CARMEN'S DATESCarmen always took her dates to the same park, a quiet and sunny place: I really like this spot, it has something special. I always come here, she’d say with a smile that seemed a bit too rehearsed.
That day, she met Peter. Young, handsome, smart... but above all, perceptive. They walked through the trees, chatting casually, until they reached a bench. Carmen smiled, charming as ever, but Peter sensed something off, something that didn’t quite fit in that perfect image. It was her smile, that smile that never seemed to change. There was something behind it. Peter knew how to read signals, and his gut was screaming that something was wrong. But Carmen’s magnetism held him there, unable to leave.
“Why do you always come here?” he asked, pretending to be lighthearted but with a growing unease.
Carmen stared at him, not blinking. This time, she didn’t smile. She said nothing.
Suddenly, something invisible shoved him to the ground with force. Peter tried to get up, but it felt as though cold, invisible hands were pinning him down with an impossible strength. His eyes locked onto Carmen, desperate for answers. She just watched him, still, calm. Her silence was worse than any scream.
Peter tried to call for help, but his mouth filled with a warm, sticky wetness. Something forced his mouth open wider and wider, while the air grew thick. Panic seized him, while around him, the park remained sunny, peaceful... and perfectly normal for everyone else.
# See images
The day's slow motion.