But that’s not the only weird thing.The buildings here are nothing like the colorful houses for which Tidecross Falls is known.They’re older and darker, built with Victorian-era brick, wrought-iron balconies and narrow windows.No modern storefronts, no neon signs.No flashy “buy one, get one free!”banners.Just old stonework and shadowed doorways and a feeling in the air like I’ve stepped through a veil into somewhere…otherworldly.
I roll my eyes at myself.Sometimes, my imagination really pushes it too far.And yet, the air feels different.It’s humid and rich with the smell of an approaching storm.
I bite my bottom lip.I could ignore this weird street and head back home, but since I’m out here anyway, I could just as easily check it out.Right?
At the end of the street, a single building stands out, partly because of the lamp illuminating the façade.The exterior is black wood and frosted glass, with a sign above the door.The wrought-iron letters read:
THE UNDERTOW
I glance inside but can’t see much because of the thick curtains covering the windows.The few glimpses I can catch tell me this is a bar.
How come I’ve never heard of this place before?This is shady, right?A reason to turn back?It definitely is, but something about it calls to me.I can’t explain it.There’s an undeniable pull that makes me walk up to the door.
But right before I push it open, I stop in my tracks.
This whole thing is weird.Mystery bars that appear out of nowhere?Streets I’ve never seen before tonight?I should go home.I should call someone to talk some sense into me.
I pull out my phone, my thumb hovering over my best friend May’s name.She’d tell me to leave.She’d say this is sketchy and dangerous, and that I’m being stupid for even considering going inside.I should call her.Then again, it’s two in the morning.I’m not waking her up for this.Besides, I’m a grown woman.I can decide for myself whether to walk into a mysterious bar that shouldn’t exist.
Right?
I take a breath and shove my phone back into my pocket.Guess I’m about to find out if I’m smart or stupid.
I reach for the heavy iron handle, and the moment my skin makes contact, a spark of pure electricity shoots up my arm.The metal isn’t as cold as I expected.It’s warm, pulsing with a low-frequency vibration that I can feel in my teeth.Wow.
When I pull, the door swings open.Music spills out, low and thrumming.And there are also voices.Laughter.The clink of glasses.It’s a bar, alright.
I steady myself and cross the threshold.The place is dimly lit, all dark wood and amber lighting.Candles flicker on tables as if electricity hadn’t been invented centuries ago.The bartender is polishing a glass behind the counter.And the patrons—
My breath catches, and my knees wobble.
The patrons.
A woman sits at the bar, her skin a pale, luminous blue with delicate gills fluttering at her throat.Across from her, a man with curved horns protruding from his temples and sharp teeth laughs at something she says.In the corner booth, something massive and furred hunches over a drink, eyes glowing gold in the low light.At a table near the back, a figure made of shadow and smoke shifts and reforms, never quite settling into one shape.
They’re monsters.All of them.And they’rereal.Or at least, they seem real.
I blink hard.Once.Twice.But they’re still there.
This isn’t happening.It can’t be!I must be dreaming.I probably fell asleep in my bed, and this is some vivid, fucked-up fantasy my brain cooked up.
I pinch the inside of my wrist, hard enough to sting, but nothing changes.The blue woman laughs.The shadow creature ripples.The music continues its low, thrumming pulse.The horned beast is clutching his drink in his paw.
What the fuck?I tremble with a mixture of fear and excitement.I even have to grab the doorframe to keep from swaying.My mind races, trying to reconcile everything I thought I knew about the world.
Monsters.
Actual fucking monsters.
The ones I’ve designed toys of for years.The creatures I’ve fantasized about in the dark… theyexist.How is this possible?Why has no one ever told me?Does anyone even know?
My thoughts scatter as the reality of this revelation crashes over me.Every lonely night.Every toy I designed.Every aching moment of wishing they were real.And theywere.This whole time, they were real.I wasn’t crazy for wanting someone like them!
“First time?”
I spin toward the voice, my heart almost hammering out of my chest.
The bartender is looking at me, and up close, I can see he’s not human either, but luckily, his smile is kind.
