Back from an unofficial hiatus...

Holy crap things have been hectic lately. I got back to school and was literally swamped. I'm really sorry everyone for just disappearing off the face of the earth for a short stay. Guess I should fill you guys in...

Basically I've been having to step up my game on my studies due to parental concerns I would lose scholarships and well, right now is finals week.

I've also been trying to keep Shellie from falling back into her bad habits of working on her 'secret' project for about a week or so now. She's gotten jumpy about it again whenever I ask her questions. My thoughts still go back to that 'tall man' image that Claire caught a glimpse of some time ago, which Shellie won't elaborate on. What she did tell me it was the project was something she's been working on for a while now that she'll share when it's finished and that's all I've been able to gather.

Once these damn finals are over I think I'll do some research over winter break to see if I can find what she might be referencing in her story. Maybe that will help me understand her obsession with the project better. I was planning on working some on my book over break but we'll see how much time research takes me. Who knows, you guys might get a story out of me still, but at the moment consider my short story collection on hiatus.

-Alice

Thanksgiving Break

Will be heading for home soon, it's been aaages since I've seen my mom and slept in my own bed. In case anyone was wondering why I haven't posted recently it was because of school work again. To catch up on a few things, yes I'm still getting headaches. Also had a bloody nose two days ago and yesterday. -That- was fun for sure...I think it was the dry air of late fall that did it. Surprised the crap out of me though because that's never happened before. Started coughing too, probably from stress compromising my immunity and being out in the cold. Oh well, I can finally get some rest and maybe my head will stop hurting as a result...Hope Shellie and Claire have a good break as well.

-Alice

finally just calmed down...guh i feel like i'm gonna be sick. i've never had a dream that bad before. head feels like its been split open with an ax. matt said i woke up screaming and i feel like i just ran a marathon to save my life but...strange thing is i can't remember much of it. think i was running on dirt or something...dunno. god i wanted to relax this weekend...now i just wanna  hide under the covers and cry like a child.

Finally, a reprieve

Feels like forever since we last had a break off from classes, and by God do I need one. I've been so drained from projects, papers and the damnable headaches lately and its getting to the point of where I can't take it anymore. Hoping some time with Matt will do me some good. I've hardly gotten to spend any time with him this semester and I need to de-stress like a bitch if you catch my drift. I'll be spending the weekend at his apartment and should be back Sunday evening. Hopefully things will be going a little more smoothly by then-oh, he's here now to pick me up. Gotta go!

-Alice

Remember, remember...

In tradition with Guy Fox Day, I watched V for Vendetta with Claire. I could never tire of that movie. The message is timeless and holds true in today's society, plus V himself is quite entertaining. And the story told by Valerie gets me to cry every time I hear it. Such a perfectly written story and cast of characters. If you have not seen it yet I highly recommend you do, unless of course you can't watch someone else getting stabbed, in which case this movie isn't for you.

Also just remembered tomorrow is daylight savings, so hurrah for an extra hour of sleep. I'll be taking full advantage of that for sure. Maybe some extra sleep will help with all the head pain I've been having of late.

-Alice

Happy Halloween!

Despite these damn headaches putting a slight damper on me the last few days I still managed to get out and go Trick-or-Treating tonight. Say what you will, but I'm a firm believer you are never to old for free candy. Ever. That being said, I hope you all had a fun-filled evening tonight.

Also sorry I've managed to not post anything pertaining to my story collection in forever. No one ever let me know if they wanted to head any of the poems I had already, plus my classes have been working me ragged lately which does not help in the least in writing anything new. So let me know guys, feedback is good.

-Alice

It never ends..

These fucking headaches keep coming on while I'm sleeping, I've even started having them during the day now too. I wonder if I'm starting to get sick from having to study for exams. That or I caught Shellie's cold that's going around. Just what I needed, to fucking get sick. Could things get any worse?

-Alice

Ugh...

Fucking...another headache woke me up. The hell's up with this?

God...ow. Fucking head hurts like a boss, damn thing woke me up out of a dead sleep. Never had that happen before now, its kind of freaky. Going to take some ibuprofen and see if I can get back to sleep. At least I don't have to get up early tomorrow...today...whatever.

-Alice

It's been a while...

I'm so sorry for not updating in a while. School work got in the way big time and I had to focus on that especially with midterms and exams popping up like crazy. So allow me to fill you in on what's been going on since I last posted 18 days ago...

As you know from my last post I tried to invade Shellie's personal space by trying to get a glimpse of her project she'd almost worked herself to hospitalization over; which didn't go over well as she caught me and threw me out of her room. The stubborn-headed child then proceeded to not speak to me, or Claire for that matter even though she didn't do a thing, for like a week! Talk about overacting, but then I guess if it were me I wouldn't want the invasion of privacy either...

When she finally let me speak to her again I swallowed my pride and apologized to her (even if it was for her own well being) and she, Claire and I went and had dinner. It had been a while since any of us had done that together, so it was a nice change of pace to finally be with the girls again after so long.

Even after that though, Shellie was still a bit guarded at the beginning of last week but she's starting to come around since then. I'm glad for that at least. She's also gotten over her cold too. Still a bit of a cough though but I blame that on the weather starting to change. Nothing much you can do about that. She's on the mend and that's all that I care about, so for the time being I'll give her some space. Claire made a point to me the other day that Shellie would likely share her secret project with us when she felt the time was right so I'm willing to go on a little faith here and wait for that time.

Until then though, I'm going to go get some well deserved rest. Studying takes a lot more out of a person than you'd think.

-Alice

Well I've screwed up...

I would have posted this yesterday, but I was preoccupied with trying to get Shellie to talk to me again. See the other day, it was my turn to check up on her and she was doing a hell of a lot better, even if she was still a bit nervous around Claire and I, but I still wanted to know what Claire was talking about. So when Shellie left to go use the restroom I tried to access her computer to try and find out what it was.

The damn thing was password protected though and I couldn't get in. As luck would have it while I was trying to figure out her password, she came back. Needless to say, Shellie was absolutely livid and she kicked me out. I've been trying to get in touch with her all day but she refuses to have anything to do with me. She won't even have anything to do with Claire and she didn't even touch her computer.

What is going on with that girl...

-Alice

Check-up

So Claire and I kept going by Shellie's dorm room over the weekend to make sure she was doing stuff to get better (much to her annoyance). But I was surprised that she was taking time off from this secret project of hers to actually catch up on rest and even a bit of homework. By today her cough had started to wan, so she sounded a lot better but she's still not 100% yet. I also think she's started up on her project again. It was Claire's turn to check up on her today and she closed a window on her computer really quickly, but not before Claire got a slight glance at it. Said it was black and white and looked like an exaggerated human figure. Exaggerated like Picasso? I don't have a clue...I'll try and get a look at it some other time if Shellie will let me.

-Alice

I knew I saw this coming

So upon inspection of her room, I found a very ill Shellie Wattercutter still in her pajamas. She seems to have caught a nasty cold complete with nasty cough. I told her to take it easy but the dodo just couldn't lay down her work load and rest. Now she's paying for it, pretty severly I must say. Even now she still doesn't want to stop working on her project. I think this calls for some drastic measures. Claire and I have enough spare time I think the two of us could check up on her-royal-stubborness and make sure she's actually getting rest to get herself better.

I know it seems nosy but I've known Shellie for years and she's done this sort of thing before with fiction writing. Without some sort of buffer to get her to break every so often she'll wear herself thin. She can protest all she wants, but it's for her own good.

A bit worried now...

Class just ended and Shellie didn't show up at all this time. The hell, Shellie? No one seems to have seen her all afternoon either...I'll go ask her room mate if she's seen her, best place to look I wager and she's likely to be there anyway. Still usually she lets Claire and I know ahead of time if she's not coming to class for whatever reason.

-Alice

The Reaper's Servant

As the late hour rises,
so too does the Reaper's Servant.
His coat of darkness chokes life from the sun
and the ink of night washes the land.
You will not see him,
you will not hear him.
But when the time comes
you'll feel the ice of his blade at your throat
as you lay your head to rest.


Hey everyone. A little change of pace for you all; I found a collection of short poems I had written last year and thought I'd share one with you since the rest of my short stories are currently under construction. I have more and if you'd like to see any others let me know and I'll post them up!

In other news, today has been kind of slow other than Shellie showing up late for another class, big surprise. I understand her plight and all, as I've pulled all-nighters before; but this is a personal project, not one for school. She's going to burn out the wick entirely if she keeps the candle lit at both ends like this. She didn't even take time off on the weekend to really spend much time with Claire and me. I asked Ms. Adams (Claire) what she thought we should do to get her to chill on the project but she's still thinking of ideas.

-Alice

Busy as a Bee

Classes have kept me busy this week so I haven't been able to post anything. To top it off, I've been kind of worried about Shellie. She's showed up consecutively late to a few other classes her, Claire and I share this week. She said everything was fine, but Claire and I think she might be coming down with something. I dropped by her room earlier this afternoon to check on her as she doesn't have a class until later today and asked her what was up.

She told me she's been staying up late working on a personal project , which seemed logical enough, but when I asked her about it she didn't want to tell me. Further pressuring about it resulted in her getting defensive so I backed off for now. I hope whatever the project that its worth losing sleep over. She looked like she'd been hit by a truck when I saw her earlier.

In other news really sorry I still have not posted another story yet. Truth be told those currently up and the title story which I want to save for last were the only ones I had completed at the moment. The rest of the collection is a work in progress and most of them only have a few lines finished at the moment; and with classes keeping me on my toes of late, it hasn't left much time for writing. So be patient with me guys, you'll get your horror fix from me soon, I promise.

-Alice

Another Weekend Begins

Why is it short weeks always seem longer than they actually are yet at the same time seem to arrive very quickly? Seriously, if someone can give me the definitive answer I'll give you a dollar. Anyway, done with classes and other things on my to-do list for today, finally. Class was pretty much the same old same old today, except for Shellie showing up late to class. Nothing significant to report. I'll have another stroy up...sometime in the future. Not this weekend though, I'll be busy making with the homeworks.

...dammit, just looked at my planner, I forgot I have to work tonight. And here I was hoping to relax. Oh well. Duty calls.

-Alice

Lurking in the Depths

"I always knew working in these damn sewers would be a shit job (pun intended), even before this weird shit started happening. There's always been stories about monster's living down here and snatching up people for a quick meal. I never believed a one until Frank went missing on the job one day. After Frank it was Joe.

I knew something had to be done before we all became lunch for whatever was down there. I realise how risky this is, but no one else seems to want to do anything. If you find this, consider it my will. It's time to end this..."


Mike looked down at the mow still corpse of the so called 'sewer monster'. After finding the note of its third victim, he'd ordered the sewers be drained so that whatever was going after the guys wouldn't nave very far to go; or so he hoped was the case.

He thought perhaps it had been a gator, as they did sometimes manage to work their way into the sewers; but they only lasted for a few days at best. Where as this 'beast' had been swimming around for at least a week or two. Instead of a gator though, he had found a young shark flopping around helplessly now that it's mode of transportation was gone. Mike let it slowly asphyxiate in its desperate need for water until its final movements had ceased.




Sorry for not updating in a few days, I've been having to adjust to work starting this week intermingled with my classes. Needless to say, it's been a long week and I'm just glad it's over and that I've got a three day weekend coming up because of the holiday. This year's only just started and I already feel like I've been back here at college forever; so yay break!

-Alice

Should be in bed right now

Just got back from a friend's birthday party and I've got a hangover like you wouldn't believe. Before you ask, alcohol was not involved, I'm just really tired from it being so late and laughing so much. Also I'll have another story or a snippet of one soon here in a few days for you guys to read. Right now though, I need to sleep. Night folks.

-Alice

The Lynching Tree

The following story is an exert from my work in progress short story collection, Something In the Mist. Enjoy!

It was a well-known fact, that just north of the old covered bridge, there was an old oak tree that was once the scene of many-a-lynching in the town. Most of the townsfolk who knew of its history did well to stay away from it. After all, death in that large of a quantity in one spot can cook up some bad mojo over time; and bad mojo can do any number of unpredictable things; and people who went to the tree had a habit of not returning. I had heard those old bedtime stories more times than someone cares to admit, and I’d never believed a one of them before. So naturally, a friend and I went down to that old oak tree one day to have some fun. It’s a day I’ve never forgotten.

When we got to where the tree had laid its roots I was surprised at how large it was up close. It was quite an imposing tree, to be sure, but it did not scare me. My friend looked up at the tree as well before turning to be and saying with a slightly conceited tone, “Wanna see that can make it to the top first? That is…unless you believe those old fairy tales?”

Not one to be called a chicken, I agreed to the challenge. We both chose a branch to start from and climbed as fast as we could. I would have beaten him to the top had I not slipped and fell down a few branches. I could hear him taunting me from the highest branches, but I ignored them and said I’d be waiting at the bottom. I’d hurt my wrist in the fall and knew I wouldn’t be able to climb up there with him.

As my feet hit solid ground I looked back into the tree’s leafy top in search of my friend, but he must have been so high up that I couldn’t see him, I thought, and so I waited a while hoping that he would return down the tree soon. After a time I looked back up towards the branches when I felt a drop of something hit the top of my head. Another drop landed on my upturned face. Wiping it off, my hand came away bloody and I felt a pang of fear shoot through me.

My friend’s pale, lifeless face was there looking back at me. One of the tree’s branches had opened up and was slowly pulling his lifeless body into it, like a snake devouring a mouse. I looked no more at the gruesome scene before me and ran as fast as my legs could carry me and did not stop until I reached home. I never returned to that tree; whatever bad mojo that had created it was still there, and I prayed to the good Lord that I never would have to face it again.

When my friend’s parents came looking for him and started asking questions, the words that tumbled out of my mouth were thus, “He’s at the tree, and he’s there to stay…”

I hope everyone enjoyed that one. In my opnion it's not one of my stronger stories, but I find it's subect matter to be interesting. What do you guys think? I showed it to Claire and Shellie eariler today; Shellie seemed to enjoy it, Claire thought it was 'creepy as fuck'. But then she scares easily so I'm not surprised by that. Now then, it's off to bed as I feel like I've been hit with a truck from staying up too late last night. I really need to stop doing that.

-Alice

Long Day

I finally got everything in my room situated and got to spend some time with my friends. It's only been four months but it feels like four years since I've seen either Claire or Shellie. We've only been friends for about a year but I feel like I've known them forever. They're just those kinds of friends, you know? My boyfriend I saw a few times over the summer because he lives closer so it wasn't really all that exciting to see him again when I returned.

I'll have another story post up here in a day or so once I get back into routine, but for now I'm going to go catch some sleep because I'm exhausted from setting up my room.

-Alice, over and out

In My Restless Dreams...

Perhaps it was too many late nights of reading Stephen King novels, or perhaps it was that five day old pizza she'd been eating over the last two days; whatever it was Heather had been having trouble sleeping for the past week. Luck would have it the one night she was finally managing to catch some decent Z's that there would be a knock at her bedroom door. At first she ignored the sound, thinking that it was merely an illusion of her mind's wandering eye, but when the noise came again accompanied by the voice of her five year old son calling out her name she reluctantly, yet willingly, hauled herself out of bed.


She opened the door and bent down to his level and asked him what was wrong. She figured it was probably just a bad dream or a bad tummy ache, but what came out of his mouth when she asked was not what she expected to hear.


"The shadow man is keeping me up. He goes away after I talk to him a bit mostly, but he won't stop standing at my bed."


"Sweetie, I think you were just having another bad dream..." Heather cooed, petting her son's hair lovingly until he pulled away flustered.


"But mommy, he was really there. Come on, I'll show you!" he urged, grabbing her hand and pulling her in the direction of his room. She followed, hoping to put his mind to ease and put him back to bed so that she could get back to her much needed sleep.


The little boy opened the door to his room and pointed towards the foot of his bed, "See, he's right there!"


But Heather did not see. There was nothing there to see at all...




Finally got my blog up at the last minute. I say last minute because I was hoping to get this thing started before having to return to college tomorrow. I realize I should probably be sleeping right now but to tell you the truth, I can't sleep at the moment. Probably just a case of before move jitters even though I've moved more times than I care to share, but then again I'm glad to be returning to college. It keeps the brain from going to mush and gets one away from home and the parents. When you're the 'baby' of the family, parents tend to treat you differently than the older child without realizing they're doing so; and my mother is a prime example of this. But that's a story for another time I suppose, isn't it?

Speaking of stories the paragraphs in italics probably look irrelevant to the rest of this post and some of you may wonder why. Well I'm working on getting a collection of short horror stories, called Something In the Mist, that I've been working on for about a year now to publication. I was hoping to gain some feedback on some snippets and full stories from the collection from people other than my close friends and family to see if anyone would be interested in buying the book once I am able to get it out in the world. I guess I also plan on using this as a bit of a d-stressor since I had a bit of trouble with that last semester at college. So if I seem to bitch at times please forgive me.

With that I should be getting to bed as it is getting late, and I hope you'll all enjoy reading what I have to offer in the near future.

-Alice