LITERARNI KONKURS KRATKA HOROR PRIČA

24. 11. 2024.

Povodom praznika „Noć veštica“, u našoj školi je organizovano takmičenje u pisanju kratkih horor priča, na engleskom jeziku. Ovaj kreativni izazov privukao je veliki broj učenika, koji su oduševili svojom maštom i talentom.

Posebno nam je zadovoljstvo da istaknemo pobednicu konkursa, Miju Ilanković, učenicu prve godine društveno-jezičkog smera. Njena priča je osvojila prvo mesto zahvaljujući originalnosti i upečatljivosti.

Čestitamo Miji na ovom izuzetnom uspehu i zahvaljujemo svim učesnicima što su svojim radovima obogatili ovo takmičenje!

THE ANTHEM OF YOUR FUNERAL

Ethan Brooks sits at the counter of the Lost Tune Diner, the smell of burnt coffee lingering in the air. Outside, wind howls and rain beats against the windows. Inside, the jukebox plays “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” but it’s unsettling, more like a lullaby for the damned. Delilah Solace  moves silently among the booths, her pale skin and ghostly eyes catching the flickering light. She smiles at customers, but her eyes never match the gesture.

The Jennings, an elderly couple, sit in their usual booth. Doris beams at her husband. Yet, Something feels off, a growing coldness in the diner, but no one speaks about it. Delilah walks towards them.

“Check, please?” Harold asks, a soft smile on his face.

Delilah nods, her smile eerily blank. “Of course.”

As she give them a check, the front door bangs open. A soaked man enters, shaking water from his jacket. His scowl deepens as he sits down. The mood in the diner darkens. The regulars start leaving after they pay.

Ethan watches the jukebox, the song sputtering before shifting abruptly:

Oh, where oh where can my baby be?

The Lord took her away from me

She’s gone to heaven, so I got to be good

So I can see my baby when I leave this world 

 

We were out on a date in my daddy’s car

We hadn’t driven very far

There in the road, straight ahead

A car was stalled, the engine was dead

The elderly couple flinch at the lyrics. “Delilah,” Ethan mutters, “turn it off.”

They rush out as Delilah turns her head slowly, eyes locking with his. “Right away.” She smiles, voice unwavering. She crosses the room toward the jukebox, but the man shouts.

“Hey! What’s with the service around here?” His voice cuts through the diner like a knife. The air grows heavier as Delilah turns toward him.

“I’ll be right there,” she says, her voice too calm.

The man glares at her. “Better be.”

Delilah serves him coffee, her movements slow, deliberate. “Anything else?” she asks.

“Yeah, how about some decent service?” He slams the cup down, spilling hot coffee across the table. Delilah’s expression doesn’t change, but there’s something dark in her eyes. Ethan watches, dread twisting in his gut.

The jukebox shifts again, the new tune cutting the air:

Well, she went round the corner

To her favourite pawn shop..

This time she didn’t go there for fun

The man slams his chair back, muttering curses under his breath. “This place is a dump,” he snaps, storming out of the diner. The jukebox blares, the lyrics hanging in the air as the door slams shut:

She was gunnin’ for her man…

Who was doin’ her wrong!

Ethan’s heart races. He looks at Delilah, her expression unchanged. She looks down before taking out a cloth, wiping down the table.

In the corner booth, a teenage girl, Lily, stands suddenly. “I’m—I’m gonna go,” she stammers. “I’ve already paid.”

Delilah watches her, that empty smile tugging at her lips as the jukebox flickers once more:

I lost my heart

Under the bridge

To that little girl

So much to me

Lily rushes to the door, disappearing into the storm.

And now I moan

And now I holler

She’ll never know

Just what I found

The diner feels abandoned now, empty despite the lingering tension. Ethan glances at the TV in the corner as he packs his stuff, its static buzzing before a news report flashes on-screen: “Elderly couple killed in a tragic car accident earlier this afternoon—”

Ethan’s blood turns to ice. He turns toward the now-empty booth where the Jennings had been. His head snaps towards Delilah, who seems to already be staring at him.

She stands behind the counter now, her eyes vacant. “What a weird coincidence.” She says softly. Her blue stare, head slightly tilted.

Ethan swallows hard, “Did we ever find out what’s wrong with the jukebox?”

“No,” She smiles, and Ethan takes in a shaky breath.

He pushes open the door, the jukebox crackles to life, its haunting final tune filling the empty diner:

All our times have come

Here but now they’re gone

Seasons don’t fear the reaper

Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain

We can be like they are

 

Come on, baby (don’t fear the reaper)

Baby, take my hand (don’t fear the reaper)

We’ll be able to fly (don’t fear the reaper)

 

Ethan glances back at Delilah one last time. She stands there, her pale figure framed by the diner’s dim light, her smile wider than before.

“Everyone leaves eventually, Ethan.”

It’s not Delilah that stands there anymore.

He bolts into the night, her words lingering through the storm as he leaves the diner – and whatever haunts it – behind.