The Lake House

Written by Marc Orlan A. Jabagat

It was the summer after graduation and a group of friends Luke, Sarah, Matthew, Jasmine,
Kesha and James decided to take a trip to celebrate their freedom from school. They had
heard about a haunted lake house that was located in the middle of the woods, and being
adventurous teenagers, they couldn’t resist the idea of spending a weekend there. Little did
they know, it would turn out to be a trip they would never forget.
As they arrived at the lake house, they were met with an eerie silence that seemed to linger
around the area. The house itself was old and rundown, with broken windows and a
decaying wooden porch. With a strong smell of damp and dust due to time. Surrounded
with the thickness of the density of the forest. Despite the creepy appearance, the friends
were excited to explore the supposedly haunted house.

‘Guys, are you sure about this?’ Sarah asked, looking skeptically at the house.
‘Don’t be a scaredy-cat, It’s just a silly old legend,’ replied Luke, trying to sound brave. ‘Let’s
go inside and check it out.’

With hesitant footsteps, they entered the house, only to find filthy and abandoned rooms.
The air was thick with dust and a musty smell that made it hard to breathe. The only source
of light was coming from the moon, peeking through the cracks in the walls.

‘This place sure does gives me the creeps,’ whispered Luke.

As they made their way through the house, they stumbled upon an old diary. The first entry
was written from years ago by a woman who had lived in the house. According to the diary,
she had gone insane and died in the lake, but her spirit haunted the house, seeking revenge
on anyone who entered.
The friends laughed off the diary as just another silly urban legend, but deep down, they
couldn’t shake off the feeling of being watched. The tension grew as they heard strange
noises and footsteps, as if someone or something was following them.
‘Guys, did you hear that?’ whispered James, his voice filled with fear.
‘Relax, it’s probably just the wind,’ Matthew said, trying to stay calm.

Suddenly, the lights flickered, and an ominous feeling filled the air. The group looked at
each other, their hearts racing with fear.

‘We should leave,’ suggested Sarah, her voice shaking.

But before they could reach it, the doors slammed shut, trapping them inside.

‘What the hell?’ yelled James, trying to open the door with all his might.

In a panic, they searched for a way out, but the windows were all sealed shut. And that’s
when they heard it – a blood-curdling scream coming from the lake. The sound was so
terrifying that it sent chills down their spines.

‘Guys, we have to get out of here. That scream sounded human,’ cried Kesha.

They finally found a way out through the basement and ran towards their car, never
looking back. As they drove away, they could see a figure standing at the window, watching
them leave. Staring with no eyes, showing its pale white ghoulish figure.
The group never spoke of that night again, but they all knew they had narrowly escaped the
wrath of the vengeful spirit of the haunted lake house. And they never dared to venture
there again, knowing that some legends are not to be taken lightly.
The Devil’s Triangle
Written by Brayden Cassey D. Cardiño

The sun was just beginning to set as a group of friends, Simon, Uncle Derick, Tina, Aklan,
Andrew and Sam, boarded their small yacht, ready for their voyage to the Bermuda
Triangle. They had heard all the rumors and stories about the mysterious area, but they
were determined to see it for themselves.

As they sailed deeper into the triangle, the sky grew darker and the water rougher. Uncle
Derick, who was steering the boat, noticed a strange fog ahead. ‘Guys, do you see that?’ he
called out to his friends.
They all peered ahead and saw the thick fog. ‘That’s strange' Tina said, her voice filled with
unease.
Simon, the most adventurous of the group, laughed. ‘Come on, guys, it’s just a little fog.
We’re not turning back now, are we?’

Aklan, Andrew and Sam reluctantly agreed and they sailed into the fog, unaware of the
horrors that awaited them. As they entered the fog, the world seemed to shift and change
around them. The water turned a dark, murky green and the sky was a sickly shade of
purple.

Tina shivered, ‘This doesn’t feel right. Maybe we should turn back.’

But before anyone could respond, a loud roar echoed through the air. The friends looked
around, trying to find the source of the sound. Suddenly, a massive tentacle emerged from
the water, followed by a terrifying creature with glowing red eyes and razor-sharp teeth.

‘Ah, what the hell is that?!’ Uncle Derick screamed, his eyes wide with fear.
‘We need to get out of here now!’ Simon yelled, with his voice trembling.

But it was too late, the creature had already latched onto their boat, causing it to capsize.
The friends were thrown into the water and as they resurfaced, they found themselves in a
strange, otherworldly dimension.
They swam to a nearby island and quickly realized that they were not alone. Strange,
monstrous creatures roamed the island, and the friends knew they had to stick together if
they wanted to survive.

‘This is insane,’ Aklan said, his voice shaking. ‘We have to find a way out of here.’

As they explored the island, they stumbled upon an abandoned research facility. Inside,
they found a journal that detailed the experiments being conducted on the creatures of this
dimension. They learned that the researchers had accidentally opened a portal to this
world through the Bermuda Triangle.

‘We have to find a way to close the portal and get back home,’ Tina said, her voice
determined.

They searched the facility and found a device that could potentially close the portal. But as
they made their way back to the portal, they were ambushed by the creatures. Uncle Derick
was injured and Andrew and Sam was separated from the group.

‘We can’t leave without Andrew and Sam!,’ Simon said, his voice full of worry.
‘We have to keep going. We can’t let those creatures stop us,’ Tina replied, her grip
tightening on the device.

They finally reached the portal and activated the device, causing the portal to collapse.
Andrew and Sam appeared, both injured but alive, and they all stepped through the portal
just as it closed behind them.
They found themselves back in their own world, their boat miraculously intact. They sailed
back to shore, grateful to have survived their horrifying ordeal.
As they looked back at the Bermuda Triangle, they knew they would never forget the
horrors they had faced in that other dimension. But they also knew that they had a bond
that could never be broken, having survived together in a world filled with monsters.