The Heartbeat’s 2022 Halloween Short Story Contest

The time has finally come, Holy Heart! It’s the day we dress up as witches, or ghosts, or our favourite pop-culture icon. We’ve decorated our houses with Jack-O’-Lanterns, fake cobwebs and the occasional, six-foot-tall inflatable zombie. But most importantly— we eat enough candy to turn our stomachs. It’s Halloween!

In spirit of the season, The Heartbeat asked the student body to write a short, scary story in (roughly) one hundred words. In no particular order, here’s our top three submissions:

Human Life Anew

It was cold. Goosebumps rose up on my arms and I felt the urge to shiver, but didn’t yet have the strength. There were voices too, a muttering and mumbling that sounded like it was submerged deep underwater. Was it perhaps that I was the one submerged? I took a deep audible breath in through my nose and then began to cough uncontrollably. Although there was air, it felt sharp like knives in my chest and throat, my nasal passage ached and yet with every cough, I had to take another agonizing breath in. I was drowning! As the pain continued I began to become desperate for clean oxygen, and tried to sit up to look around, however I was too weak and my eyes refused to open. The watery voices began to get louder, and then something pushed me down firmly and an object was placed around my mouth. Suddenly clean air rushed down my throat, and I at last could breathe soundly. The voices around began to get closer and with every breath it seemed like each speaker was being pulled up from the depths until at last they broke the surface.

“-not hear us yet, we must wait”, said a strange sounding voice, another strange voice returned it, “We will wait then.” They spoke English, but their voices sounded hollow, as if coming through cupped hands. There was an emptiness to it that unnerved me. Who were they? I then began to try to pull my eyes open, and felt each eyelid peel away from the other. I prepared myself for it to be bright, but found that the room I was in was quite dim, it barely took any time to adjust, though my vision remained blurry for the time. Looking around the room I came to the conclusion that I was in some sort of hospital, as I was on a white bed and the item on my face was one of those clear oxygen masks. This was a very strange hospital room though, as the only light was a small cylindrical lamp beside the bed, and besides the two people just beyond my feet, there was absolutely nothing else in the room. They talked flatly to each other as I glanced around, but as soon as I squinted to get a better look at their shaded faces they froze. Then suddenly both stared right at me. A cold chill ran down my spine. Previously, I’d had no doubt they were human, but now I knew they couldn’t be. Their bodies stood straight and ridged like statues, with not a sign of movement not even a slight tremor of a hand. The silhouette of their faces were like that of dolls, perfect but also geometrical. They did not smile, they did not frown and their eyes were like soulless orbs of lava that bore into me with an eerie shine. Then one moved from its rigid stance and swiftly approached the left side of the bed, I instinctively jumped back and nearly fell. My heart was beating hard and I felt dizzy. “Hello fellow human,” it said without opening its mouth in its foul hollow voice, “welcome to the prese-.”

“What am I doing here?!” I asked, ignoring it as the other one also left its rigid stance and came to the right side of the bed, “what’s going on?”

The other one spoke, its voice identical to the first one, “Do not fear. You have just awoken into a world much changed from the one you are used to”

“I realize that, I know that” I trembled, “ I…I need to go!” Tearing off the mask, I turned to leave the bed but was once again met with the drowning sensation. I choked, sliding off the bed and sputtered helplessly on the ground. It burned agonizingly and tears began to pour out my eyes but I could not scream. Cold hard hands touched my skin and lifted me without struggle, it was only a moment before the mask was on once more.

I looked back and forth between their hard, compassionless faces. My eyes were drawn to meet theirs and I found myself unable to look away, held captive by fear and speechless. “You cannot survive here in your current state. However it will be well” one hollowly assured, “We can adapt you.”

“I don’t understand” I croaked, though I had a sickening feeling in my gut, “I- don’t understand…”

They said nothing, once again frozen in that rigid inhuman stance, but only for a second. Then one turned away and slid into the dark until it disappeared. The other one watched me for a moment and then slowly began to lean in, with the dull creak of rusted metal. It’s face was only inches away, and it stopped to examine me, its eyes meeting mine, glowing like flames and threatening to melt me away, “It may be for the best that you do not.”

The Saw Man

Jonathan woke up in a dark musty room. With arms to back, a quick shake showed them cuffed.

Then they saw the man with the saw. The wicked blade went right up to him, then down to his forearms to slit his wrists.

The grinding teeth, mangled bone and blood, but looking down, only cuffs were cut.

Then the saw man spoke. There was a flash back to reality and light. He said: “Dude, you must’ve had a wild night.”

It was the voice of his best mate Kyle, who brought their hacksaw to save Jonathan again.

Horrors Behind the Door

I woke up to a horrible scream.

I couldn’t tell where it was coming from, it seemed to be echoing off the walls.

I blinked a few times, my vision adjusting to the darkness. The screaming had stopped and it was quiet. I was in my room, the world seemed so incredibly dark. I plant my feet on the floor and tiptoe to the door. Fear ran through my veins. The slow metallic creak as I turned the handle scared me. When my door opened I heard a shuffling,

I froze,

they looked straight at me.

Thank you so much to everyone who submitted! Writers of our top three selections will be contacted about their prizes. We’re looking forward to hearing more from you future— stay scary, Holy Heart!