Mac has been a milkman all his life, and he loves the early mornings — quiet streets, no people around, just him and the sunrise. He’s seen some strange things on his round over the years. But nothing quite like this.
This is Forest Road, an original short story from the Fantastic Tales collection, written for intermediate English learners. Read the story below, then test your understanding with the comprehension questions, get your teeth into some new vocabulary, and dig into the discussion questions at the end.
And if you’re a teacher, don’t miss what’s at the bottom of this post — the full lesson plan for “Forest Road” is available to download, completely free.
Before reading the story, discuss the following questions as a class.
1. Have you ever helped a stranger who seemed to be in trouble? What happened?
2. Do you think it’s safer to help someone in need, or to mind your own business and walk away? Why?
3. Werewolves appear in stories and films from many different cultures. What do you already know about werewolves? What do they usually look like, and what happens to them?
4. Think about a job that requires someone to be out very early in the morning, alone, before most people are awake (for example, a milkman, a baker, or a newspaper delivery person). What kinds of unusual things might they see that other people never do?
5. Look at the title of the story: “Forest Road.” What kind of story do you expect this to be, just from the title? What could happen on a road like this?
Listen to the Story
Watch the video below and listen as the story is read aloud. Pause after each section to answer the reading comprehension questions or discuss the story with your class.
Forest Road
Mac was a milkman.
He had been a milkman all his working life. He liked it.
Mac was a morning person. Getting up early and being outside as the sun rose — that was the best part of the job.
By the time he was finishing work, most other people were just starting their daily grind.
He liked being outside on the streets in his neighbourhood.
No people around. Sometimes a dog sniffing around. Or a cat staring at him from behind a wall or a hedge.
Birds singing and welcoming the new day.
He liked having the streets to himself.
Mac had seen some things when delivering milk to people’s doorsteps.
One time he saw a drunk driver. A man had crashed his car into a tree. The driver, so drunk, he had no idea where he was.
Another time, he witnessed two burglars trying to break into someone’s house.
Mac had made a call, the police arrived, and they apprehended the two thieves.
At the weekend, Mac often encountered revellers or young people coming home from a nightclub.
They often wanted to talk to him. All happy and high on life.
But on this particular morning, he saw a man lying completely naked in the middle of the road.
This was a first.
What had this man been doing?
Mac pulled his milk cart to the side of the road and got out.
The thought went through his mind that this guy could be dangerous. That was a possibility for sure.
But at the same time, Mac felt he had a civic duty to help.
His mother had instilled this idea in his mind.
Help others and the universe will help you in return, she had told him many times.
Very slowly, Mac approached the man.
He was lying face down on the tarmac. But Mac could see his body was covered in mud and dirt. Like he had been rolling around in a field.
Mac came to the side of the man and leaned down.
‘Excuse me, mate,’ he said. ‘Are you alright?’
The man did not move. He lay on the ground, perfectly still.
Mac looked up and down the street. Maybe another person who could provide some assistance.
But the streets were empty at this time in the morning.
Mac also thought about calling the police. This would be the correct thing to do.
But then what would they do?
Arrest him for breach of the peace?
And the poor guy probably had drunk too much the night before. All he needed was to get home and sleep it off.
No need to involve the law.
Mac spoke to him again. This time with a louder voice.
‘Mate. Are you okay?’
This time the man shifted his weight a little and he groaned softly.
Mac was quite certain this guy was harmless. Just too much to drink and now waking up with a sore head.
Mac leaned in and tapped the guy gently on his shoulder. A slight flinch in response.
‘Listen, old pal,’ he said. ‘I don’t think you can lie here in the middle of the street. It’s not safe.’
He tapped the guy again and this time he raised his head slightly, then let it fall back to the ground. That must have hurt.
‘Come on, son,’ said Mac. ‘My milk cart is just here. I’ll give you a lift home.’
He put his hand on the man’s shoulder and tried to turn him over. This time the man shook his body with a start.
The man turned his head and peered up at Mac.
The whites of his eyes were not white at all. Like a dirty kind of yellow colour.
And bloodshot.
This guy had really had a big night. He would pay for it now.
The man smacked his lips, his tongue lolling around inside his mouth. Then he spoke.
‘Where am I?’ he said.
Mac smiled at him.
‘You’re on Forest Road,’ he said. ‘Where do you live? I’ll give you a lift.’
The man dragged himself to all fours and struggled to get up into a standing position.
The front of his body all covered in mud and dirt.
‘You must have had a really good night,’ said Mac. ‘But I think it’s time for you to sleep it off.’
Mac pointed to his milk cart and the man followed him towards it.
Mac got in one side and the man got in the other.
‘So where do you live then?’ Mac asked him.
The man looked confused.
And the smell coming from him. Like something metallic. Or copper.
Must be all the dirt on him.
Mac waited for the man to respond.
‘I don’t know where I live,’ he said.
Mac raised his eyebrows.
Great. Now he had a problem.
What to do with this guy now?
Looked like he had no choice but to take him to the police station.
They could deal with him.
‘Alright,’ said Mac, and started the cart engine. ‘Let’s get you somewhere safe.’
The man pulled his arms around his body.
As he did so, Mac caught sight of his hands. His fingernails were filthy, nearly black. And the longest nails he had ever seen.
Like nothing he had seen before.
‘What exactly did you do last night?’ asked Mac.
The man’s head lolled from side to side.
And that smell… Not just on his hands. On his mouth too.
Then it dawned on Mac.
The dirt on the man’s body. It was not mud.
It was something else. A dark red colour.
And all over his fingernails.
Fingernails like claws.
And there, low over the rooftops, hung a full moon — round, bright, and still shining, even as the sun began to rise.
Reading Comprehension Questions
1. Who is the main character?
2. What is his job?
3. What are some of the reasons why Mac likes his job?
4. What kind of strange things has Mac seen while working?
5. What does he see this morning while working?
6. Does Mac stop his milk cart to help?
7. What concern does Mac have about the man?
8. Whose advice does Mac think of as he decides to help?
9. What is covering the man’s body?
10. Are there any other people on the street at this time?
11. Who does Mac think about calling?
12. What reason does Mac give himself for not calling the police?
13. When Mac calls out to the man, how does he respond?
14. What does Mac decide about the man’s condition?
15. How does the man react when Mac touches his shoulder?
16. What does Mac advise the man not to do?
17. What does the man do when Mac taps him a second time?
18. What does Mac assume happened when the man’s head fell back?
19. What offer does Mac make to the man?
20. What does the man do when Mac tries to turn him over?
21. Does the man look at Mac?
22. What does Mac notice about the man’s eyes?
23. What does the man do with his lips and tongue?
24. What question does he ask Mac?
25. What does Mac tell the man about where he is?
26. Does the man stand up?
27. Do Mac and the man get into the milk cart?
28. What does Mac notice about the smell coming from the man?
29. Does the man know where he lives?
30. What does Mac decide to do next?
31. Where does Mac suggest taking the man?
32. What does Mac notice about the man’s fingernails?
33. What does the man do with his head?
34. What does Mac realise about the ‘mud’ on the man’s body?
35. What does Mac see in the sky at the end of the story?
Essential Vocabulary
milkman | breach of the peace | fingernails |
morning person | sleep it off | filthy |
daily grind | groaned | lolled |
neighbourhood | harmless | dawned on |
sniffing | sore head | claws |
hedge | flinch | rooftops |
doorsteps | shook | tarmac |
drunk driver | bloodshot | civic duty |
crashed | smacked his lips | instilled |
burglars | lolling | assistance |
apprehended | dragged himself | confused |
revellers | all fours | metallic |
nightclub | struggled | copper |
high on life | naked | dirt |
tongue | tried | night |
Vocabulary Practice Exercise
Follow the steps below to help you learn and remember new words and phrases more effectively:
1. Write each new word or phrase in your vocabulary notebook.
2. Look up the meaning of each word in your dictionary. Write a clear and simple definition next to the word.
3. Create your own sentence using the word or phrase correctly. Try to make the sentence meaningful and connected to your own life or experiences.
Examples
Fingernails — the hard, flat coverings that grow on the ends of your fingers.
Example sentence: I need to cut my fingernails, they’ve grown quite long this week.
Harmless — not dangerous; unable to cause damage or injury.
Example sentence: The spider in the bathroom looked scary, but it was completely harmless.
Why do this?
Doing this regularly will help you improve all areas of your English — reading, writing, speaking, and listening. By writing definitions and making your own examples, you are actively using the language, which helps it stick in your memory.
Discussion Questions
1. Mac feels a “civic duty” to help the naked man rather than walk away. Do you think most people would do the same in his position, or would they keep walking?
2. Mac’s mother taught him that “if you help others, the universe will help you in return.” Do you believe this is true in real life?
3. Mac considers calling the police several times but talks himself out of it each time. Why do you think he keeps finding reasons not to call?
4. If you saw a stranger lying naked and confused in the street, what would you do?
5. Mac assumes the man is simply drunk, even as the clues suggesting something worse keep appearing. Why do you think people often choose the simplest explanation, even when it doesn’t fully make sense?
6. Do you think Mac was being brave, foolish, or simply kind by approaching the man?
7. At what point in the story did you first suspect something supernatural was happening? What was the clue that convinced you?
8. The story never uses the word “werewolf.” Do you think it’s more effective to leave this unsaid, or would you have preferred the story to state it clearly?
9. Mac notices the man’s animal-like behaviour — dragging himself on all fours, his tongue lolling, his head lolling from side to side. Why do you think the writer chose to show these details instead of simply telling the reader what the man is?
10. The story ends with Mac driving the man away in his milk cart. What do you think happens next?
11. Do you think Mac is now in danger? Why or why not?
12. Should Mac have trusted his instincts earlier, when he first felt the man “could be dangerous”?
13. The story is set at dawn, with the sun rising and a full moon still visible. Why do you think the writer chose this specific time of day for the story?
14. Have you ever ignored a warning sign or a bad feeling because you wanted to believe everything was fine? What happened?
15. Do you think Mac’s kindness is his greatest strength, or could it also be seen as a weakness in this situation?
16. Werewolf stories often explore the idea of a “monster” hiding inside an ordinary person. What do you think this story is really about, beyond just the werewolf reveal?
17. If the man really is a werewolf, do you think he is aware of what he did the night before, or has he lost his memory of it?
18. Mac has seen strange things before on his milk round — a drunk driver, burglars, drunken revellers. How does this history affect the way he reacts to the naked man?
19. Do you think this story would be scarier if it was set at night instead of early morning? Why or why not?
20. If you were writing a sequel to this story, would you focus on what happens to Mac, or on the identity and past of the mysterious man?
That’s Forest Road — did you spot all the clues before the ending?
If you’re a teacher and want the complete lesson plan for this story — full comprehension questions, vocabulary exercises, a role play, a debate activity, and a writing task — you can download it here:
Get the Forest Road Lesson Plan
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