The Cottage (Another HoM original short story)

Good evening, House of Madness cottagers:

They always say there's safety in numbers, and while that may not always necessarily be true, in some instances it can be a real life saver. As always, I hope you enjoy!

The Cottage

Jay Jensen had teamed up with his father-in-law and purchased the family cottage together about five years ago, and although there was an obvious age gap between the two men, they were practically inseparable when their families got together, and seemingly built a lifetime of laughs and memories each time their families met up for a weekend of togetherness. When the cottage wasn't resembling a zoo with Jay's family, his in-laws, his siblings and their children, it was still well-used by Jay, his wife Connie, his two children Jeff and Brenda, and the family dog Puddles. Every chance they had to get up to the cottage (which was about two hours away from their suburban home), the Jensen family swam, wakeboarded, and played horseshoes to their hearts's content, but everything can't last forever. 

Although they were a tight-knit family, they were no different from everyone else, and life got in the way; Jeff was no longer a rugrat and had a summer job at a local restaurant, and Brenda was now in her teens, which meant summer days were reserved for friends and gossip. Of course they still had their time up at the family cottage, but it seemed to be less and less as each summer passed by with a flash. There were times when Jay and Connie went up by themselves, or with a group of friends, and although those were some great times in their own right, it always felt empty and a little hollow without the prancing around of children and hearing their giggles and shrieks of joy. And then came the first time Jay had ever spent the night on his own; sure, he had been alone at the cottage plenty of times by himself putting in the docks, working on the roof, or simply chilling until guests arrived, but he'd never spent the night by himself, and now wishes he never had.

Jay and Connie were supposed to be heading up later that eventful summer day together, planning on relaxing by the lake with some wine and tunes, followed by a nice campfire. Just as they were heading out the door, Connie's phone rang, which always meant the same thing, she had to go to the office. It had happened several times before, and every time Jay had simply turfed their plans, and settled on a nice afternoon nap followed by some brewskies and Netflix. This time, however, Jay turned to Connie and said "I'm gonna go up anyways, I've been looking forward to this all week", to which Connie replied surprisingly "OK, just remember, no crazy parties while I'm here by myself!", and the two pecked each other a kiss before Jay put the truck in gear. As Connie was getting out of the truck, she said "Come on, Puddles!", but was quickly interrupted by Jay stating "No way, you're coming with me, Puds", and that was that.

As Jay and his longtime buddy made the trek up to their home away from home, Jay chatted away while Puddles listened in earnest, although what he was actually thinking about nobody could say. It was a drive Jay had made countless times, and if the situation ever arose where he was forced to navigate the winding roads in the pitch black without headlights, Jay could most assuredly find his way. As he pulled into the driveway and started down the steep decline to the cottage, it dawned on Jay that he'd never been alone here, knowing no one else was coming before the night set in, and he grew even more fond of his little companion in the passenger seat, panting away. As the two entered the side door, Jay felt an unease he'd never experienced while up at his getaway palace, and a feeling of dread began to consume him as he looked out across the lake. "You're being stupid" Jay said to himself, but he wasn't entirely sure that was true.

After a beer or three, Jay started to feel the tension dissipate, and he finally allowed himself to sit back and relax while he smoked a cheap cigar and did a little work on his laptop. As relaxed as he felt, Jay still couldn't shake the thought of the night, and couldn't escape the feeling of being watched, although the lake was as quiet as a tumbleweed in the desert. "Let's go make some chow, boy" Jay said to Puddles, and the two headed inside where Jay felt safest and most comfortable. As the sun slowly set, Jay still couldn't understand why he was feeling the way he did, but an inescapable shiver seemed to ensconce his entire soul, and not just his physical body as the darkness crept towards him like a soldier in the reeds; and then he saw it. Beyond the dock, almost impossibly out of view, Jay swore he could see a head; not simply floating as if decapitated, but the head of something lying in wait, just biding its time before it took another step and rendered itself more visible. "What the fuck?" Jay said to Puddles, but Puddles was more interested in what was going on with his own genitals, as he licked away at the testicles that no longer existed. "I'm losing my mind" Jay said to no one in particular this time, and he swore he saw more movement in the lake.

If Jay could have boarded up all the windows and sealed all the Cottage's orifices, he certainly would have, but he settled on making sure all the windows and doors were locked, set the security alarm (police were at least 45 minutes away, so good luck there), and sat in his den on the first floor where he watched the security cameras overlooking his property with great intent. At first Jay saw nothing other than the silhouettes of his empty beer cans and the patio furniture they rested on, but then his eyes adjusted to the dark, and he could almost make out what he assumed was the outline of a man, or something that resembled one anyways. As he cowered and watched with horror, the figure seemed to be making its way towards the side door, unaware and uncaring of anything along its path; even though the door was closed and this was all happening above him, Jay could still hear flower pots and trinkets being knocked off of the railing outside. As the figure drew closer to the cottage, the motion activated floodlights came on, and Jay covered his mouth with terror as tears started rolling uncontrollably down his face. A mound stood before the door, it looked at least 10 feet tall and covered in weeds from the lake, and where the mouth should have been was an opening which looked large enough to swallow Jay whole, and by now he was hoping to be so lucky. Just as it reached for the door handle, Jay shot up with a start, and realized he had fallen asleep in his chair on the dock, completely oblivious to the darkness which now surrounded him. After a couple of minutes Jay gathered himself, and got up to go into the cottage; "Here, Puds!" he said while patting his leg, but as he looked down at the dock, he saw Puddles's collar sitting in a pile of wet weeds, and an oozing trail leading back into the lake.

NB