Chapter 21: Finding Out

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I watched Hazel sleep with an evil grin on my face. I love how she freaks out when she can't see me unless she looks into a mirror and when she can only hear me, like I'm right next to her. She doesn't know who I am, at all. She believes I'm part of her illness. Heh. Guess what, my dear?

Hm...actually, I'll wait for the right moment. I don't like to start off early, even though I appeared the second time when I spoke to her after she received those stitches while she was talking to herself, with me giving her a great startle when she saw me.

I glanced over at Jackson, sleeping on his own bed. I don't care about him. He's not my problem, it's this stupid girl that's right in front of me. God, I wish I can just do my thing now that I wanted to do for a long time. Only I don't want to do it right away.

That reminded me when I told her that I was the one she 'sees' and 'hears' because both my voice and image sound the same. Not only that, I don't think she knows the truth about her life, and...well… Why tell it now? It's a lot more fun to see her miserable unless she doesn't take that new medication by tomorrow. And if she does...I'll pretend that I'm gone. Heh...spoiler alert. I don't like to keep secrets, either. Hey, me and her are like...twins in a way. Heh, heh.

I walked over to her and kept on staring at her, wondering if she's having that dream of Travis. I'm like him. Cruel and mean, getting her hurt like she did to her own self. That made me want to laugh out loud when she did that.

It's no fun to wait, but I have to use patients. When she does take that combo, I'll just pretend to leave, making her think that she felt better. My plan is to...wait, why tell it now? That's one secret I'll keep. Huh. Now when I think about it, I'm not sure if I told her this or not. Well, I did tell her that I'll find a way to get rid of her. Did I say I wanted to take her place? I can't remember.

Oh well, that's fine with me. Still, does she know who she really is? Can't wait for her to find out. The hard way. She may be brave and tough when it comes to those Goosebumps monsters, except she won't when I, and soon, appear to her someday. Will I appear at another mirror?

Shrug. I don't know...

However, I'm never gonna leave her. For now I'm gonna keep my voice off and let her see her own self, her own regular self for now on, starting tomorrow. Yeah… I'm not sure if you understand or not about this but...

Wait, still not going to reveal it yet. Too early for that.

Someday, my dear, I'll take over your place and to successfully get rid of you, Hazel. You're gonna think that I'm part of you illness until you know the truth when the time is right.

I can't wait to get started...

Hannah

I decided to go back home before my dad calls me on my new phone that he got me several months ago since my last one got broken at Horrorland. I've been at Zach's house until sundown, thinking it was the best option to go home.

I gave Zach a goodnight kiss. "See you tomorrow," I spoke in all happiness. "I'll see you at school. Glad tomorrow is Friday," I said with a small chuckle.

Zack chuckled, too. "Yep," he replied, playing with my hair. "Not only that, I can't wait for Hazel to come back home. I hope she isn't traumatized at that mental hospital she is at. Not only that, I actually can't wait for her to go to real school like you told me."

"Yeah…" I nodded my head. "The principal is going to sign her up on the classes that we have, and my dad wants her in his class that you're in."

"Cool." He smiled, giving me a hug. "Call me when you need me, okay?"

I pulled away from him. "Don't worry, scaredy-cat, I'll be fine. I'm not going to let out that scream that I did before."

"Heh." He let out a laugh. "Yeah. Of course you wouldn't," he grinned. "So I'll see you tomorrow, right?" he repeated.

I gave him a nod. "That's right, scaredy-cat."

Zach couldn't help but to let out another laugh. "Are you keep calling me that?"

"Maybe," I shrugged. "You did jump ten feet high when I startled you while you were taking the trash out."

"Oh, yeah," Zach remembered with a small smile, rubbing the back of his neck. "Again, call me if you need me."

"Zach, I'll be fine," I repeated my reassurance, not wanting him to worry. "It's not like one of the monsters got free from the new manuscript." Zach knew I was joking because he let a chuckle since there is no way that any of my dad's creations got loose. "See you tomorrow." I gave him a goodnight wave, heading to my house.

Opening the door of my home, I entered inside, kicking my shoes off. "Dad, I'm home." I listened for his reply. "Dad, I'm home," I called out again. Nothing. "Dad?" I walked upstairs to the study room to see him at his desk. "Dad?"

"Huh?" He dropped his pen, turning to see me standing at the door. "Hey, sweetheart," he greeted with a yawn. "Did you behave over at Zach's place?" he asked me in a father-like-tone.

"Yes, dad," I answered with a playful eye roll. "I didn't get into trouble and yes, Zach did his homework, too." I looked at him. "You look tired," I commented.

Dad sighed. "I know... I've been grading all my classes' stories." He straightened out all the papers, putting them into the suitcase, then closed it. "You want anything to eat?" he said.

"Sure, how about pizza?" I requested.

"Great, I'll order it." Dad went out the study room, going downstairs to get the phone to call in a pizza delivery. "Do you want anything on the pizza?" I heard him call from downstairs.

"No, just plain cheese pizza," I hollered back. I took off my hair tie, letting my hair loose as it fell past my shoulders. I put my hair tie on my wrist, heading to my room to grab fresh pj's and everything else so I can take a hot shower.

That's when I heard something in one of the guest rooms. At first, I thought it was my imagination, thinking that I was just hearing things. Except I keep hearing it, sounding like angry gibberish, not being able to make out the words.

I passed my room, going down the hallway, making sure I don't make any other noises then the one I'm hearing.

I stopped at one of the guest rooms, the second one, placing my hand on the doorknob. I turned it, slowly opening up the door to see something underneath the covers. It looked like a size of a child, only that doesn't make any sense, at all. Me and Hazel are the only children here in this house. Well, dad didn't take her in as a daughter even though she's living with us. However, it'll be...cool to have a sister...

The gibberish became more and more louder to the point that I wanted to know what it is. I walked towards the bed in a cautious manner.

Once I got to the bed, I grabbed the covers and yanked them away.

I froze at an instinct, shocked to what my eyes are seeing on the bed before me, not believing what I was looking at.

There on the bed...was my dad's evil and devilious creation of all time...right there, right in front of me...

It turns out that he was surprised to see me than I was with this… thing. He opened his mouth and spoke.

"Uh...hello?" he said.

That's when I let out a terrified scream that echoed around the house.

Slappy

I laid underneath the covers, my whole wooden body covered up. I am still mad at Stine for requesting me to apologize to Hazel for the thing I did to her. To me, that girl is a brat. A complete brat who tried to stop me.

Ugh, I really hate that girl! She ruined everything, getting into my path on my revenge on Stine. I should've gotten rid of her! It's all her fault!

I began muttering in a low tone in a gibberish way whenever a person- or monster- gets angry at something or someone.

I kept on talking in this low tone, gibberish voice, that I hadn't even heard the door open. Adding to that, I felt the covers being pulled off, and for a split second, I saw someone standing at the side of the bed, frozen.

At first, I thought it was Hazel until I realized it was Stine's daughter, the one who replaced me, the one I tried to get rid of so she wouldn't ever see that Zach kid again.

We both kept staring at each other. The room was filled with a deep, set of silence. She was stunned to see me, just like how I'm stunned to see her. She didn't even move, at all. It looks like she was about to scream, too, so I opened up my mouth and spoke.

"Uh...hello?" I cut off the silence, not sure how she'll actually react to seeing me there on the bed. And right after I let those two words out, she let out this ear piercing scream and ran right out of the room before coming back with a bat in her hands. She lifted the bat over her head, swinging towards my head. "Whoa!" I rolled off the bed with a startled cry, landing on my wooden stomach. I quickly got up, raising my hands like I'm surrendering a fight or something. "No, listen-" But I quickly had to move away to avoid the weapon in her hands. "Ah!" I let out another cry, the bat missing by an inch of my head.

Hannah tried to beat me but I was too fast for her, even running around the guest room with her chasing after me from behind.

"Get back here, you wooden demon!" she proclaimed, not refusing to stop whatsoever. "Stop, you...you...you creepy...monster," she managed to say.

"Nice comeback," I answered sarcastically. "And I thought you're gonna be surprised to see me," I added in, but she completely ignored it.

"Stay still!" All of a sudden, she threw the bat, having it smack of the back of my neck, with me falling to the floor face first. I sat up, shaking my head, getting rid of the sudden dizziness that came to me. I was about to say something to her, only for her to start screaming, running out of the room. "Dad! Dad! Daaad!" she screeched at the top of her lungs. "DAAAAAAAAAAAD!" I heard her run down the steps, looking for Stine.

I just got up and walked out the room with no care at all. I also wanted to see how Stine would deal with this situation.

I got downstairs in time to see his daughter freaking over me.

"Dad, Slappy got out of the book!" she started to tell him in a raised voice. "I was hearing some kind of muttering in one of the guest rooms and saw...him." By the time she said that, she saw me step into the living room, grabbing one of the vases from one of the small tables. "Get back!" She was about to throw the item at me when Stine gently grabbed a hold of her. "Let go, I need to destroy that dummy!" she declared, trying to squirm free from his grip, and I let out a hiss when she called me the D word. "Let go!" she repeated.

"Hannah, calm down..." Stine told her in a very settled voice, keeping her in place. "Give me the vase," he said after she was done struggling, finally letting go of her. She handed him the vase who put it back on one of the small tables. "Now, let me explain-"

"How did you get out the new manuscript?" Hannah interrupted Stine, going over to me. I stepped back due to my weakness from the scratch marks on my face. "Huh?" she questioned in an irrigating manner. "How did you get out of the new manuscript?" she asked again. I opened my mouth to say something. "Answer me, you gremlin!" she began to demand, not giving me a chance to speak...at all. "Tell me, or else you're turning into firewood," she threatened, about to pounce on me. I still didn't answer her, not knowing how to react at her angry expression. I would've shut her mouth, except I know that Stine wouldn't allow that to happen, not alone hurt her due to the fact of how protective he is of her. "Do I have to make you answer?" She was about to start yelling when Stine grabbed ahold of her again. "Hey-!" Stine started to push his daughter out of the living room before looking over his shoulder.

"Go back upstairs," he instructed me.

"Why?" I asked, not liking the idea. "I want to see how you'll-"

"Go! Upstairs!" he yelled through clenched teeth. "I'll tell her everything. Go upstairs, now." He leaned towards Hannah's ear and spoke. "Into the dining room," he whispered to her. Hannah looked at me with untrusted eyes. Then she walked towards the dining room, her dad right behind her. He stopped again to look back at me one last time. "After I'm done explaining, I'll get to you to see if you thought about apologizing to Hazel and to see if you want to fix our relationship." He waited for me to go back to the guest room.

So with a heavy sigh, I teleported back there, closing the door, pressing my wooden ear, ready for what he had to say to his so-called daughter and replacement.

"Hannah...listen..." I heard Stine began, only he was cut off by my replacement.

"Why?" I listened to her voice out angrily, clearly mad. "And when? When did you...you...released that...demon?" Even though she didn't say the D word again, I felt offended for calling me that...even though it's true.

"Hannah, just let me ex-" Stine tried again, but I can hear Hannah cutting him off again.

"Explain? Explain what? That you released your most evilest creations of all time? You thought it was a good idea to do that?" I can tell she was getting more angry by the second. "Dad, do you realize what you had done? When Hazel comes home, she's gonna freak when she sees that wooden gremlin. Don't you remember how she reacted when Maniac mentioned that dummy's name?" My wooden brows lowered, hearing her say that D word out of her mouth. "She basically had a panic attack and she told me that she's afraid of those kind of things." There was a pause. "How... How can you do this?"

There was silence, and I kept my ear open, continuing to eavesdrop when I heard Stine explained the real reason why he let me out of the new manuscript that he had written to catch me and my 'friends' to trap us all in.

"Hannah... I did it because...I want me and him to fix our relationship...and...I told him that he needed to...apologize to Hazel...for what he has done to her...by biting her and...hurting her..." He sounded guilty for not telling my replacement from the beginning of all this.

But his daughter didn't seem to agree to this. "You think you can change him? Dad, he's so evil! And evil things, like that chop wood in a tuxedo, never feel bad for what they did."

Hearing all of this, I heard the front door open. "Hannah!" Great, it's that Zach kid who ruined my revenge on Stine. "Hannah, are you alright?" Ugh! I hate that damn kid! Why can't he just live somewhere else? "Hannah!" he continued to call out. I wanted to go downstairs, wanting him to back off. Only I didn't, not wanting him to see me and throw me into a fire pit or something. I heard him run to another room, possibly the dining room. "Hannah..." From upstairs, I can hear him with a worried tone in his voice. "Are you alright?" he asked the same question. Why does he sound like that around her? "Why did you scream? It sounded like you saw something."

Great... He's gonna find out, too, I thought to myself. I swear, if that Hannah girl tells him that Stine let me out of the new manuscript, I'm gonna-

My second thought never got the chance to finish when I heard Stine spoke up. "She saw a mouse." A mouse...? "That's why she screamed like that." Yeah, she screams like a Banshee.

"Oh, okay," Zach's voice responded. "Thanks for telling me. And I'm sorry for not knocking on the door." I rolled my eyes when he said the word 'sorry'. A word that I'll not use at all towards Hazel whenever she gets home from that mental hospital or whatever Stine told me where she's at.

I hope she's there forever.

"That's quite alright, Zach," Stine returned.

I then heard Zach chuckle. "Didn't think you'll be afraid of a mouse."

That comment was directed towards Hannah when she gave her answer to him. "It just...surprised me, that's all. We never had mice or rats come to our house. But it'll show up again."

"Alright. Well... I better get back home. Again, sorry for barging into the house." I then heard him walk out of the dining room to the kitchen to the living, and out the front door, closing it shut.

"Good...he didn't find out..."

Uh huh... He didn't find out yet, Stine. And by the time he does, he'll turn me into wood shavings.

"You do realize that Zach's gonna find out, right, dad?" Wow.. she had the same thought that I had. "And Hazel has a fear of dolls and dummies." That word... That D word. "Why would you do this!?"

"Hannah, I already explained it to you..."

"Well, you shouldn't have done that. Slappy is evil and he's never gonna say sorry to Hazel."

"Hannah..." I can hear Stine's voice began to lower.

"By the time he's 'reformed', he's gonna stab us in the back-"

"HANNAH FAIRCHILD STINE, THAT'S ENOUGH!" He raised his voice in a high volume. There was a long pause. "Hannah... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout out like that at you..."

"It's okay, dad. I just don't trust that dummy..."

I didn't want to listen anymore... I was so angry...so upset to what his daughter had told him. I teleported out the guess room, grabbed a paper and a red pen before going back to the guest room, writing a short note, throwing it on the bed and smashed the window with my fist, the glass splintering onto the floor.

I got out of the room through the broken window and, due to my weak state, I didn't land very well onto the ground. I let out a painful grunt when I landed on my stomach.

I got back up, seeing grass stains on my tux.

I didn't care... Didn't care, at all. I started running, knowing which place to go to...not wanting to come back.

And I don't trust Stine, either, knowing that he's lying to me about 'fixing our relationship'. Not only that, I'll won't say sorry to that Hazel girl. I changed my mind. Monsters like me never felt sorry for anything.

However, the only thing I'm...upset about is that I know that Stine is just going to trap me back in the book...

When I got to the place, I went somewhere to hide and I did, lowering my head, sadly.

I'm never coming back.

Stine

I set the phone down when I heard a shrill scream from upstairs. Uh oh... Looks like Hannah discovered Slappy in one of the guest rooms... This can't be good. I can hear her yelling out at him very clearly.

"Get back here, you wooden demon!" I heard her cry out, along with running around as I just stood there in the living room, just listening. "Stop, you...you...you creepy...monster." I almost smirked when she tried to think up an insulting word for him.

I heard Slappy voice make a response, sounding sarcastic about it. "Nice comeback." Then I heard him add, "And I thought you're gonna be surprised to see me."

"Stay still!" That's when I heard a loud smack, like wood hitting wood. Ow...for Slappy, I bet that's gotta hurt. "Dad! Dad! Daaad!" Her voice rang from the house. "DAAAAAAAAAAAD!" Her shrill voice didn't stop when I began to hear her run down the steps, going right to the living room with a look of panic and fear. "Dad, Slappy got out of the book." Hannah's voice was high while I listened to her. "I was hearing some kind of muttering in one of the guest rooms and saw...him," she explained, starting to get all work up. That's when we both saw Slappy stepped into the same room. She snatched one of vases from the small tables, raising it. "Get back!" she cried, prepared to throw the valuable item. But before she can even do it, I grabbed her, stopping her from what she was about to do. "Let go, I need to destroy that dummy!" she shouted, only she wasn't strong enough to pull free from my grasp. I heard Slappy make a hiss sound. "Let go!" I didn't free her, ignoring her protest.

"Hannah, calm down..." I restrained, not yelling, as I kept her in one spot. "Give me the vase." She stopped struggling, giving me a chance to let go of her. She then handed me back the vase, and I put it back where it belongs. "Now, let me explain-"

I would have done it, only Hannah cut me off as she questioned Slappy. "How did you get out the new manuscript?" She stepped towards him and he took a step back which, in all honesty, surprised me because Slappy is so...evil. He actually seems...weak...and...not knowing how to...defend himself anymore. "Huh?" She gave him a blazing look, her tone not very nice. "How did you get out of the new manuscript?" She didn't stop questioning him. "Answer me, you gremlin!" she said angrily, not giving him a chance to speak. "Tell me, or else you're turning into firewood," she seized, as if she wanted pounce on him. It didn't seem like Slappy knows how to deal with this situation that his in front of him. My eyes were on both of them; Hannah and Slappy. I don't want either of them going at each other's throats, not wanting them to get hurt. "Do I have to make you answer?" That's when I stepped from behind her, grabbing her shoulders for the second time. "Hey-!" she began to protest with me taking her to another room, looking down at Slappy.

"Go back upstairs," I told him.

Slappy narrowed his brows at me, not liking the idea. "Why? I want to see how you'll-"

I gritted my teeth together. "Go! Upstairs!" I proceeded through them, not wanting to argue with him right now. "I'll tell her everything. Go upstairs, now," I repeated my instruction. "Into the dining room," I directed to Hannah in a whispery voice, right close to her ear. Before she did that, she gave Slappy a hateful look and headed to the dining room. "After I'm done explaining, I'll get to you to see if you thought about apologizing to Hazel and to see if you want to fix our relationship," I spoke back to my creation. I waited for him to go back up to the guess room.

He let out a heavy sigh, teleporting back to the guess room. I heard the door shut from up there.

Let's hope he isn't going to eavesdrop...

Entering the dining room, Hannah had her arms crossed over her chest. I swept my hand over my hair like I always do. I sighed, feeling guilty for her to find out about this and for not telling her about Slappy being out of the new manuscript right away.

Not wanting to keep it in anymore, I opened my mouth to speak. "Hannah...listen..."

"Why?" Hannah said, interrupting me. "And when? When did you...you...released that...demon?"

"Hannah, just let me ex-"

"Explain? Explain what? That you released your most evilest creations of all time? You thought it was a good idea to do that?" she threw out, cutting me off again. "Dad, do you realize what you have done?" she stated, looking at me with a mad look. When Hazel comes home, she's gonna freak when she sees that wooden gremlin. Don't you remember how she reacted when Maniac mentioned that dummy's name? She basically had a panic attack and she told me that she's afraid of those kind of things." She stopped for a second, pausing. "How... How can you do this?" she asked.

Silence filled the room while she waited for my answer. I gripped the chair, looking at my daughter straight into her eyes.

"Hannah... I did it because...I want me and him to fix our relationship...and...I told him that he needed to...apologize to Hazel...for what he has done to her...by biting her and...hurting her..." My words came out slow when I gave her my answer, wondering if she would agree to this.

"You think you can change him? Dad, he's so evil! And evil things, like that chop wood in a tuxedo, never feel bad for what they did." Okay... she doesn't agree with my idea.

We then heard the door, the front door, swing open, and I heard Zach from the living room. "Hannah! Hannah, are you alright?" His footsteps came closer and closer. "Hannah!" he hollered. "Hannah..." He manage to find us, passing by me. I didn't mind and I knew he didn't do it on purpose as he walked up to my daughter. "Are you alright?" he repeated, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Why did you scream? It sounded like you saw something."

Shoot! I better come up with something quick, or else she's gonna tell him that I let Slappy out of the new manuscript. Think, Stine, think.

Hannah opened her mouth but I answered right before she did.

"She saw a mouse. That's why she screamed like that."

"Oh, okay," Zach replied, taking her hands off of her, believing my answer. "Thanks for telling me. And I'm sorry for not knocking on the door," he apologized.

I gave him a small nod. "That's quite alright, Zach."

"Didn't think you'll be afraid of a mouse," he then chuckled towards Hannah.

Hannah bit her lip, glancing at me then right back at her boyfriend. "It just...surprised me, that's all," she told him. "We never had mice or rats come to our house. But it'll show up again."

Zach nodded his head. "Alright. Well... I better get back home. Again, sorry for barging into the house."

After that, we watched him walk out of the dining room to the front door. I heard the door clicked shut, and I let out a relieved sigh. "Good... he didn't find out..." I breathed out, glad that I can come up with a lie.

Hannah walked up to me. "You do realize that Zach's gonna find out, right, dad?" she mentioned. "And Hazel has a fear of dolls and dummies. Why would you do this!?" she yelled.

I sighed. "Hannah, I already explained it to you..."

"Well, you shouldn't have done that. Slappy is evil and he's never gonna say sorry to Hazel," she let out.

I gave her a warning look. "Hannah..." I changed my tone of voice, not wanting to argue with her.

"By the time he's 'reformed', he's gonna stab us in the back-"

"HANNAH FAIRCHILD STINE, THAT'S ENOUGH!" Hannah took a few steps back from me after I let out that aggressive holler, saying her full name, as she gave me a startled look in her eyes. "Hannah... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout out like that at you..." I walked up to my daughter, wrapping my arms around her.

She pulled away from me, her eyes looking down at the floor. "It's okay, dad. I just don't trust that dummy..." she spoke. She lifted her head up and continued on. "Not only that, I know that Hazel going to freak out. Did she tell you that she's afraid of dolls and dummies?"

I thought about it. "She did told me that Slappy freaks her out..." I recalled. "So that basically counts. But Hannah, you have to understand. I missed Slappy. Just like how both me and Zach missed you." I smiled at her and it went away when I almost forgot about someone. "I even miss Hazel, too..."

Hannah brushed her hair behind her ear. "Same goes for me... But dad, what are we going to do? Is Slappy really gonna change?" She still didn't believe that would happen.

I bit my lip. "Don't worry, this is all on me. I'm the one who set him free, and I'm the one who needs to help him." I took off my glasses, cleaning the lenses with my shirt. "I'll even try to think of away for Hazel to get used to him, too," I decided.

Hannah arched a brow. "I don't know… I don't think she's the kind of person that gets used to new things right away."

"Don't worry, I don't care how long it takes. Now I need to go upstairs and talk to-"

A loud smash chopped me off, sounding like glass. We both looked at each other and ran to the steps, running upstairs.

Hoping that Slappy broke something by accident, I burst the door open, seeing a broken window, the glass all over the floor. No Slappy. He isn't the guest room anymore.

I stopped Hannah, preventing her from coming into the guest room. I didn't want her to step on any of the sharp, broken glass.

Walking towards the window, I inspected it.

I put my head down. Looks like I need to buy a new window... I didn't know he can smash up a window like that. Did he heard our talk?

Trying to figure out the answer, my eyes caught something on the bed. A piece of paper with a note on it. I picked it up and read it.

Don't find me, the note said.

It was a very short message, not long at all.

Even though his name isn't on the note, I know that he has written it. I read the note couple of times. I looked at Hannah. "Call your friends."

"It's late," she answered.

I walked up to her. "Call your friends," I instructed, repeating it. "It isn't that late. It's eleven o'clock. Call Zach and Champ and tell them to come here."

Knowing that I meant business, she responded back. "Okay. Let's make sure they're aren't asleep," Hannah hoped for the best. She took out her new phone, leaving the room, punching the first phone number.

As she was doing that, I looked down at the window, expecting him to be just lying on the ground.

He wasn't there… I saw dark clouds rolling by when they let out a rumble, sounding very deep and menacing.

Staring out the window for a whole minute, I forced myself away from it, heading downstairs to the living room to wait for the boys to arrive.

Hazel

For some reason, I woke up and it wasn't even morning yet. Why am I awake? I went onto my right side, facing the wall, seeing if that'll help me get back to sleep. I tossed onto my other side, but that didn't help, either. I went onto my back, gripping the fake fur of Hannah's teddy bear, looking up at the ceiling.

I couldn't get back to sleep for some reason. I need to get back to sleep or else I'll look like a zombie coming out from its gravestone...or a ghost. In that case, I rather not be any of those things.

I rolled onto my stomach, closing my eyes. But no sleep came to me. Ever. I began to get irritated at this point. I turned onto my back once again, placing my pillow over my face, getting covered up in darkness. Now I couldn't breathe and took the pillow off my face before I suffocated. Yeah... I just discovered right away that I don't like having a pillow over my face to help me get back to sleep, which failed. Damn. I really to get to sleep. If I don't, I'll...

Frustration got to me and my anger filled my chest up.

I sat up, grabbed the pillow and, without thinking twice, I threw the pillow over at Jackson's bed, jolting awake. "Huh-?" he choked out with an awake snort. I saw a bit of saliva run down his chin. Was he drooling in his sleep...? He rubbed his eyes, squinting them at me. "Hazel...? Why are you awake?" he asked me, switching the light on.

The bright light made me shut my eyes. "I don't know..." I responded once I opened my eyes back up. "What time is it?" I wondered.

"It's..." Jackson looked at the clock. "Ten thirty at night." He pushed the blankets off him, grabbing my pillow that was on his bed. He stood up, walking over to me, handing the pillow back. I took it, setting it back on my bed. "You... can't fall back asleep?" he said.

"...yeah..." I nodded my head and answered. "I don't know why, though..." Setting the stuff toy onto the mattress, I got up, going up to the window, the moonlight hitting the floor. I let out a sigh, kneeling down, placed my arms on the window sill, resting my chin on them. "Is it normal for a person to wake up at this hour?" I couldn't help but to think out loud.

I felt Jackson placed a hand on my shoulder, not minding about for one bit, answering my question. "It's pretty normal. Do you want me to get you some water?" he offered.

"Sure... If you want to, that is..."

He let out a smile and left the room. Where is he going to get water? The cafe is closed at this time.

I looked over towards my cot, my eyes landing on the violin case. Hmm... Should I play it? Or should I not...? Dr. Williams did told me that playing an instrument helps lift the bad feelings off of me... only...what if I wake someone up?

I should just...stroke a finger on one of the strings, and not use the bow. Will that keep the people in this special place from waking up? The one way to find out it to just...play. I walked over to the case, opening it up. I took the violin out, leaving the bow absent.

Just to use one finger to strum one of the strings. That's all you need to do, Hazel. So instead of properly using it, I put it on my lap, picking at one of the strings, such as the last one. It made a sound, not very loudly as I was expecting. I hope there are heavy sleepers in this place...

Wanting to feel more comfortable, I went back onto my bed, laying down, the instrument on my stomach where I can reach the strings. I stroke the last string a couple of more times, then went to the second last string. It was a bit louder, but not too loud to wake the whole building up that is held by hundreds of patients and doctors, including the nurse and janitors, as well as other people that are here.

I transferred my pointer finger back onto the last string, playing it. No song. No song, whatsoever. That's what I did... I can already feel the heavy dread get off of me, like it was weighing me down for a long time... Is it normal to feel relaxed when you play any kind of instrument? I believe that it does...

I continued to lay on my mattress of my bed, looking at the ceiling, catching the string noises into my ears. I can also feel the string beat in my heart...feeling at ease. I guess both music and reading those Goosebumps books help me forget about the bad things that happened to me back in the past. Especially... him.

Travis...

I began to feel a tad angry when his name came into my brain, like he was haunting me. I remembered what he looked like… I played the string a bit more roughly, this time thinking I'll wake someone up from their slumber. Thank God, no one did.

Travis stayed in my mind for awhile, as I began thinking about those dreams that I had about him. Do dreams like that come true...? Those dreams of him felt...real... And what about that empty house from my first dream about that jerk? Not only that...he gave me a hint on my final dream of him, causing me to wake up last night.

I shouldn't think things like this; like dreams. Dreams create lots of things in people's minds when their bodies shut down during the night... People would either have good dreams, bad dreams, or nightmares.

If I dream about him again, I don't want to end up mumbling and crying in my sleep...except...I never get past it. Like Stine mention, some people mumble in their sleep, nothing for me to feel bad about. Plus, I can't blame him for adding that he never heard people cry in their sleep, like I do when I have a terrible dream or nightmare.

Continuing to mess with the violin string, I saw Jackson coming back into the room with a water bottle.

I sat up when he handed it to me. "Where did you get a water bottle?" I said, taking it. It felt cold like ice. I took the cap off, seeing water inside the plastic bottle. "The cafe is closed at this time of day," I told him, surprised that he actually got water for me.

"There's a room where patients like to hang out," he answered. "There's a fridge there with types of drinks inside it. It's mostly water, but sometimes they'll have soda or juice," he grinned.

"Oh... Well... That makes sense..." I stared at the clear liquid. "...I guess..." I added before taking a few sips, not wanting to upset my stomach. I put the cap back on. "Aren't you going to get in trouble for sneaking out the room?"

"What? No." He let out a laugh. "Why would you think that?"

I shrugged. "I don't know..." I kinda mumbled out for him to hear. "I...didn't mean to ask..." I got up to put my violin away.

"Were you just playing that?" I stopped and faced him when he opened his mouth to speak. "Because I heard that from down the hallway," he explained, sounding find about it.

For some reason, my face turned bright red on the feeling from him. "I..." I tried to think up for my own explanation. "...just wanted to...play it to lift the feelings I don't want off my chest." Really, Hazel? That's all you can say? 'Play to lift the feelings off your chest?' I scolded myself.

"I'm sorry," I apologized, putting the instrument back in the case and closed it shut. "I shouldn't be 'playing' with my instrument..."

"No, no, it's fine," Jackson reassured me. "Besides, I do the same thing sometimes, too. You can play yours whenever you want. No one is stopping you."

I didn't answer as I grabbed the numbing gel, placing a new coat on my stitches.

"You are going to give that back, right?" Now he sounded like that I was going to keep this item.

"No," I shook my head, "I won't keep it. I'll give it back to the nurse tomorrow..." I faced the clock. Eleven p.m. at night. Huh... Everyone says that...time flies. I saw dark, stormy clouds looming in, covering the moon and the shining stars like a black blanket. Great.

I went back over to my bed and laid back down, pulling the covers up to my neck, clutching the bear in my arms with me staring at the wall. "I'm going to try to go back to sleep this time."

"Okay..." I felt him nod his head. "Goodnight, Hazel."

Hearing the care in his voice, I returned the same word. "Goodnight..." I shut my eyes, already feeling the sleepiness going back to me.

FLASH... KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

I was suddenly woken up by a loud booming and threatening thunder that sounded dangerous. I looked at the clock again, reading eleven thirty. Wonderful...just wonderful. I went back to sleep for half an hour! Thank you, storm! Loud noises always wake me up.

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

Another loud crashing thunder, along with a flash of lightning. I'm not afraid of thunderstorms since I went through so many of them when I have to force myself to live alone before I started living with Stine and Hannah, so... I didn't need to be comforted. Although there is one storm that does get me a bit...antsy. A hurricane. I've been through one a couple of years ago. I thought the house that I was living at will be torn down by the strong current of wind and having a massive flood everywhere. But no, that never happened.

I rolled onto my back, gripping the stuffed animal before sitting up and going over to the window.

FLASH...

Lightning flickered into my eyes.

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

A third threatening sound from the dark clouds. Great... How in the hell am I going to get back to sleep now? I can only sleep when it's nice and quite, not from loud sounds!

I wish I had ear plugs. That'll be good to have… While I stared out the window, rain started to go down.

Plip, plip, plip, went the drips of water, hitting the window pane, running down the glass. My depression matched with the storm. Like I said before, rain always ruins my days...even though I never had a good day in my whole life.

I watched the rain go down harder. Kneeling down, I put my elbow on the windowsill, placing my hand on my cheek, feeling different emotions inside of me...again. Should I play the violin just in case it gets worse? Nah. I don't feel like doing that now.

Not being able to help it, I felt a tear running down my face, unable to keep it in. I feel like I need to go outside of the building, but...I might get in trouble for that. So I decided to take a walk inside the building. I know where all the rooms are at, and I won't get lost.

I looked over at Jackson, sleeping on his cot. My face felt hot when I stared at him.

Making sure to be quiet, I walked up to the door and opened it. Pearing my head out, I looked down the hallway, checking to see anyone down there.

Nobody. I stepped out of the room, shutting the door as quietly as I could, making sure not to make any type of noise to wake him up. Even though he was a heavy sleeper. Except when I threw my pillow at him by accident.

Walking down the hallway, I decided to go to that one area where all the patients hang out like he mentioned to me. Don't know where it is, and I'm not entirely sure if he showed it to me when he gave a tour of this place.

I wish there was a map of this building. However, I just walked, not being able to find it. So I decided to go to the very first area when I arrived here with Stine. I know where it's at.

Going over to that area, I walked over to the couch, sitting down on of the cushions. I placed my arm on the arm of the couch, placing the side the side of my head on it.

Maybe this isn't a good idea, after all, I thought, getting up. I don't want to get caught or else I'll get in big trouble.

I started walking again, heading back to the room.

KRAC-CROOO-OOM!

When I heard the crashing thunder, the hair on my arms raised, feeling a chill down my spine, making me shiver. Better get to the room, fast. I quicken my pace, listening to each cracking thunder.

Finally, I got to the room. I opened up the door, stepping back inside before closing it shut. Then I went over to my bed, laying down on it, facing Jackson's bed.

To be honest, he looks really... cute when he is asleep. Don't know why, but he does.

Sighing, I turned onto my other side. I wanted to go back home. I feel... homesick, wondering when I can get out of this place. And this is my second night of being here.

Don't worry, Hazel, I assured myself. You'll go home soon...back to Hannah and Stine. You won't be here forever.

That thought made feel a bit better. I held no smile but it made me feel less worried about how long I'll be in this building.

Shutting my eyes, I slowly waitin sleep to come to me, ignoring the loud cracks of thunder and flashes of lightning.