The Haunting of the Ferris Wheel

“Twenty years ago, a group of five kids disappeared on one unfortunate night. To this day, their disappearance is a mystery and will forever be unknown to the living. According to the local news of Hillwood, the group of kids were at an amusement park the day of their disappearance, although federal officials couldn’t find any evidence--” Before Jax could continue his story, Allie interrupted him. “C’mon, Jax, we all know that story isn’t true,” Allie said snidely.

“What are you talking about, Allie? Of course, it’s real!” Jax exclaimed. “How else do you explain the disappearance of five kids?”

“I dunno,” Allie said as she rolled her eyes.

“Listen, guys, it may or may not be real,” Emily said. “Which is why we’re going to find out tomorrow,” she said assertively.

“Yeah, I agree with Emily,” Billy said, as he wasn’t paying attention to their conversation.

“Billy, seriously?” Josie asked. “Would it hurt if you paid any attention to what’s going on?” Josie was always annoyed with Billy’s mindless attributes.

“Josie, Billy, don’t argue,” Allie said. “You two are always fighting with each other.”

“Oh, c’mon, Allie,” Josie said, clearly put-off. “Have you even seen the way you and Jax interact with each other?” Josie asked, a chuckle following her question.

“Whatever, Josie,” Allie responded.

The group of friends had always been inseparable, despite their many differences and arguments; all five of them had been best friends for as long as they could remember. Being such a tight-knit group, they had their own secret meeting place: a treehouse in the middle of the woods. They had always wanted a place to themselves, a place where they could do whatever they wanted and talk about anything and everything.

The town of Hillwood had always been a calm and quaint little town, but after the disappearance of the kids, the inhabitants became quite wary and concerned. The theme park in which the children’s rumored disappearance took place was shut down for a period of time but later became operational again, given there was no evidence of the kids. The theme park, Terror World, was famous for its Ferris wheel. It was said to be the tallest Ferris wheel in the world.

Jax, Allie, Emily, Billy, and Josie had wanted to visit Terror World since they were young children, but out of fear, their parents had never let them visit. As they grew older, the hold their parents held over them weakened. It wasn’t much of a topic in town after twenty years, but the townsfolk still kept an eye on their youngins.

As the group adjourned for the day, they climbed down their treehouse and said their goodbyes. They walked away from each other, each going their separate ways. With each step they took, they found themselves becoming more and more excited, as their trip to Terror World was right around the corner.

The next day, the group of kids prepared for the road trip up to Terror World. It was only a ninety-minute car ride, but the group still prepared themselves for the long haul: snacks, entertainment, and games coupled with the laughter and joy of five teenagers. They said farewell to their parents with a crooked smile following their words. The kids didn’t tell their parents where they were going, only that they were going on a trip for a couple of days.

As the group pulled out of the driveway, they began their journey to Terror World.

“This is going to be the best trip ever!” Billy exclaimed.

“Yeah, so long as we don’t die,” Jax responded, a worried look on his face.

“Jax, it’s fine,” Emily explained. “I mean, seriously? What could possibly go wrong? We’re just gonna ride some rides, see some things, and then be on our merry way,” she said sarcastically.

“Or-” Billy cut in. “We could stay there overnight…”

“Like, hide in the park?” Allie asked.

“Yes, Allie, of course we’d stay there overnight,” Josie remarked.

“I don’t think we should do that, guys,” Emily said. “It could get us in a lot of trouble, and Terror World is where the kids went missing.”

“Exactly!” Jax said. “Billy’s right. We have to stay there overnight to see if it’s really haunted. C’mon, guys, it’ll be a great ​ ​ story to tell in the future. And just think of our parent’s reactions,” Jax said with a laugh.

“I’m with Emily,” Allie said. “I don’t think it’s a good idea either.”

“It’s a fantastic idea,” Billy said. “It’ll be so much fun! We’ll get to see the park at night when no one else is there and-”

“Yeah, it’ll be us and the ghosts,” Emily said snidely.

“Listen, I really don’t think this is a good idea, guys,” Allie said.

“Nope, we’re doing it,” Jax responded. “I don’t care if you girls are scared; we’re doing it.”

“Yeah, Allie, I thought you were the one who didn’t think the story was real?” Josie teased.

“Ugh, fine,” Allie groaned.

As the kids continued to drive closer and closer to Terror World, Allie and Emily became more anxious, and Jax, Josie, and Billy became more excited. And while it wasn’t a unanimous decision to stay in the park overnight, Jax and Billy were determined to discover the horrors behind the gates of Terror World. They came up with the idea of hiding in the theme park restrooms until the security guards left the park for the night.

As the gray minivan rounded the corner, the kids were met with the glorious sight of roller coasters, Twirl ‘n’ Hurls, and the most infamous ride: the Ferris wheel of Terror World. It was nearing sunset when they arrived, but Terror World was open late that night, which gave the kids even more time to scope out their perfect hiding place. Of course, the kids wanted to enjoy the many activities that Terror World had to offer, but they would have plenty of time for that after the park closed.

“I can’t believe we’re finally here!” Billy squealed.

“I know, right? It’s like a dream come true,” Jax said as he laid his eyes upon the Ferris wheel.

“Mmm...I just love the smell of fresh cotton candy and popcorn,” Allie said with a smile on her face as she took in a deep breath.

“Alright guys, we have five hours until the park closes, and then we have to figure out our hiding spot,” Josie said assertively.

“All I heard is that we have five hours to do whatever we want!” Billy exclaimed.

“C’mon, Allie,” Emily said. “Let’s go walk around and get away from these nitwits.”

“Do you really think it’s a good idea to split up?” Allie asked. “I mean, what if something happens?”

“Oh jeez, Allie, we’ll be fine,” Josie said as she rolled her eyes. “We’ll meet back at the front restrooms twenty minutes before closing, okay?”

“Okay,” Allie said in agreement.

As they went their separate ways, Allie and Emily stuck with the more lowkey rides such as the cute boat ride through Fantasy World, whereas Jax, Josie, and Billy ventured on to the intense rides such as the Twirl ‘n’ Hurl and the Wooden Coaster. Allie and Emily just enjoyed walking around Terror World to see all of the sights and smell all of the smells. They had never been to a theme park, so it wasn’t very often when they could enjoy the sight and smell of cotton candy and popcorn.

As the sun descended and the moon rose, the closing of Terror World was creeping up faster than the kids wanted. And while they planned to stay there overnight, it was unknown as to what laid behind the niceties of cast members and delicious food.

Allie and Emily checked the time only to realize it was ten minutes until closing. As they made their way to the front gate restrooms, they saw Josie, Billy, and Jax waiting outside of the restroom walls.

“What took you guys so long?” Josie asked.

“Sorry, we lost track of time. It’s just so much fun here!” Allie exclaimed.

“I know, right?” Billy said excitedly. “I never wanna leave.”

“I wish we could just stay here forever,” Jax explained.

“We all do, Jax,” Emily said. “But we gotta hide before we get caught; the park closes in five minutes.”

“Emily is right. We need to hide before the security guards come into the bathrooms,” Allie remarked.

The kids nodded in agreement and ventured into the restrooms. They weren’t too big, but there were at least fifteen stalls, all of which were closed, which made for an easier hiding place. The kids each went into a different stall so as not to draw much attention to one specific stall. The restrooms smelled of bleach of hand soap, a very potent yet familiar smell to the kids.

As they were standing on top of the toilets, they heard the footsteps of the security guard walk into the restroom. Fortunately, the security guard didn’t go much further than the first sink, but the kids were still in fear of getting caught. They stayed in the stalls for at least an hour after closing so as to make sure everyone was gone for the night.

“Do you guys think they’re gone?” Billy whispered.

“Yeah, it’s probably safe to go out there,” Jax responded.

As the group slowly exited the restroom, Terror World was pitch black. There were no carnival lights lighting up the streets, and there was no laughter from passersby; it was an absolute ghost town. As the group slowly headed towards the heart of the theme park, they were surprised to see a light coming from the top of the most infamous Ferris Wheel.

“Guys…” Billy said in a shaky, uncertain voice. “Why is that light on?”

“Um, I have no idea,” Jax said nervously.

“Oh, c’mon, guys, it’s probably just a safety light or something,” Josie said. “Yah know, they have those weird lights on rides for when they break down or something.”

As soon as Josie finished her sentence, the Ferris Wheel came to life. All of the lights surrounding the carriages and the wheel turned on in an instant. The Ferris Wheel was brilliantly lit up with vibrant colors--bright blues, vivid purples, neon yellows, and crimson red.

“Um, Josie, I don’t think all of those lights are safety lights,” Allie said in a worried tone. ​ ​

“We should go check it out,” Billy said.

“But, what if someone is there?” Emily asked. “We’ll get caught, and then we’re screwed.”

“Well, duh, Emily, of course, someone is there,” Josie said snidely. “How else do you explain the Ferris Wheel turning on?”

“I dunno, ghosts?” Emily asked.

“Hah, you’re funny,” Josie remarked. “Ghosts don’t exist.”

“But what about the kids that--” Emily started to say.

“Guys, we don’t have time for this,” Jax said. “We need to get over to the Ferris Wheel and figure out what the hell is going on.”

“Jax is right; we need to get over there,” Allie said as she nodded her head in agreement.

The group agreed and ventured on towards the Ferris Wheel of Terror World. As they got closer to the Ferris Wheel, circus music replaced the dead silence. Aside from the five kids’ footsteps, the only thing that was audible was the music and the howling wind. While it had been a fairly warm day, as the night progressed, the wind became frigid and eerie. As they approached the Ferris Wheel, the group slowed down so as not to alert anyone of their presence; but as they approached the Ferris Wheel, no one was in sight--there was only a brightly lit Ferris Wheel.

“There’s--there’s no one here,” Allie said in a confused and scared voice.

“Well, now what?” Billy asked. “Don’t you guys think it’s just a little creepy that the Ferris Wheel magically turned on by ​ ​ itself?”

“Of course it’s weird, Billy,” Josie said. “Like, how did this even happen?”

“Maybe someone just forgot to turn it off?” Jax said reassuringly. “These things probably happen every day.”

“I have an idea,” Billy said. “We should climb up there to get a view of the whole park. It’ll be fun!”

“Sure, like climbing up a two-hundred-foot tall Ferris Wheel will be fun,” Emily said.

“Oh, c’mon, Emily, just loosen up a bit,” Jax said. “It’ll be fun, c’mon, let’s go.”

After a long argument over whether or not to climb the Ferris Wheel, Jax and Billy won the argument. As they climbed the Ferris Wheel, the wind became cooler. Fortunately, the Ferris Wheel lights lit up the rungs, so it was easy to climb. Of course, it was a long journey up, given the Ferris Wheel towered over Terror World. As the kids stepped on the very last rung, they hoisted themselves into two separate carriages. Jax, Billy, and Josie in one carriage and Emily and Allie in the other. Their hair flew about as it was very windy atop the Ferris Wheel. And while the Ferris Wheel wasn’t in motion, it was still exhilarating to be on top of the world.

“Wow,” Josie said. “That was a long climb up.”

“Yeah, now we have to climb back down,” Billy remarked.

“Ugh, I don’t wanna,” Josie complained.

“Fine, then you can stay up here for the rest of your life,” Jax said with a chuckle following his words.

“As if, Jax!” Josie responded. “You stay up here for the rest of your life.” She rolled her eyes.

“Don’t fight, guys,” Allie interrupted. “Just appreciate the view and that we’re all together.”

“Allie is right,” Emily said. “We should all just be happy that we got to stay here overnight; I mean, who gets to do that? And we should be happy that this place isn’t actually haunted.” ​ ​

“I agree,” Jax said. “It’s amazing here, and now, we have a great story to tell our parents.”

“Hell yeah, we do!” Billy exclaimed.

After an hour or two passed while on the Ferris Wheel, their attention was caught by faint music in the background. It wasn’t the carnival music that came from the Ferris Wheel; it was something different--something eerier.

“Do you guys hear that?” Emily asked.

“Yeah…” Jax responded. “Maybe we should get down and figure out where it’s coming from.”

“I agree,” Josie said.

As they began to climb out of the carriages, the kids were startled by the sight of Terror World illuminated. They hadn’t had enough time to make it to the first rung of their descent. Before they exited the carriages, they all looked at each other in confusion, wondering how the entirety of Terror World lit up by itself.

“Okay, I don’t think the entire theme park was left on, Jax,” Josie said in a scared voice. ​ ​

“Um, yeah, that is insanely creepy,” Billy said in agreement.

“C’mon, guys, we gotta get out of here,” Allie exclaimed. “I don’t care about exploring the park; this is too freakin’ creepy!”

“Okay, fine, I agree with Allie,” Josie said. “We need to go, now.”

“Alright, we just need to climb down and go out the front gates,” Jax said. “It’ll be easy. Just be careful going down.”

“Okay,” the rest said at the same time.

As the group began their descent down, the lights at Terror World stayed on, and the music continued to play. About halfway down the Ferris Wheel, they took a break from climbing as it was a very long way down.

“Hey, let’s just take a break for a minute,” Jax said. “I need to catch my breath.”

“Who do you think turned the lights on?” Billy blurted out.

“I don’t know, Billy,” Emily responded. “But, what I do know is that I’m ready to never come back here at night.”

“Agreed,” Allie said.

As the kids began their descent once more, they climbed down fifty more rungs; the wind became stronger and colder, stronger than it had ever been. Billy felt himself get pushed back a little bit as the wind was gusting quite strongly.

“Woah,” Billy said. “I almost slipped.”

“Are you okay?” Jax asked.

“Yeah, fine, let’s just keep going,” Billy said assuringly.

As Billy took one more step down, the wind became stronger than it ever had been before. Billy fell off of the Ferris wheel rung and plummeted to the ground over 100 feet below.

“Billy!” Everyone screamed.

“What do we do?” Allie asked.

“We just gotta keep going; we’ll help him when we get down,” Jax said.

With that, the wind howled once more. Jax felt a pair of hands on his back when the wind picked up; he was soon thrown off the rung of the Ferris wheel and tossed to the ground.

“Oh my god, Jax!” Josie screamed.

The wind came back for one last hurrah. The three girls, Emily, Josie, and Allie, were pushed off of the rungs of the Ferris Wheel by an unknown force.. As they fell, they felt as though they were being carried down; it didn’t feel like they had imagined.

All five were lying below the Ferris wheel of Terror World; all of them were unconscious. Their fall rendered them unconscious for many hours. Terror World remained operable while the kids were lying there. The lights and the music of the theme park surrounded them, engulfing them in what was once a place for children to have fun. After a few hours, Jax began to wake up.

“Ugh, what in the hell happened?” Jax said. Jax looked around for his friends before he realized they were all lying right next to him. “Guys, you have to wake up! We need to get out of here.” Jax looked around him to see if there was anything he could do to help his friends, but there was nothing around. While Jax was looking, he soon realized that Terror World had become dark again; there was no music, no lights, just darkness.

Billy mumbled something inaudible as he awoke from his unconscious state, “What happened?”

“We fell, or we were pushed, I’m not sure,” Jax responded. “But we need to wake the girls up and get out of here.”

“Yeah, okay,” Billy agreed.

As Billy and Jax began to make their way over to the girls, they heard moans and grunts as they began to wake up on their own. Josie, Allie, and Emily all sat up very slowly once they awoke.

“What happened? What time is it? How long were we out?” Emily asked.

“Listen, we don’t have any answers to any of your questions, but we need to get out of here,” Jax exclaimed. “The sun is coming up, which means the park will be open soon, which means people will find us. We need to go.” ​ ​

“Okay,” they all said in agreement.

As the kids stood up from the ground, they felt uneasy and weak. Fortunately, they were able to walk, but the front was a ways away. As they all limped along, the front gates were in sight. They all looked at each other with smiles on their faces and hope in their eyes, hope that they were going home and hope that they never had to come back to Terror World.

As they approached the front gate, each one of them took one last look at Terror World. The kids saw the Ferris Wheel in the distance as the sun rose above the highest point. They knew that they were ready to go home and be rid of such an evil place.

“Let’s go home,” Jax said with a grin on his face.

They all held hands as they passed through the front gates. With their last step out of Terror World, all they saw was darkness, nothing but emptiness and the dark. The kids continued to what felt as though a walk out of the front gates, but as soon as they opened their eyes, they were once again lying below the Ferris Wheel of Terror World.

“Um, guys…” Billy said in a confused voice. “Why are we still here.”

“This is really creeping me out,” Allie said. “We just walked out of the front gates; why are we still here?” ​ ​

“I dunno, maybe it was a dream,” Josie said in a shaky voice. “It doesn’t matter, let’s just go.”

“C’mon, let’s get out of here for good,” Jax said.

As they stood up from the ground, the kids began to run towards the front gate; they wanted to get out of Terror World as soon as possible. As they made their way towards the front gate yet again, they took one last glance at Terror World, knowing that it would work that time. As they stepped out of the front gate, it felt as though they were being transported to another world, and that world was not home. No, the world they were being transported to was Terror World itself.