It was a dark Friday night, pitch black outside. The type of dark where you can barely see your own hand without a light. The main character of this story is a young child, no older than 10. Likely 8. Having recently finished the school week, they were exhausted, sleeping like a corpse, their blanket fallen off to the side of their bed. Messy.
The child themselves wore a white and blue striped pajamas with pink polka dots scattered across. The pajamas had buttons on the collar, though they remained unbuttoned. They looked androgynous with their medium length hair and thin body, no one could tell at a glance that they were a… They were…
Wait, I don't really know.
Well, I guess it doesn't really matter, now does it?
The room they lived in was as bare bones as could be.
No toys or books scattered around on the floor, only a lone round carpet to decorate it.
They had a book stand, but it was much too high for them to reach on their own.
A dresser, seemingly full of clothing.
The bed itself was propped against the wall opposite to the door, right underneath the only window in the room.
Propped on the windowsill was a potted plant, with a single large sunflower growing within.
A few photo stands are propped on top of the dresser, depicting a happy family of two, wife and child. Looking closer, some photos seem to be torn at the side.
In the doorway to the room, a dark figure stands, dwarfing the size of the child. Slowly, it starts to limp its way to the child. It slowly passes the dresser before standing well above the child. Its raspy breathing echoes through the room as it stares down at the child with unknown intent.
It reaches forward, its sharp nails reflecting the moon as they move in the dark.
But, just as it gets close to the, the hand moves down and grabs the blanket at the foot of the bed.
With a soft sigh, the young lady, one whose face matches those of the photos on the dresser, flaps the blanket once before draping it over the young child. Slowly, the child shifts and turns, before curling up into the blanket.
A small smile graces the woman's face, but the moment is swiftly ruined as a heart-wrenching series of coughs tear its way out of the woman's lungs. Through the corner of her lips, and around the hand covering her mouth, a trickle of blood leaks out and drips to the floor.
"Water…" A raspy voice moans in the dark, and quietly, the woman shuffles away. Unaware of the blood dripping to the floor.
The house goes quiet, except for the intermittent hackles and coughs that echo out of her.
When it enters her reach, the light switch for the door is flipped and the lights in the hallway turn on.
And for a while, after she vanishes out of sight, all goes quiet.
Then, a shattering sound, like a plate breaking, echoes through the house.
And the child opens their eyes.