Chapter 1
1
"Sometimes I get so scared. I turn the television off and run to my room, climbing up the ladder leading to my bed as fast I can. I curl into a ball in the corner of my bed, against my wall, with the blankets over my head. No one can get me then." I looked at him.
"You must think I'm a coward."
"No," I replied, "I do that too." He smiled.
"Follow your instincts," I said, "It can save your life." His smile vanished.
"I'm going to bed," he said, getting up off the couch. He moved his blonde hair out of his dark green eyes and looked at me. He opened his mouth to say something then shut it with a snap. He walked to his room. I heard the door slam shut.
You don't have to be any age to realize that you're scared of something that you believe is out there. He's sixteen and still afraid of the dark.
2
What did she mean? He thought. It could save my life.
He heard her foot falls down the hall, stop momentarily, then hurry into her room. The door slammed shut and locked.
What's she in a hurry for?
He threw the covers off and began to descend down his ladder. His nightlight flickered and he stopped.
Sometimes it does that.
(No it doesn't)
He touched the floor gingerly with his foot, making sure not to touch any left over food with his bare foot. All safe. He walked to his door, avoiding miscellaneous objects scattered throughout the floor, and stopped. He had reached the door but felt something. He put his hand on the door knob and in that instant something fell with a loud crash. He turned around instantly and seen it was just a cup.
Must have been on the verge of falling anyway, he thought.
(No, it wasn't)
He turned the knob and opened the door slowly, making sure not to make any noise. The lights were off.
He walked out holding his breath.
The lights are off, he thought again, as he walked past the bathroom. Something brushed against him, and he jumped. He turned around and seen the bathroom door opened, along with his sisters room.
"Nicole?" He asked shakily. He tried to swallow but his mouth was too dry. "Nicole?" He asked again.
That was enough for him. He ran back to his room.
3
After he left she stared at her friend's living room wall. She let out a deep sigh and lifted herself from the couch. She looked around for her shoes. They were amid a pile of paper. She walked over and slipped them on.
She left the house to the trailer where her friend was sleeping.
She hated leaving her friend to talk to her boyfriend, but she loved him. She loved her, too. Sometimes though, she wondered if she was seeing him too much. She wondered if it bothered her;she didn't want her to see him.
Does it bother- She stopped and looked to the left where there was a small forest. The bushes twitched despite the fact that there was no wind.
The moon peeked through gray clouds casting long shadows. They danced and twirled on the ground.
Nicole walked slowly toward the bush, stepping on twigs and leaves as she went. She watched as it continued to twitch making those horrible scratching noises. She stopped once she came within reaching distance of the bush.
It stopped twitching once she placed her hand on the bush. She pulled the bush toward her so she could see what was behind.
4
Nothing could be heard but his shaky unsteady breath. He curled into a ball in the corner of his bed with the covers pulled tightly over his head. The foul smell of his own perspiration wafted through his nose but he didn't dare even peek from under the covers.
His heartbeat quickened and he could feel it pounding in his chest...his throat…his ears…his entire body.
Beads of sweat ran down his forehead, stinging his eyes. He closed his eyes tightly.
Thump.
He gasped and covered his mouth with a shaky hand. He opened his eyes and looked at the end of his bed beneath his covers.
There's something there. Oh God, there's something there.
Just then he felt it come closer.
Oh please, God , please let this be my imagination.
He felt the covers ripple over his body.
Please, please, please. Go away, you're not real.
(I'm as real as it gets.)
Please, go away. Please, please, please.
He felt a sharp, cold, refreshing breeze cover his flesh. He closed his eyes.
It's under here with me. Go away, go away, go away.
He felt something touch his foot gingerly. He recoiled and opened his eyes.
Oh my God! It's-5
-the most disgusting thing she ever laid her eyes on. The flesh was practically peeled from the corpse. Flies hovered over the pile of rotting flesh and maggots squirmed from the orifices. It was in the fetal position, hands covering its face. Random pieces of flesh were scattered around the corpse and most of the right side of it's body was peeled clean of it's skin.
The smell twirled into her noise, making her stomach churn.
She turned away from the corpse and threw up until she was dry heaving. She wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her over sized sweatshirt and turned back to the corpse.
It changed positions, she thought.
The head was thrown back, almost touching it's mid-back. It's mouth was open.
(Almost as if it were laughing.)
She took a step back, in disbelief. That's when she heard his scream.
The Parents. 6
His parents were the first to make it to his room. They heard the scream and scrambled out of bed to investigate. They threw open the door only to discover an empty bed. Frantic, his mother rushed through his room, searching every nook and crevice of his room.
She fell to the floor, a pathetic heap of a woman and began to sob.
His father stood at the doorway. His face showed no emotion. Only at night, when in a deep slumber would he reveal his true feelings. He often woke up, pillow wet and body shaking. He wouldn't remember a thing.
Nicole 7
She ran as fast as she could to his room. The hallway seemed so long. She could make out his father standing at the doorway, as if a statue. The hallway was no more than 9 feet, why did it feel so much longer?
She pushed her way past his father and stopped abruptly when she caught sight of his mother. She looked up at her, pale blue eyes wet and red with tears.
"Where is he?" she asked, shakily. I shook my head.
"No, where is he?"
"I-I don't know."
"Why is he gone? Tell me why is he gone?" She picked herself up and stomped her way toward Nicole. Frightened, she backed against the wall.
"Tell me where he is. Tell me right n-n-now!" A new batch of tears began to overwhelm her. She brought a shaky hand to her mouth and sniffed back a few tears. She let her hand drop down to her side and looked at Nicole, anger blazing in her eyes.
"Tell me where my son is right now." I shook my head again. I really didn't know.
The sister 8
She walked in bleary eyed and still tired. Her hair was a mess and her face was blank.
"I'm going back to bed," she mumbled when she caught sight of all the commotion.
She didn't care, then, and she doesn't care now.