One Night at Freddy's

Hallucinations

My alarm clock blared, waking me up minutes after I fell asleep. It was 6:45 a.m. now, and it was about 6:30 when I fell asleep. I dragged my butt out of bed, knowing my mom would probably kill me if I skipped. Or almost kill me, especially since she's probably still drunk.

I went to take a shower, but, when I turned the knob, blood poured from the shower head. I quickly turned the water off and went back to my room, not even stepping in the shower. I changed out of my warm up pants and tank top, into dark jeans and a white tee under a black hoodie. I ran my fingers through my dark brown hair, too lazy to brush it. I ran downstairs and slung my backpack over my shoulders. I grabbed a banana from the bowl of fruit on our kitchen island, looked at it, and put it back down, deciding I wasn't hungry enough to eat.

I left, locking the front door behind me, not bothering to tell Mom I was leaving. I started walking to school, slowly.

"Hey! Katrina!" I stopped and turned, seeing my long time friend, Alice Knight. Her long, blonde ponytails flew behind her as she ran to catch up with me. She held an apple in her hand.

"Hey," I said.

"What's wrong?" she said, her mousy features scrunched into a look of concern.

"Nothing, why would you ask?" I inquired.

"I have lived next door to you for thirteen years, I think I should know when something's wrong." she said. Darn good friends.

I sighed, "I don't think I can talk about it."

Her face darkened, "Was it your mom?" she asked.

"No! I just . . . had a bad dream, that's all." I had told Alice about how my mom got drunk sometimes, and she went nuts over it. She kept trying to get me to move in with another family member, or at least tell someone else about it. I told her no, because none of my other family members even live near here, but she was persistent.

"Come on, Kat. I know it was more than that," she paused, "Can't you trust me?"

"We're going to be late," I said, walking quickly down the sidewalk, avoiding her question.

"So I was thinking about building bridges, since my Dad's an engineer, for the English essay we have to write. You think that'll get a good grade?"

"Mmhmm," I agreed, thankful for her ability to change the subject so quickly.

"Want some?" Alice said as she held up her apple, and the liquid that dripped off of it and should have been clear, looked like my own blood. I gagged.

"N-no thanks."

"Did you already eat then?" Alice was used to me bringing a piece of toast or breakfast sandwich on the way to school.

"No, just not hungry."

"Okay, but if your super hungry by the time school starts, its not my fault," she said, dragging out the okay.

"Let's just get to school now, please? That means you have to walk faster, Alice."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm-a-coming."

As we walked to school, I couldn't help but keep throwing multiple glances over my shoulder at the footprints of blood that were there one moment, and gone the next.

At school, it was worse. Blood oozed out of dry-erase markers. Lockers leaked blood. Water fountains spewed thick red liquid. Puddles of blood sat at every door. And no one else saw it. I knew I was hallucinating, but it still affected me. I even tried drinking from the water fountain, hoping it tasted like water, but the thick metallic taste of blood filled my mouth instead. I caused a scene sputtering it out.

"Are you okay?" a green-eyed boy with large, rectangular glasses asked me after I spat back into the water fountain.

I looked up at him. "Fine," I snapped and wiped my mouth, striding to the cafeteria.

By lunch, I was ready to go home and curl in my bed, blocking out as much light as possible. Thankfully, after a lunch with that horrible smell in my nose, a teacher had asked me if I was feeling okay. I shook my head and asked if I could go home for the rest of the day.

"No, honey, you need to see the nurse," the teacher said.

"I don't think I can."

"What's wrong?"

"I'm having some . . . psychological problems right now," I whispered, "Could you just . . . please?"

"Okay, I'll take care of it," the teacher said reluctantly.

I trudged out of the building, shaking, yet again, the whole way home.