Chapter 27: A True HornDog Would Ignore the Ghosts; I'm No Longer a True HornDog

       I was glad Sawyer kept the promise he made that got me to stay at this haunted campsite. I was worried he only said that to get me to stay and that he would 'forget' he made the promise in the first place.

       He definitely did not forget that promise.

        Unfortunately, while Sawyer and I were on our own some distance away from the tent, I swear all those weird noises I've been hearing got a lot worse. I've been hearing growls, rustling, and I was pretty sure I heard a chainsaw as well.

       Sure, the growling and the rustling could very much come from an animal but Sawyer did say the animals were usually a lot deeper in the forest. And Posie even said the animals normally weren't anything big that could growl.

       I was getting too paranoid right now.

       And I still didn't understand why the Birches and Posie willingly came here from time to time.

       Even though I was... occupied right now, it was very hard for me to ignore the various sounds I was hearing. Eventually, I heard something that made me pull away from Sawyer, as painful as it was.

       Here I was, the boy who didn't know how to stop flirting with Sawyer, pulling away from him right now. I was a disgrace to the horn dogs out there.

       Even though I pulled away from Sawyer to ask him something, his lips immediately trailed from my jaw to my neck. Not matter how much I wanted to ignore the sound and continue in my horn dog ways, I couldn't. 

       "Did you hear that?" I asked.

       "No," Sawyer murmured into my neck.

       If Sawyer didn't hear it, then maybe it was my imagination.

       However, a few moments later, I heard it again. "Okay, tell me you heard that."

       This time, Sawyer did pull away from me, unfortunately. I mean, I would like to know what was making all of those creepy noises but if we were about to die, I wouldn't mind going out this way.

       "Heard what?" Sawyer asked.

       "Seriously?" I asked. "You haven't been hearing anything this whole time?"

       Sawyer shrugged. "I guess I come camping here so often that the noises are just so familiar to me that I don't really recognize them."

       "You still believe me that I heard something, right?" I asked.

       "Considering you stopped kissing me to ask me if I heard the noise, I'd have to say yes. What exactly did you hear?"

       "I don't really know what it was," I said. "It was like this... this loud screech. There's no way you wouldn't have heard it."

       "Well, I was a bit preoccupied," Sawyer said.

       The screech sounded again and once it did, I looked around, trying to find the source of that noise. As I did, I asked, "And this time?"

       "This time, I actually heard it," Sawyer said. "And I have no idea what that was."

       "So... I take it we should head back to our campsite so we can lead whatever that is to your siblings and make a run for it?"

       "Or we can go see what it is."

       I furrowed my eyebrows. "You... want to go see what's making that noise? You don't want to go back to the campsite, where there's safety in numbers, because you'd rather go searching for that... that demon?"

       "I doubt it's a demon, Jamie," Sawyer said. "And if you're so concerned about safety in numbers, why did you say you want to go back to the campsite only so we can lead whatever that is to your siblings?"

       "Uh, safety in numbers for me and you," I said. "We'll be safe because of the number of siblings you have that we can lead that demonic thing to."

       "Oh, come on, it will be fun walking through the forest to find that thing," Sawyer said, intertwining our hands together before pulling me down the path.

       "I think you and I have very different definitions of fun," I said. "And the sun already started to set. Soon enough, it will be way too dark for us to see anything unless we have a flashlight. And don't say we have one on our phones because I'd rather save me battery. And, you know, go back to the campsite."

       "I got a flashlight at the campsite," Sawyer said.

       "Great," I said. "We can head back there, grab the flashlight, and then I can lie down in the safety that is our tent."

       "You'd really want to let me go explore all alone?" Sawyer asked.

       "No, but considering your siblings love to come to this haunted forest all the time, one of them would love to go with you," I said.

       "Or they'd all love to go with me so you'd have to stay alone," Sawyer said.

       "And would you really let me stay alone?" I asked.

       "No, but you'd probably end up agreeing to go with me because you actually kind of want to," Sawyer said. "You just like being dramatic for as long as you can."

       He knew me so well.

       We got back to the campsite where the others were sitting by the campfire, playing a card game. As much as I was sort of interested in going to check out what that sound was, I would rather stay back so I really hoped at least one of them would want to stay back with me.

       "So while Jamie and I were exploring..." Sawyer began, and I finished the sentence to be a huge pest.

       "Each other's bodies," I said.

       "What? No, we weren't," Sawyer said.

       "My hickey says otherwise."

       "You don't have a hickey. Even if you did, how would you know that you have one. You can't see your own neck."

       "He does have a hickey," Posie spoke up.

       Sawyer looked at the other side of my neck. "Oh. Oops."

       "Ooh, kinky," I said.

       "Anyway..." Sawyer continued. "While Jamie and I were gone, we heard the weirdest noise. One that I haven't heard before out of all the times we've gone camping here."

       "What?" I asked. "You never told me that."

       "Jamie, I told you I have no idea what it was," Sawyer said. "If I have heard it before, I would have known what it was."

       "Yeah, so, what's the point of this story?" Erica asked.

       "Right, so I want to go see what that sound was," Sawyer said. "It was like this loud screech. Anyone want to join me?"

       "Someone please stay back because I want to stay back but I don't want to stay alone," I said.

       None of them wanted to stay back.

       They would rather walk straight into a demon's trap than stay at the comfort of our campsite.

       I didn't understand this family.

       They probably all went demon and ghost hunting before. I wouldn't be so surprised if they did.

       They all grabbed a flashlight, prepared to walk into what was probably a trap.

       Wait a second...

       What if it was the axe murderer from my camping trip?

       Were we really walking right into an axe murderer's trap?

       After we, mostly them, were all ready to find out what was making that sound, I tightly held onto Sawyer's hand so I wouldn't end up getting lost in this death trap. 

       I felt like the sounds were starting to get a lot worse. Every single normal sound that I've heard in my life before felt like there was an evil intention behind it. 

       I was never going to forgive Sawyer for not telling me this place was haunted.

       You know, unless he wanted to satisfy my horn dog cravings.

       The six of us got to the location Sawyer and I were at before. "This is where we heard the screech," Sawyer said.

       "I heard it three times," I said. "Sawyer only heard it once for some reason. And that reason was because of what's on my neck. So a very good reason."

       "Jamie, I love you and everything but I don't think you should come on the next camping trip if you keep talking about my brother like this," Monica said.

       "I agree," Vincent said.

       "Oh, no," I said. "I'm... I'm completely devastated. How will I survive knowing I won't be able to come on a camping trip to this haunted forest? I'll... I'll be so sad."

       During my sarcastic moment, the loud screech came once again, this time being louder than the first three times.

       "Nope, I'm out," I said, about to head back to the campsite but my hand was still in Sawyer's so he pulled me back to him.

       "Just think, if we find out what it is, chances are it won't sneak up on us in the middle of the night," Sawyer said.

       "That doesn't make me feel any better."

       "I think it was coming from this direction," Posie said, starting to walk towards the sound.

       "Posie, you shouldn't be heading off on your own," Erica said, quickening her pace so she could catch up to her girlfriend.

       "Then stop being slowpokes and hurry your ass up," Posie said.

       "I can hurry my ass up back to the campsite," I said. "Or to Sawyer's bed."

       Sawyer sighed. "Even when you're scared, you can't stop yourself."

       "I'm not scared," I said. "I'm terrified. Seriously, can we just go back to the campsite?"

       They all ignored me and kept walking down the path. As much as I didn't want to see what was making the noise, I hoped we saw it soon so we could just head back to the campsite.

       Soon enough, I saw something in the distance that I would rather not see. "Did anyone see that?" I asked.

       "See what?" Sawyer asked.

       "Seriously?" I asked. "First the screech and now this? You need to be more attentive if you don't want to be cursed by ghosts."

       "Okay, but what did you see?" Sawyer asked.

       "This shadow figure quickly rush passed the trees," I said. 

       "Very funny," Vincent said.

       "I'm being serious," I said. "You know this is a haunted forest. Don't doubt me. Seriously, can we just head back to the campsite?"

       "Come on, we haven't even found out what that screech was," Monica said. "And it's better to be safe than sorry."

       I really didn't want to be here anymore so I looked at Sawyer, hoping my pleading eyes would work. "Please?"

       Sawyer looked at me and must have realized I truly didn't want to continue on because he asked, "You really want to go back?" I nodded. "Okay." He looked at his siblings and Posie. "Jamie and I are going to head back. After all, there should be someone watching our stuff."

       "Alright," Vincent said. "We're probably not going to continue here for long. We just want to figure out what's making that noise."

       Sawyer and I headed back to the campsite and since it was getting a bit chilly out, he grabbed the blanket he brought from the tent. He also brought a double camping chair that we could sit on together so once we were both sitting down, I snuggled as close to him as I could get as he wrapped the blanket around the two of us.

       "I still don't forgive you for not telling me this place was haunted until we got here," I said.

       "Well, you did need something to do to take your mind off of everything," Sawyer said. "And you've been too busy thinking about the haunted forest than the stuff that's bothering you."

       I opened my mouth to object but then I realized Sawyer was right; I haven't once thought about anything that was bothering me before Sawyer took me on this camping trip.

       He was an evil mastermind. 

       "Okay, that's true," I said. "But still. I would rather not see shadows running through the trees and hear creepy sounds."

       "If it makes it any better, as soon as the sun comes up, it doesn't feel as haunted."

       "The sun is down. It's not up and it won't be for a while. That doesn't make me feel any better."

       Sawyer just chuckled and squeezed me tighter. Curse him for making my heart skip a beat when I wanted to be mad at him.

       "Hey, can... can I tell you something?" Sawyer asked. "That I really don't want other people knowing about?"

       "Yeah, of course," I said. "You can tell me anything. Unless you want to break up with me. Then you can't tell me that."

       "No, Jamie, I'm not breaking up with you," Sawyer said. "I... want to get back into showjumping."

       I tilted my head up so I could look at him. "You do?"

       "Yeah, I do," Sawyer said. "I'm still terrified I'll get hurt again and I'm not sure if I'm ready to showjump again but... I miss it. A lot. And I know I'm going to have to face my fears eventually. It's just hard to do. And I don't want to tell my family yet because they've always been pressuring me to get back into showjumping. I know you wouldn't. So please don't tell my family."

       "Of course I won't tell your family," I said. "Or anyone. I don't want you to feel pressured to get back in showjumping. You need to do it on your own time and if you feel like you should, then maybe you should at least try it."

       "I just don't know how I'm going to try it," Sawyer said. "My training course was at home and all my whole family works from home. I don't want them to see it me try until I'm sure I'm going to get back into it."

       "I might have an idea," I said. 

       "What is it?" Sawyer asked.

       "That, you will have to wait for," I said. "Just hope we survive this trip."

       Sawyer chuckled. "We'll be fine."

       "You don't know that."

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the chapter titles are so fun to think of omg

i seriously love jamie so much. he's such a fun character to write i can't.