I Ended up in a Town Where Every Roof Was Painted Green – When I Saw Who the Locals Were, I Fled

The question seemed to distract them. Frank gave me a puzzled look, then grinned. “The satellites. If the roof is green, the satellite can’t see your house; it mistakes it for grass. Real grass roofs would work better, but they are too expensive.”

I highly doubted his explanation, but I didn’t care. The old lady finally emerged from the kitchen with a few to-go boxes stacked in a white plastic bag with no diner branding or even a print.

“Here you go,” she said, handing me the bag. I slapped a $20 bill on the table, grabbed the bag, and hurried out of the diner with a quick “Goodbye.”

I strapped Noah into his car seat, my hands shaking. As I reached for my car door, the old lady rushed out of the diner, calling after me. “Wait! Wait!”

Panic surged through me. I jumped into the car and locked all the doors. She reached my driver’s window and knocked on it. My heart raced as I rolled it down just enough to hear her. She handed me something wrapped in a bunch of napkins. I took it with a shaky hand.

“I forgot to give you the cutlery.”

I unwrapped the napkins to see a couple of plastic forks and knives. “Thank you,” I managed to say before turning the key and flooring it out of there.

As I sped away, the town with its green roofs slowly vanished in my rearview mirror. I kept driving until I found a gas station and pulled over. Noah was asleep in his car seat, blissfully unaware of the weirdness we’d just escaped. I checked my phone. It had a signal again. I immediately called my best friend, Claire.

“Jenna! I was worried sick! Where have you been?”

“Claire, you wouldn’t believe it,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. “I ended up in this bizarre town where every roof was painted green. They don’t have TVs, radios, or even cash registers!”

“What? That sounds like something out of a horror movie!”

“I know, right? They made me leave my phone in the car because they believed it listened to everything. I pretended to but kept it with me. Thank God, because now I can call you.”

“Did they hurt you or Noah?”

“No, but it was so creepy. They even told me that I couldn’t come back once I left. And then there was this old lady who ran out to give me cutlery as if that was the most important thing.”

Claire sighed in relief. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Promise me you won’t take any more strange detours.”

“Promise,” I said, feeling a bit lighter. “I’m sticking to the main roads from now on.”

We talked for a few more minutes before I hung up and took a moment to breathe. I looked at Noah, still peacefully asleep. I reached back and stroked his soft cheek.

“We’re okay, sweetheart,” I whispered. “We’re okay.”

I bought some gas and grabbed a coffee, trying to shake off the lingering unease. As I drove off, I kept checking my rearview mirror, half expecting to see those green roofs pop up again. But all I saw was the open road ahead, leading us back to safety.