A/N: I once submitted this long, long ago. Since that time I have revised it slightly and have, upon popular demand, recorded a few more of these. I hope to eventually move these from real memories to a fictional story I've been developing for some time now, but I'm not sure when I'll be able to get that one finished and posted as the plot and details have yet to be fully laid out. However, I'll try and let you guys know when this storyline switches over from fact to fiction. As for now, I'll be posting these in chronological order (as well as I can recall, anyway – it was more than a decade ago…wow, that makes me feel old…) up until the big one, which will most likely be posted as a separate story on Until then, enjoy!
A Hand in The Night
By Angela St. Mathew
The green house by the lake was silent, a single perpetual light glowing in the downstairs kitchen. On the second floor, a blooming family slept peacefully through the quiet of the night.
All but one.
A small brunette girl lay in her little bed, the bottom of a bunk bed she shared with her older sister. Her eyes had long since adjusted to the darkness, but she kept her blankets over her head nonetheless. She knew it was very late at night, and that meant the house would be different. Not the safe, happy place she knew during the daytime. At night, things came alive.
Much to her dismay, the child had woken from a bad dream, the result being a very deep longing for a glass of water. The bathroom was right beside her room, but she was too afraid of the dark to cross the distance. She snuggled a little deeper into the blankets, thinking about what she should do. She didn't think she'd ever get back to sleep without a drink of water. Maybe if she quietly sneaked to the bathroom as quickly as she could, she could turn the lights on before the monsters heard her, and then she could get a drink.
That sounded like a good plan.
"One...two...three!" She counted quietly in her head before climbing out of bed and tiptoeing rapidly out into the hall and around the corner, into the bathroom. She reached up over the counter toward the light, but she couldn't reach it. Being only 4 and a half, she was too short to reach the switch. How had she not remembered this fact? Time was running out, and she couldn't go back into the hall - the monsters could be out there. Complete terror began to settle in on her and she started crying, not knowing what she could possibly do.
A hand suddenly came down, softly, upon her shoulder. She gasped and whirled around.
"Sshhhh..." He whispered.
She clung to him. "Bonkers, I'm scared!"
"It's alright, you don't have to be scared. Can't you reach the light?" He asked gently.
She shook her head and, somehow through the darkness, he saw the motion clearly.
"Well then, hop onto my shoulders and I'll lift you up onto the counter, then you can reach the switch, ok?" He said.
"Ok." Thankfully, his presence seemed to keep the monsters at bay. He bent down onto the floor, and she climbed onto his shoulders.
"Ooof! What did you eat for dinner, a horse?" He joked.
She giggled as he lifted her up to the counter, and she was able to turn the light on. They both squinted in the bright light as she scooted over to the sink and filled the cup with water.
"You want some?" She asked, handing the cup to him. He took it and drank a little, then he handed it back to her and she drank the rest.
After she turned out the light, he helped her down from the counter and, together, they walked back to her room. She climbed into her bed and he climbed in on the other side and lay next to her on top of the sheets, stroking her hair.
"Bonkers, you're my best friend..." She said, drifting off the sleep.
Bonkers only smiled.
End.
More to come soon!
