Tags:
Fiction,
General,
People & Places,
Action & Adventure,
Juvenile Fiction,
Young Adult Fiction,
Zombies,
Europe,
Horror Tales,
Horror & Ghost Stories,
London (England),
Horror stories
at the ready.
“Al clear.”
One by one the others fol owed, Ol ie bringing up the rear, flashlight in one hand, slingshot in the other.
They walked cautiously forward. As they moved closer to the pool, they noticed a smel . The choking, rotten stink of stagnant water.
“Aw, who farted?” said Deke, holding his nose. Freak sniggered, but nobody else laughed. The pair of them liked to joke around to keep the fear away, but the others had their own ways of dealing with their nerves.
Achil eus was tensed and alert, ready for action, almost wil ing a grown-up to jump out at him. Arran tried to stand tal and appear unafraid, imagining he was casting a protective shield around his little group. Ol ie kept glancing back over his shoulder. He was so used to watching the rear that he almost found it easier walking backward.
“That is an evil smel ,” said Freak.
“Keep it down,” said Achil eus.
“Come off it, Akkie,” said Deke. “If there was anyone here, I think they just might have heard that bloody big bang as I took out the door.”
“Shut up so’s we can listen, Deke.”
“Okay, okay.”
They shone their flashlights around the seating area where the vending machines had once stood.
Nothing. Empty.
“They’re gone,” said Arran.
“What a surprise,” said Achil eus.
“Told you this was a waste of time,” said Ol ie. “Now can we go?”
Arran carried on toward the pool. A dim light was glowing green through the windows around the high ceiling. The air felt hot and moist. He used to come here nearly every week in the summer. There was a waterslide that snaked out of the building and back again. It had always been noisy here, busy with kids. There had been a wave machine and al sorts of fountains, waterfal s, and jets. Now it was absolutely quiet and stil and stank like a sewer.
Stringy weeds hung from the waterslide that stood on rusting supports.
Arran was aware of his heart thumping against his ribs. He didn’t like being here.
“We should take a proper look around,” said Freak, joining him by the pool and shining his flashlight around the cavernous space.
There was stil water in the pool, but it was a soupy greenish-brown color. Clumps of algae and weed floated on the surface, and odd pieces of furniture had been dumped in it. Arran could see chairs and tables, a filing cabinet, and what looked like a treadmil , probably from the gym upstairs.
More algae and mold made its way up the wal s, covering the windows—this was what was turning the light that weird ghostly green.
The others came through.
“We should go,” said Ol ie, nervously glancing back toward the entrance.
“Scared, are you?” said Deke.
“’Course I’m scared,” said Ol ie simply. “I’m always scared when we go somewhere we’ve never been before. It’s good to be scared. Keeps you alive.”
“Check this out,” Freak hissed, interrupting them. He was shining his flashlight across the pool.
A vending machine stood there, half submerged in the water, but they could see that it was stil stocked with chocolate bars and candy and chips.
“We’ve struck the jackpot,” Deke whispered.
They moved closer to the water’s edge, marveling at the treasure trove in the stagnant pool. The side of the pool sloped gradual y into the water, giving the effect of a beach. The smel was appal ing, and the floor was slippery beneath their feet.
“What’s it doing in the water?” said Achil eus.
“Who cares?” Freak and Deke said in unison.
Arran shone his flashlight on a sign; it was stil just about readable beneath the fungal growth on its surface. no running. no diving.
“See that?” he said. “No diving.”
The others sniggered. The thought of diving into the dark, stinking water was disgusting, but nevertheless somebody was going to have to wade in if they wanted to get to the vending machine.
“I don’t like it,” said Ol ie. “It’s not right.”
Once again he glanced back toward the