(This is my first UT fanfic, so please, cut me slack if it's bad.)
Prologue
Every night, Ali doesn't sleep well. Every night, her mother tucks her in, curling flannel blankets around her, trying her best to make her feel comforted, gives her her favorite stuffed cat, and kisses her goodnight.
It doesn't take a genius to read Ali's mother's face to realize that things are wrong. Every night, when she comes in with her bloodshot eyes and trembling hands, and leaves the door open a crack. She always says the same thing before she goes.
"Ali… Daddy and I are right down the hall if you need us."
Ali does not sleep. Every half hour, she dashes to the window, to look out. The sky is dark, and stars glitter peacefully. The neighbor's houses stand next to hers, and in every single square window, a bright yellow light illuminating the ground below. Their dog barks, breaking the silence, but quickly returning to the said silence.
It was so quiet, the air was thick with fear and tangled emotions. A cold breeze ruffled the tree's leaves, and the colorful pansies in the window box fluttered, giving off a quiet, crackling noise.
The moon shone high above, illuminating the streets. The only offset to this perfect scene was that there was nobody outside.
No late-night pedestrians, no one taking their dog out to relieve it, the cars had been parked in garages with doors firmly sealed. Even some street cats had been caught, caged and secured away in said garages.
Ali looks back to her tiny, dark room where her bed lays in disarray. Laying half-draped down her bed, a soft dress that was going to be modified and used as a Halloween costume. Crayon drawings on paper are taped on the wall. Her plush cat sits on the top of the bed, reflecting light off of its red, blue, and yellow patchwork. It looks eagerly towards Ali with enormous, glassy eyes.
She walks back to her bed and picks up the doll. She strokes its head, and hugs it tight. Then walks back to the window, doll in arm and continues to look out onto the night.
"We'll be okay… won't we?" She timidly asks the cat.
The cat does not answer. But continues to look up at Ali with its big eyes.
But then, there's a loud sound. What sounds like quick gunshots and a loud BOOM rattles the walls of Ali's home. Just barely, she hears the muffled cries of shock and fear coming from her neighbor's houses. Ali makes an effort to jump back into her bed and lands with a soft impact. Immediately, she wraps the blankets back around herself, and pulls the cat down with her, hiding entirely underneath the thick blanket. The temperature is high and she begins to sweat, but Ali doesn't dare come out from her shelter.
She holds the cat in her arms, as tears threaten to fall down her cheeks. She feels like crying. She's so scared of what's going on, and what can she do about it?
Still under her sheets, she hugs her doll, closes her teary eyes, and gives a final thought, or a prayer, that this living nightmare, which plagued her for almost three years now, would all be ended soon.
The nightmare, that is, your life could be snuffed out at any moment.
If the bombs fell.
It wasn't a matter of 'if'. It was a matter of 'when'.
(I would really like feedback. Tell me if you like it so far.)