The Forest Behind My House is Moving Closer, and I Can't Stop It

Hello, Dating.mobi.
I have a problem. One I know I won?t be able to fix.
I?m all out of options. I just need somewhere to vent a little bit, before it?s all over.
I live on a small chunk of property in the middle of Nebraska, with my wife Linda and our two kids, Noah and Carly.
It?s a peaceful life. Linda has a garden she takes care of with the kids. A few months back, I bought a few sheep. Linda likes to make clothing out of the wool and sell them to anyone who?s willing to buy. The kids like them as pets, of course.
Our property sits right beside a large forest. It really was massive. I?d never felt the need to explore it, as it wasn?t our property in the first place. The kids, on the other hand, constantly needed to be reminded. I?d often let them play around the edge of the woods, but the second any of them got too far in, I would yell and call them back. I was never serious, of course. It became somewhat of a game for us.
Thursday morning was no different than any other. I woke up early every day to check on the sheep and take our dog Bailey outside. She?s a great dog. She stays right beside me and doesn?t bark at the sheep. That?s all I could ask for, really.
I was the one who spent most of my free time out on the property. I knew it like the back of my hand.
I approached the sheep pen, the ewes looking up at me as I approached. They began to bleat as I entered the shed that sat beside their home, lifting the heavy bag of food.
I dumped the food into the trough, watching as the sheep began to flock towards their meal. There were four sheep, one for each of us. I named mine Dolly, of course. My wife named hers Beth. She says she just liked the name. Noah named his Rocket, which I had told him was an odd name for a girl sheep. He didn?t seem to care. Naturally, Carly named hers Fluffy. I don?t think I need to explain that one to you.
I set down the bag of food, wiping the sweat from my forehead. As I knelt to pick the bag back up, something odd in the distance caught my eye.
I wasn?t completely sure, but it was almost as if there were more trees in the forest than there had been the previous day. I began to walk towards the woods, Bailey close behind me. As I approached, the change became obvious. Every tree, every rock, every bump on the ground was a landmark to me. Hundreds of trees had somehow grown on my property overnight. The forest?s new edge had moved forward nearly ten feet, at least.
Bailey sniffed at one of the trees as I approached the forest, placing my hand against the bark. It was solid, a strong tree. It felt as if it had been here for decades.
I looked back to Bailey who looked impatient to get back to the house. I didn?t blame her. Something felt off.
I returned to the house, kissing my wife on the cheek as I found her in the kitchen.
?Hey, have you noticed anything different?? I asked, leaning on the countertop.
She looked over her shoulder, the coffee machine humming. ?Did you get taller??
I sighed. ?No, Linda. I mean outside.?
She looked out the window, frowning. ?I don?t see anything out of place, no. Why??
I shrugged, pouring myself a glass of water from the faucet. ?Oh, it?s nothing. I just thought the trees looked closer than they usually do, that?s all.?
My wife looked back outside, chuckling. ?They look the same to me.?
I nodded, downing my drink. ?Yeah, I suppose you?re right,? I said, setting my glass down in the sink.
?Trees don?t just pop up out of nowhere, Frank,? she said, smiling as I headed back to our bedroom. I couldn?t waste anymore time, or I?d be late for work.
My kids hopped around at my feet as I walked to my truck, my eyes glued to the forest. I couldn?t help but feel as if they had moved even closer.
That entire day, I couldn?t stop thinking about the woods behind my house. No matter what I did, I just couldn?t stop.
My company had been working on building a home for the past few weeks now. I stood by my truck, sipping from my water bottle as I stared at my phone. It was nearly six o?clock now.
?Hey, if you?re just going to stare at your phone, you may as well just leave,? my friend Chuck said, smirking at me.
?Are you sure?? I said, feeling stupid for getting caught slacking.
?You?re alright, Frank,? he said, climbing down from a ladder. ?We?ll clean up here.?
?Sorry, Chuck,? I said, stepping around to the driver's seat. ?Linda?s making her chicken tonight. I can?t miss it,? I said, lying.
?Hey, say hello to Linda for me, will you?? he said. ?Haven?t seen your family in a while.?
I nodded. ?Sure man, you got it.?
I gripped the steering wheel hard as I drove home, anxious for whatever reason. I felt like I was losing my mind. How could the trees be moving?
I parked my car in the driveway, heading straight for the back of the house. I entered my shed, pulling out a stake from the top shelf.
The sun was setting by the time I reached the forest. I looked out into the trees, sighing. I hammered the stake into the ground right between the two closest trees to my property. I?d see just how crazy I was in the morning.
Dinner was nice, but it was no chicken, that?s for sure. The next morning, I took Bailey outside, heading straight for the trees.
I walked directly to where I?d set the stake, my eyes searching the ground. It was gone.
The thing was, though, it wasn?t gone. I found it shortly after, about fifteen feet into the forest. I was stunned. Was someone playing a trick on me? Either someone had moved my stake, or another several hundred trees had appeared on my property.
As I removed my stake from the ground, I could hear Bailey beginning to growl behind me. I looked to my dog, who was staring out into the woods, her teeth bared. I followed her line of sight, finding nothing but trees.
I walked out of the woods, calling for Bailey to follow me. I had to be losing my mind.
I tried to explain the situation to Linda, but she wouldn?t believe me, obviously.
At work that day, we were working extra hard. We always tended to do that on the last day of the work week.
?I don?t know, Chuck,? I said, rubbing my forehead. ?I think I may be stressing too much.?
Chuck grunted, setting a piece of wood down beside the house. ?And why is that??
I shrugged, stepping aside to start my break. ?Oh, you know. Just stupid things.?
?Like what, Frank?? Chuck said, following me. He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.
I scratched the back of my neck, sighing. ?Well, mostly, I keep thinking that the trees behind my house are getting closer. **** like that.?
Frank scoffed. ?Really??
I nodded. ?Yeah, weird, right??
Frank shook his head. ?No, I mean, I thought the same thing. About my house, though, not yours.?
I frowned. ?Wait, what??
Chuck smiled. ?Yeah, I was on the edge of my property, and I thought I saw an extra tree or two,? he said, lighting a cigarette. ?It?s weird we did the same thing.?
I grunted. ?Yeah, well, I?ve seen a few more than that.?
?Well, how many?? Chuck said, placing the cigarette in between his lips.
?The trees have moved up almost twenty-five feet, now,? I said, suddenly embarrassed. ?Or, I least I think they have.?
Chuck squinted, nodding slowly as he inhaled. We sat in silence as he held in the smoke, finally exhaling. ?Yeah, you might be stressed, Frank.?
?You two going to get back to work any time soon?? our friend Jim called from the roof.
?We just got on break, ****head,? Chuck replied, rolling his eyes at me.
We made great progress that day. We?d probably be finished with the house by the end of the next week.
On the way home, I stopped at the local Chinese food place in town to pick up dinner. It wasn?t a Friday night without our Chinese takeout.
The owners had my order ready for when I entered the restaurant. I paid and headed home, choosing to push aside any thoughts of the forest. The weekend was for relaxation, after all.
Dinner was delicious, as always. Every Friday night, Linda and I would watch our favorite show on the television, while Noah and Carly would spend time playing together. Tonight, they were outside in the backyard with Bailey.
We lived in the middle of nowhere. I never feared letting my children play outside at night. I?d done it as a child, myself. The only thing they needed to fear was the rare wild animal, and that only included the kind that would want to come near them.
This night was different. I could hear the backdoor slide open, the sound of feet tapping against the floor catching my attention. ?Daddy?? my son called.
I looked over my shoulder. ?Yes, Noah?? I replied, noticing the fear in his eyes.
?There?s a man outside,? he said, pointing behind him.
I frowned, Linda sitting up to look at our son. ?What do mean, buddy? Does someone need to talk to me?? I said, standing.
Noah shook his head. ?He?s out in the woods,? he said, looking as if he were about to start crying. ?He looks naked.?
I was moving towards the door before he?d finished speaking. My hand reached for my rifle as I stepped through the backdoor, my eyes thankfully landing on Carly. Bailey stood a few feet in front of my daughter, growling at the man who stood in forest. As Noah had recalled, the man was indeed not wearing clothing, but there was something? odd about him. It was hard to tell from this far away, but the man?s skin looked gray. It looked as if he?d been dead for over a month, yet decided to come back to life, just to stand in my backyard.
I knelt beside my nine-year-old daughter, who had started to cry. ?Go inside, honey,? I said, turning to look at our back door. Linda stood in the doorway, confusion in her eyes. I helped Carly up the steps, turning my attention back to the man as the backdoor slid shut. The man had not moved. He remained motionless, staring directly at me.
?Get the **** out of here,? I called, holding the rifle in my hands. ?You?re on private property.?
The man did not react. He continued to stare at me from the edge of the forest. ?I?m warning you, buddy. I don?t know what you?re on right now, but I know you understand what I?m saying,? I called out.
His eyes burned through me. He didn?t look like he was intending on leaving. ?Get out of here,? I called, raising the rifle. ?Don?t ****ing test me.?
The man hadn?t blinked since I?d seen him. I swore under my breath, shifting nervously on my feet. This pervert was standing in my backyard, wearing no clothing and watching my young children play. I was sure no one would miss that sick son of a bitch.
I aimed at the man and fired. As I pulled the trigger, within the blink of an eye, the man was gone. My eyes scanned the trees. Had he started running? I searched for several minutes but couldn?t find the man.
I returned to the house, my family shaken up inside. I told them that I?d scared the man off, but Linda could tell I was lying. The kids were relieved, however, and praised me as if I were a hero.
I didn?t sleep last night. I just listened to Linda breathe softly in her sleep as I pictured the man?s naked body. I almost prayed that he would come back, so that I could teach him what would happen if he tried to stare at my kids like that again.
The next morning, I?d walked out my back porch with Bailey, ready for our morning routine. I was immediately met with a horrific sight.
The trees had moved closer. The edge of the trees now stood a mere two hundred feet from my back door. Out further on my property, a large tree stood tall in the spot where the sheep?s pen had been.
I began to run towards the pen, Bailey practically tripping me as we moved quickly across my property.
The sight was gruesome. Trees stuck up out of the ground from inside of the small barn we?d built for the sheep. The front half of Rocket laid lifeless on the ground in a pool of blood, a tree in the ground directly behind her. I could not find the other sheep, but I knew their bodies were inside what remained of the barn.
I stood there for a while, rubbing my face. What the **** was happening? How could this even be possible?
How would I tell the kids?
I turned, ready to head back to the house. In my daze, I hadn?t noticed the severity of my problem. The trees had moved closer, yes, but now a thick wall of trees surrounded the entirety of my property. Shocked, I ran to the front of my house. Massive trees formed a circle around the house, their trunks touching. I ran up to the wall of bark, slamming my fist against it. They were very real.
I ran back to the house, Linda now standing in the front door, fear in her eyes. ?Frank??
?Get back in the house, Linda,? I said, running for my shed. I searched through the pile of junk, eventually finding what I was looking for.
I carried the axe back to the front of the house, running for the wall of trees. Bailey barked excitedly behind me as we ran. I lifted the axe behind me, swinging it as hard as I could.
The axe slammed against the side of the tree, practically bouncing off of it. I tried several more times. By the time I?d tired myself out, not a single mark had been made in the tree.
I pulled out my cell phone, calling the only person I knew I would listen to me.
?Chuck,? I practically shouted as he picked up the phone.
?Frank,? he said, sensing my fear. ?What?s wrong??
?Please get over here,? I said, tapping my foot. ?Bring your chainsaw.?
?Frank-? he said, cut off by my temper.
?Now, Chuck,? I said, rubbing my forehead. ?It?s an emergency.?
Chuck arrived a short time later. I could hear him through the wall as he approached. ?Jesus Christ??
?Chuck!? I called, met with a brief silence.
?Frank? Where are you?? he shouted.
?You need to get this wall down, man,? I said, banging on the tree. My knuckles began to hurt. ?Please.?
?Are you sure...?? he called. ?These trees are really ****ing tall, man??
?Just ****ing do it, Chuck,? I shouted, ignoring his words.
Chuck revved his chainsaw. I looked back to the house, Linda watching from the window. The kids must have still been asleep.
Chuck?s chainsaw started, drawing my attention. I could hear the tool connect with the tree on the other side. A loud clang shot through the tree, followed by Chuck?s brief scream.
I froze, anxious. ?Chuck? Chuck, what happened??
?The thing broke my damn saw,? he said, a thud audible as he tossed the broken tool to the ground.
?Wait there, Chuck,? I cried, running to the house. I threw open the front door, my wife?s eyes on me. ?Get the kids. We?re leaving.?
?How? We can't get through those damn trees, Frank,? she cried, as I ran for the back door.
?We?ll go through the woods,? I said, stepping out onto the back porch. Bailey followed me as I moved out into the backyard. I froze, my eyes landing on the trees.
People were standing in the forest. Like the man, they were all naked, with dark gray skin. And there were hundreds of them.
I recognized one, then. I was almost certain that it was my neighbor, Hector.
?Hector!? I called, my fear escaping through my voice. As I?d expected, the man who I thought had been Hector didn?t reply. Instead, he stared back at me with dead eyes.
I ran back into the house, shutting the door once Bailey had made it inside. Linda stopped as she descended from the staircase, holding Carly. Noah stood behind her, confusion in his eyes. ?What?s wrong?? Linda asked.
?Get the kids up in the bedroom, Linda,? I said, grabbing my gun. ?Lock the door.?
My words scared my kids. They began to cry as Linda pushed them back up the stairs.
I took out my cellphone and called the police. It was the only thing I could think of doing.
I stayed on the line with the operator, who had thankfully listened to my story. She had likely sent the officers more in response to the part about the people in my backyard, and less for the supposed wall of trees, but it didn?t matter to me. So along as they were coming.
Once police arrived, I got back on the phone with Chuck. I could hear the police in the background, astounded by what they were seeing.
?Don?t worry, man,? Chuck said. ?They?re telling me that they?ll get you out of there soon. They want to know why you planted trees here in the first place.?
I groaned, rubbing my face. ?I didn?t, Chuck. Tell them.?
Chuck spoke to the police for a while before returning. ?They don?t believe you.?
?That?s fine, Chuck,? I said. ?Just get us the **** out of here.?
?They?re calling a helicopter in,? he said. ?It?ll be here soon.?
I sighed, relieved. I looked out my window. The wall had to be only a hundred feet tall, at the most. A helicopter could easily pass that.
Chuck sounded surprised when the police started to speak to him, nearly half an hour later. ?What do you mean??
?What?s wrong, Chuck?? I asked, watching the people in my backyard through the window.
?They?re trying to tell me they can?t fly over to you guys,? he said.
?What?? I replied. I failed to see how that could be possible.
?They?re saying that no matter how high they go, the wall keeps getting taller. I don?t know what to tell you, Frank. They?re trying, okay?? he said, sounding frazzled.
I groaned. ?Just? just hurry,? I said, staring out into the forest.
I had a long conversation with Linda as we waited. We talked about what we would do if the trees got too close - we were going to run into the woods and try to go around. Her eyes remained locked on the forest for the second half of the conversation.
No progress was made by the police that day. The people in the forest remained there, unmoving, when I eventually fell asleep on the couch.
The next morning, I woke up to hear the sound of my backdoor sliding open. I sat up quickly, reaching for my gun. Linda stood in the doorway, stepping out into the backyard.
?Linda!? I called, running to the door in a daze. ?Linda, what are you doing??
Linda cried out as she ran out into the backyard, her feet bare. ?They want me, Frank! Come with me!?
I froze in the doorway. The trees were much closer now, less than a hundred feet from my house. Linda was nearly there.
?Linda!? I called out to my wife, not ready for this change in her attitude. I ran from the house, the gun in my hands.
Linda vanished as she passed the border into the woods. I nearly tripped as I ran, stopping myself as the people in the woods began to emerge, seemingly appearing from nothing.
My heart was pounding in my chest. ?LINDA!? I cried. She was gone.
It had all happened so quickly. Within the span of a single minute, I'd both woken up and lost my wife.
?Daddy?!? I heard a call from behind me. Carly and Noah stood in the doorway, shock on their faces.
I ran to my children, forcing them inside and shutting the door. ?What did you two just see??
?Who are all those people?? Noah asked, looking through the backdoor.
?Where?s Mommy?? Carly asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
?Get upstairs, and lock yourself in my room,? I said. ?Do NOT come back out unless I?m talking to you. Do you understand??
My children hesitated before finally nodding. I waited for them to go upstairs before exiting my house through the front door.
The wall in front of our house was closer now. I hadn?t realized just how dark it was out here. The trees blocked the morning sun.
I called Chuck on my phone. As I?d expected, my old friend remained outside of the wall with the police.
?Chuck, Linda is gone,? I said, finally beginning to cry.
?Frank, what the hell are you talking about?? he said, shocked.
?She ran out into the trees, man? I think they took her,? I said, rubbing my eyes.
?Some of the cops went in the woods a few hours ago to try to get to you guys,? he said, sounding desperate. ?Maybe they found her out there? Have some hope, damn it.?
I didn?t hold on to that hope. I knew my wife was gone. I just had a feeling.
It?s been over twenty-four hours since Linda ran into the woods. The trees are practically on my back porch, now. God, it is so dark out there. The kids are upstairs in my room, hopefully not looking out the window I?d covered up.
Linda is standing out in the backyard beside a large tree, her naked skin a dark gray. I want to open the door and let her in, but I know the Linda I love is gone. That isn't really her.
I imagine the house will be covered come tomorrow morning. There?s not much left for me to do. I just hope its quick when we inevitably go. For Noah and Carly, more than for myself.
I?ve been fighting the insane urge to run outside and join Linda. It?s like they?re calling to me. They must want to keep moving.
I decided to write to you all as a warning. If you notice anything like this on your own property, get those you care about out of there immediately. I was too late. Now, my babies have to die because of it.
Bailey is sitting by the backdoor. She has no idea what?s going to happen within the next twenty-four hours. I?m in envy, to be frank.
I?m going to stop wasting my time here with you. I don?t have much of it left. I?m going to go sit with my kids and play with them until the time comes.
I?ll try to respond to any comments on my phone while I can, if there even are any.
Thanks for reading.


Source.