I live in a small town in Upstate New York that is dominated by forest. I’m 18, and attend the local high school. Nobody’s happy there. The teachers are weird, the school food sucks, and half the time it’s normal to see two kids duking it out in the hallways.
This started last month. I came into class one day to find one of my deskmates, Ben, gone. It wasn’t unusual, since he was a rebel and often skipped, so I assumed he was off doing something else and continued my day. However, the next day, Ben returned to school, but a smile was fixed on his face. Me and my classmates were creeped out by this sudden change of mood. Ben was asking questions, answering problems, and even asked for extra homework. Seriously? Extra Homework?
As the days went by, me and my friend group: Seth, Kylie, and Aiden, began to notice more unusual things happening. The rebels that once fought in the hallways were now well dressed, wearing khakis and collared shirts. They made no attempt to fight, no attempt to even curse out a teacher. All they did was grab their books from their lockers and go to class, with that same fixed smile on their faces. It got to the point where I feigned sick every day just to avoid seeing my classmates.
It wasn’t long before Seth, Kylie, and Aiden were turned into happy, go lucky people as well. Their usual rebellious attitude was replaced by a happy, rule following attitude, with the same smile plastered on their faces. I was obviously creeped out, but found that the adults in town weren’t the least bit fazed. Hell, they were happy about it. I often passed by the teacher’s lounge to see teachers happier than ever, chatting, laughing. It was unusual, since they were usually grumpy and tired.
By week three, almost everyone had turned into smile fixated people. It was only me and a handful of kids who weren’t affected. We began meeting in secret, discussing the eeriness behind the entire thing. I mean, these kids used to be rebellious. They used to uphold the rebel code, start fights, skip class. But now they’re following rules. Wearing khakis and collared shirts, and have these creepy smiles on their faces. It was unnatural. However, the same week, these same kids who weren’t affected had those same smiles on their faces. It wasn’t long before only three of us were left: me, a junior Sarah, and a senior John (who mind you is usually a douche).
Last week, Me, Sarah, and John met in secret. We decided to meet at the abandoned warehouse. As we discussed this, John suddenly proposed an idea .
“Let’s leave this town. Next week. We meet by the old bridge”
The three of us agreed, and began preparing. However, it seemed as if the town knew we were leaving. When I woke up in the morning, I woke up with scratches and bruises, and a sharp pain on my neck, as if someone had just strangled me in my sleep. The “happy” students began to stare at me in the hallways. Some even began attacking me, Sarah, and John. I came home with more scratches and bruises than I ever had up to that point. Despite this, the three of us continued to prepare for the long journey ahead of us
Today was my final day in this god forsaken town. I’m packing as I’m typing this out. I’m bringing water, some food, spare clothes, $400 in cash, and a camping knife for defense. I called John and Sarah, and luckily they’re still alive. Turns out, I rewinded the security cameras in my house earlier today, and I found a horrifying sight. Those scratches and bruises that I’ve been getting? They were from those happy idiots breaking into my house and attacking me in my sleep I don’t know how they got in or why they did what they did, but what matters is that I’m leaving this town behind for good.