Once upon a time, a girl named Ellen lived on a farm. It was a dry, dead place, where only rocks and tombstones sprouted from the cracked earth. The only sound at night was the eerie rattle of the wind over the bones of her old dog, buried long ago.
Ellen’s mom was never around, always drinking down at The Tipsy Grape. Ellen, alone with her thoughts, stared out over the barren fields, her loneliness festering like an open wound.
Then one day, a man rolled up in a slick black car. His name was Peter. He wore a smile sharp enough to cut glass, and though he said little, he always kept a large pumpkin in the backseat. The hollow look in his eyes made Ellen’s heart race. But she didn’t care. She was tired of waiting for something good to happen.
That night, as the blood-red sun set behind the hills, Ellen and Peter kissed under the dead oak tree. The moment her lips touched his, she felt the cold grip of something wrong. Still, she was mesmerized. A wedding was held the next day, the guest list full of shadows, faces she didn’t know—figures from another world.
Peter, Peter, pumpkin eater,Had a wife but couldn’t keep her.He stuffed her in a pumpkin shell,And there he kept her, in her hell.
After the wedding, Peter drove Ellen to the Git-n-Go, ordering a burrito with no expression. They parked under a sky of twisted, haunted stars. Ellen felt the chill in her bones as Peter led her to the pumpkin field. There, behind the rows of pumpkins—bigger than she’d ever seen—was a single one split wide open.
Inside it was a woman’s face, rotted but still screaming. Her dead eyes were locked on Ellen, and her mouth whispered words only she could hear: Run…before he buries you, too…
The last thing Ellen remembered was Peter’s knife—gleaming like the moon—and the feeling of being pulled into the earth. Now, her face too grinned from the next pumpkin, waiting for the next lonely soul to come her way.
Yakety Sax 16 days ago
O-M-G
angelolady Premium Member 16 days ago
Can anyone read the signs in the garden?
Johnny Q Premium Member 16 days ago
“Then they had to get married the next day.” It usually takes several months…
mccollunsky 16 days ago
It’s a great story. Would watch a Ruthie made movie.
Purple People Eater 16 days ago
What is a “soul kiss”? I don’t think I’ve heard that term before. I tried googling it, but all I found was a song by Olivia Newton John.
Stephanie Have one 15 days ago
The Tipsy Grape! LOL
timbob2313 Premium Member 15 days ago
Ruthie has a great imagination
kappy.mrnustik Premium Member 15 days ago
How are they going to harness Ruthie’s imagination and energy into a viable profession when she grows up?
Crandlemire 15 days ago
The Legend of Ellen’s Hollow
Once upon a time, a girl named Ellen lived on a farm. It was a dry, dead place, where only rocks and tombstones sprouted from the cracked earth. The only sound at night was the eerie rattle of the wind over the bones of her old dog, buried long ago.
Ellen’s mom was never around, always drinking down at The Tipsy Grape. Ellen, alone with her thoughts, stared out over the barren fields, her loneliness festering like an open wound.
Then one day, a man rolled up in a slick black car. His name was Peter. He wore a smile sharp enough to cut glass, and though he said little, he always kept a large pumpkin in the backseat. The hollow look in his eyes made Ellen’s heart race. But she didn’t care. She was tired of waiting for something good to happen.
That night, as the blood-red sun set behind the hills, Ellen and Peter kissed under the dead oak tree. The moment her lips touched his, she felt the cold grip of something wrong. Still, she was mesmerized. A wedding was held the next day, the guest list full of shadows, faces she didn’t know—figures from another world.
Peter, Peter, pumpkin eater,Had a wife but couldn’t keep her.He stuffed her in a pumpkin shell,And there he kept her, in her hell.
After the wedding, Peter drove Ellen to the Git-n-Go, ordering a burrito with no expression. They parked under a sky of twisted, haunted stars. Ellen felt the chill in her bones as Peter led her to the pumpkin field. There, behind the rows of pumpkins—bigger than she’d ever seen—was a single one split wide open.
Inside it was a woman’s face, rotted but still screaming. Her dead eyes were locked on Ellen, and her mouth whispered words only she could hear: Run…before he buries you, too…
The last thing Ellen remembered was Peter’s knife—gleaming like the moon—and the feeling of being pulled into the earth. Now, her face too grinned from the next pumpkin, waiting for the next lonely soul to come her way.
kab2rb 15 days ago
Ruthie has great imagination.
StoicLion1973 15 days ago
The Tipsy Grape.,…