the power off was lying in wait for us as we came down the steps. Sarah left Meredith and me in the dust.  She was not waiting around for anything.  She hit the panic button on her key ring which caused her car's horn to begin honking and the headlights to flash.  

It seemed that we made it into the car in slow motion.  Doors slammed, locks were smacked down in a panic and tires spun as we careened down the driveway and away from Aberdeen.  As we flew into the dark woods, I turned and looked back toward the house. Nothing could be seen in the blackness.

Dramatic much?  This would be a great script for a horror movie, huh?  Maybe I'll submit it for "The Strangers 2."  

Also, here is Meredith's take on it.  I purposely didn't go back and read hers before I posted mine.  Let's see how similar they are.