The Dark

Cold Tonight

It's the evening and I spot three droplets of water trickling down the dusty window and onto the window's ledge. I narrow my eyes and concentrate on the last one hitting the led-

Crash.

My head swiftly turns to my door as the rest of my body follows my eyes. When I reach my door I notice the door handle is cold to touch. I twist it, sounding the deafening creak, only to slip into the hallway silently. I feel vulnerable and exposed. The wooden floorboards squeak as I tip-toe my dirty feet down the thin room, every light step I take seems to cause an earthquake. I squint my eyes in an attempt to see in the darkness of the house. Fortunately I can see some things due to the light beaming from my bedroom at the now far end of the hallway. Everything looks so still and sounds so quiet in the night, oh how I love the dark. Whilst still squinting my eyes, I notice something isn't still. An inhuman figure seems to be just 'being' in the middle of the living room. I have no idea if it's standing, sitting or moving. It's just there...I take three more hesitant steps towards the, now visible, living room. The figure slowly turns around to face me when all the blood in my veins freeze.

It has eyes. 'Glowing' eyes.

The next thing I know I'm basically sprinting for what feels like roughly three minutes back down the squeaking floorboards, in through my creaky door and gracefully under the warm covers of my bed, again staring at the now clean window. I only notice now that it was just pouring down with rain. That doesn't make any sense. In the thin room it was absolutely quiet and peaceful and still. How could it have been pouring down with rain? My eyes urge me to seek this dark figure but I tell myself "No" because I need sleep and not scary dark shadows with glowing eyes that could possibly harm me. No.

I wake up almost drowning in my own sweat. The white sheets are stained with a grey puddle of stinky sweat approximately the exact size of my body. I think to myself about the events that occurred late last night and I assume that it was a scary nightmare. I melt from my bed onto the floor and lay there for a few minutes until I eventually gain the energy to stand. My vision fades into and then almost instantly back out of black making me only slightly dizzy for about eight seconds. My mind adjusts to being awake as I tear off the stained sheets and toss them into a laundry basket. I blink slowly a couple times before stumbling out into the hallway forgetting how loud the floorboards are. I take slow but light steps and continue into the kitchen/living room.

I gasp.

The kitchen drawers are emptied and thrown about near the dining table. Pots and pans occupy the coffee table while the blue sofa stands sideways up against the scratched fridge. I cautiously step over a pile of forks and mugs and observe the room further. Out of the corner of my eye I see the figure pass from the sofa to the fireplace and disappearing up the chimney. I climb over a stack of chair legs that are intertwined with each other and peek up into the chimney.

Nothing.

My mind wanders and tells me that what happened in my 'nightmare' last night actually did happen last night and I needed to tell Matt. Last night, Matt had to sleep in the spare room, next to Ashley's room. It's only across the hall from my room but I didn't want any trouble from that witch anyway. She thinks that if we sleep in the same room, we'll get up to no good. I don't exactly know what she means by that but I'm sure that our laughing wouldn't bother her too much. But Matt is still asleep, so I can't tell him about the colorful events that happened last night for another two hours. Matt always slept in, I think to myself as I glance at my clock. The time reads: 6.42am. I knew it. I have been waking up at the exact same time every day for the past two months. Ever since Matt left it's been the same. Even now that he's back I'm still waking up early. I step back over the stack of intertwined chairs, the pile of forks and mugs, back down the loud floorboards, through my creaky door and onto my bare mattress now that the sheets were gone. I peer outside through the blinds and into my backyard. The grass in my backyard is always green and healthy, along with the flowers and the berry shrubs. When Dad isn't out working he loves to garden and I help him every time he offers some work in the garden. Trees overhang and create a shelter over a glass table and small chairs. In the Summer I always have a cup of tea in the morning out there which is the most peaceful thing I could ever experience in this world. The first of the light in the morning would always remind me of Matt. Then there is the endless fields of long grass out past our backyard that whisper and speak a different language. I love our backyard. My watch reads: 8.46am.

Time to wake up Matt.

My feet slip off of my bed and onto my floor as I use them to support me as I lift up the rest of my body. I peek out of my door and whisper/shout, "Matt!" A sleepy looking face emerges from the door opposite. Matt's eyelids droop as if he's about to drop to the ground and sleep. His curly brown hair covers half of his face and holds itself in a way I feel that Matt probably hates but I love. I decide whether or not to wait for him to properly wake up before I inform him. I'm going to tell him now.
I say, "I have something to tell you..." His eyes light up as his posture straightens and suddenly he is awake with excitement and ready to listen to every word.