We Are Not Alone Here | Creepypasta

12. The Cabin

"Alright, we're here."

Jeff's legs felt like lead, and he had been clinging to Liu's hand so tightly that his hand was almost numb. They had arrived at the cabin Liu had mentioned. It was two stories tall in the middle of a small clearing, and it didn't look too bad. But wasn't this still in Slenderman's territory? How had the other proxies just missed this cabin every time? Even Jeff himself had never seen it before.

Liu led Jeff up the porch steps and took out a key from his pocket, which he used to unlock the front door. Jeff was greeted with a surge of warm air and the sight of a living room combined with a dining room. The cabin looked like it had once belonged to an old, fussy grandmother: vintage furniture, mismatched chairs, no TV, a fireplace. Even a couple of oil paintings hung on the walls. It even had the smell of cats, but the thing that was most out of place was that Jeff could also detect the familiar smell of weed. A glass sliding door blocked the inside from the outside.

"I'm home!" Liu called out as he closed the door behind the two and hung up his overcoat. "And I have a guest!"

"Hey, dude!" a female voice called back, seemingly from upstairs. The voice was friendly, but rather gruff.

Jeff allowed Liu to nudge him towards the couch, which he sat on. Liu directed him to take off his shoes and jacket and to wrap himself in the quilt that hung over the back of the couch. Liu sat down next to him and wrapped an arm around his shoulder. Jeff still had trouble believing that this was happening, really happening, and he kept wondering whether or not this was a dream. But the arm slung around him, and the scent of weed and pine wafting from Liu's turtleneck brought him back down to Earth. He still felt like crying.

A gasp of pure shock snapped Jeff out of his trance. When he looked up, he saw a woman entering the dining room, carrying two steaming mugs of tea. Her rosy cheeks had gone pale, and her singular brown eye was wide. When Jeff realized who she was, his jaw dropped.

"It's alright, my love," Liu reassured the woman, his voice surprisingly calm. "Could you give one of those mugs to Jeff? Thanks."

Trembling slightly, Vailly approached the sofa and handed Jeff one of the mugs of tea, which he took with a grateful nod. He wasn't very accustomed to tea, but he wasn't going to turn down a warm beverage. Holding the mug in both hands, he lifted it to his lips and took a deep gulp. But as soon as he placed his mug on the coffee table, Vailly slapped him hard across the face.

"That's for what you did to my partners!" Vailly snapped loudly. Behind her voice was anger, but also relief.

Groaning in pain, Jeff clutched his stinging cheek, massaging it - he knew he deserved it, but it still hurt. He felt Liu tenderly rub his back.

"Wait . . . p-partners?" Jeff repeated, still shaken up.

Vailly let out an exasperated sigh and folded her arms tightly against her bosom. From within the house, a pair of running footsteps began to make their way down the stairs.

"I promise I'll explain everything later on." Liu told his brother. "Drink your tea, buddy. You'll feel better."

Jeff hesitantly took another sip of tea. Suddenly, another woman appeared, this being the one coming from upstairs. Her sunflower hair was chopped short, and she had quite a few tattoos under her gray tank top. She was quite muscular. Scars decorated her face and upper body. Her eyes were blank white except for her pupils. When she saw Jeff, she stared at him for a few moments before doing that air-spit people do and starting to laugh heartily, clapping her hands together once.

"I had a feeling that asshole would be here!" she cackled, full of joy as if she had won a bet. "I called it!"

Jeff was totally confused. His head was spinning, and he was still shaking slightly. What the hell was going on?

"Ladies, Jeff needs some rest." Liu insisted.

"Fine, fine," the blonde heaved, her loud laughter dying down.

Still chuckling to herself, the blonde woman made her way back down the hallway and vanished. It was a moment before Vailly left as well, but not before giving Liu a quick kiss.

"W-what is all this?" Jeff demanded as Vailly disappeared, and he frowned. "I want answers."

"Easy now," Liu coaxed him. "Just lie down for a bit. I'll tell you everything."

"Y-you won't leave, right?"

Jeff's tone had changed from slightly frustrated to almost pleading. How could Liu refuse?

"I'm not going anywhere." he promised. "I'll be by your side the whole time."

Jeff didn't know whether or not he felt safe. Nevertheless, he hesitantly lied down on the couch and covered himself with the quilt. It wasn't long before he was asleep, lulled to into dreamland by the sound of Liu humming 'Beautiful Boy' by The Beatles. While he dozed, he thought he heard the voices of two small children, but he wasn't really sure. . . .

~

At last, Jeff woke up, and he was greeted by nearby voices and the smell of a warm bowl of soup. As he tried to dispell the sleep from his mind, he realized that his surroundings hadn't changed. So it was real.

"Hey, big guy."

Jeff looked up to find that Liu was still sitting on the side of the couch: he hadn't left his side. Hungry for comfort, Jeff sat up and embraced him, and Liu didn't push him away. Jeff felt his eyes begin to burn once again, and he sniffled. But he forced the tears to stay inside as Liu pet his hair.

"Ahem."

Jeff pulled away from his brother and looked around. The lights in the area had dimmed since Jeff had fallen asleep, and he came to notice that five more people were in the room: two adult women - Vailly and the blonde - a teenage girl, and two nervous-looking children, who appeared to be barely older than Hector. Jeff immediately put up his emotional walls, and he frowned at the people staring at him. But, he wondered, what were two kids doing here?

"Don't be afraid," Liu reassured Jeff as he stood up. "None of these guys'll hurt you."