Travis sits on Phillip's bed, watching as Phillip paces around the room worryingly. "I have never been so... out of it. Especially after an exploration. Something feels so wrong with the area. I swear something is going on." he rambles, constantly fixing the red headphones around his neck, his dark blue hair frizzing at the ends.
"Pip, I am sure that everything is fine. There are a lot of creepy abandoned places in Nockfell. It is probably nothing. Don't worry so much about it.'' Travis mutters, this the third time he has been saying it now since he had gotten up to Phillips room.
Phillip had been panicking about this since Travis had gotten up here to see him. So shaken up and out of breath from running back to his home. "You don't understand, I feel like it wasn't even abandoned. Even with all the dust and shit that was around and broken, I thought I felt someone there with me. Watching me." Phillip protests, still walking about the room and not glancing Travis's way any longer.
"Either way, I do not suggest going back there anytime soon. Not alone, at least. It could be dangerous." Travis mumbles, half entertaining what Phillip is saying, though also having an idea of what Phillip has seen.
"The vibes are terribly off there. You don't have to worry about me going back." Phillip starts, "Though I still feel that there is something missing. I don't know what though."
Travis nods in understanding, opening his mouth to respond but sighing in relief when Phillip's mom, Mrs. Volker, calls their names. "Travis, Phil! Food is ready, if you guys are hungry!"
Travis stands up, halting Phillip's pacing quickly. "Cmon, let's go take a break from this for a little while. Breathe for a bit and calm down, yeah?" he offers, and phillip takes a deep breath before nodding.
They leave the room, Travis a couple steps behind. He smiles softly, just glad that they have veered away from the what ifs and could be's, and that Phillip had agreed to stay away from the area. They go downstairs, to where the kitchen is, and Travis nods a polite greeting to both Mrs. and Mr. Volker. "Hello, Travis. We haven't seen you around recently, not even in church. How's your father, Pastor Phelps?" Mrs. Volker hums sweetly, guiding the two boys to the dining table and putting plates of rice and vegetables in front of them.
Travis stares down at the plate, his face dropping from the small smile he had gathered only moments before, at a loss for words and unsure if he should tell the truth. Before he knows it, Phillip is answering for him. "Pastor Phelps had been busy as always, ma. Travis came over because Pastor Phelps trusts us to take care of his son well."
Travis nods quickly along with his words, agreeing with it even when it can't be farther from the truth. Mrs. Volker smiles, happy with the answer and setting down two plates for herself and Mr. Volker. They both sit at the table, and the eating utensils sit neatly beside the napkins under the plate. "Ready to say grace, boys?" Mr. Volker asks with a welcoming smile, and both Travis and Phillip nod.
They all go hand in hand with each other, dipping their head and saying prayer. "Dear Lord, thank you for this food we are about to eat. We ask that You would bless this food and continue to guide us along Your intended path. In the name of Your son Jesus, amen."
They let go of each-others hands to do the sign of the cross, finally glancing up and starting to eat. Travis stays quiet as Mr. and Mrs. Volker talks about their days, a tradition they do each time they eat dinner together. They turn to Phillip and Travis, with a grin on their faces as they ask their son next. "What did you do today, Phil?"
Travis gives a look of warning Phillips' way, and thankfully Phillip catches it quickly before answering. "I went exploring today. I found a path but it didn't lead anywhere special. It was good for the exercise though." he says, and Travis exhales the breath he had been holding.
"Maybe at one point soon you'll find something interesting. We know how much you love exploring." Mr. Volker nods, more focused on his food than anything else though.
Phillip nods, then his parents turn to Travis next, repeating their question. "What about you, Travis? What did you do today?"
Travis thinks back to his day, keeping out the first parts due to them bringing up his father. "I took a walk in the woods today. I went off my usual trail and got lost however. Since Phillip was exploring I got Sal to take me back here."
Mrs. Volker perks up at the mention of Sal, a smile widening. "Oh! We haven't heard you mention Sal in a while, Phillip. He is such a sweet boy. We haven't seen him come over in so long, maybe you guys can all hang out here one day." she says, and Phillip agrees meekly.
"Me and Sal have been quite busy with stuff lately, that must be why you haven't seen either of us in a bit." Travis chimes in.
"Busy with what, if you don't mind me asking?" Mrs. Volker asks with a gesture his way to continue.
"Some school stuff..." Travis mutters with a look away, continuing to eat his food so he doesn't answer anymore questions.
"At some point I can invite him over, I know how fond of him you are." Phillip says for Travis, and his parents both agree wholeheartedly.
Travis stops listening, everytime someone starts to talk again to continue the conversation just nodding along, and phillip eventually stands up with his empty plate. "Travis, you done eating? I can get that plate for you."
Travis stands with him, smiling and humming a 'yes' before helping him.
Word count: 1008 words
YOU ARE READING
||What Lies Under|| - Salvis
ParanormalPhillip goes through what seems to be an abandoned church. However, when odd things start happening to not only him but also Travis and Sal, he finds that Kenneth may have been behind a lot more than what was once known. Even when Sal and Travis hav...
