The Whisper in the Woods

Most people in Elmswood avoided the forest.

They said the trees whispered things you weren’t meant to hear. That if you went in too deep, the woods would remember your name—and worse, call it back to you when you were alone.

Sage never believed in stories meant to scare children. She believed in facts, in wildflowers that bloomed out of season, in the way roots tangled under the soil like veins. The forest didn’t frighten her—it fascinated her. It was the only place she felt quiet inside.

Her small cottage stood just beyond the last line of houses, pressed up against the woods like it had always belonged there. Most days after school, she’d drop her bag by the door, grab her weathered sketchbook, and slip into the trees. No one ever followed her. They knew better.

That afternoon, the light was strange—golden but muted, like the sun had decided to speak in riddles. Sage noticed right away. She paused at the edge of the woods, letting the breeze brush her face, eyes scanning the horizon like something might appear if she just waited long enough.

She stepped into the trees.

Everything felt… still. Birds weren’t singing. The air had a weight to it, thick with the scent of moss and old rain. It wasn’t fear she felt exactly, but something closer to awareness—like the woods were watching her.

She moved carefully, taking her usual path by memory. The trail twisted along a shallow creek, lined with wild herbs and stones she’d arranged into patterns weeks ago. But today, one stone had moved. It wasn’t hers. It was smooth, round, and covered in a thin layer of green moss—and on its surface, a strange symbol had been carved. A spiral within a triangle, etched deep like it had been burned into the rock itself.

Sage crouched, reaching out to brush away the moss when—

“Sage.”

She froze.

The whisper wasn’t loud, but it wasn’t distant either. It was close. Very close. The kind of voice that presses against the back of your neck and knows things you haven’t said out loud.

She stood up slowly, heart pounding in her chest. “Who’s there?” she called out, trying to sound steady.

No answer. Just the rustle of leaves and the sharp cry of a crow overhead.

She turned in a slow circle, searching the shadows between the trees. There was no one. But something in her gut told her she wasn’t alone.

Then she saw it. A path she had never noticed before—narrow, overgrown, yet clearly walked by something. And at its entrance stood an old tree, split in the middle like lightning had struck it long ago. In the split, something shimmered. Not light exactly, but a flicker, like the edge of a dream you can’t quite catch.

She should’ve turned back. She knew that.

But Sage had never been good at ignoring the things that called to her.

And the woods were calling.

⸻

To be continued…

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***