Midnight Showers

Chapter One: A Broken Wonderland, Part 1

I walked through the front door and threw down my bag. It had been so long since I'd been home. I couldn't stay in the doorway for long though, as my dad was following behind me. I picked up my bag and walked back to my room where I proceeded to chunk myself onto the bed. I took off my apron, and hat and then took down my hair.

"Oh my god finally!" I said with exhaustion. "I can't believe they made me pull a double today". As I was untying my shoes Milly, my dog, had come running through the door. "Hi baby," I say as she's jumping to lick every inch of my face. "Ok ok enough with the kisses". She hopped down and ran over to take the biggest drink she could from her water bowl followed by scarfing down her unfinished dinner.

I check my phone, -No new messages-. "Of course, what was I expecting", I said with a huff. I threw down my phone just in time for it to ding. I picked up my phone at an incredible speed only to let myself down. "Stupid games," I said with disappointment. I threw my phone back down and went to gather my clothes.

It was 11:30 now, cold, dark, and unfamiliar outside; every day was the same. I turned on the shower and stepped inside. The water was cold running down my back; it always was. The clock hit twelve and I closed my eyes.

I opened my eyes to a whole new world. I was in the meadows today wearing a floor-length dress of silver-colored satin. It's always different. I was greeted by a horse to lead me to where I had to go. He stood tall at 17 hands. He was completely white from mane to hoof. He knelt for me to mount. And like I always did, I went.

We rode for what felt like 5 minutes when we arrived at the house. The house stayed the same no matter where I was. It was old and torn up, the windows were broken and the wood splintered. The drapes were now tattered into strings. I didn't like the house. I hated being at the house. I hated the feeling it gave me; the chills down my back, the sickening feeling in my stomach, the way it made my heart race into a panic. I knew I had to be there; it was my job. 

The horse knelt back down for me to get off. I unmounted and thanked him for his service. It was useless to show my gratitude as he is forced to do this as am I, but I did anyway. It gave me a sense of satisfaction before what came next. I closed my eyes.

I could hear the horse whine and stomp as he tried to escape the inevitable. There was a loud pop followed by silence. I opened my eyes once again to the sight of horse chunks everywhere. I never understood why they made this necessary; I guess it was just their way of reminding me who was in charge. I knelt in the pile of blood and guts and pulled out the door handle. With my dress now blood-stained and the handle in hand, I made my way up the stairs of the house. I put the knob in place and swung open the door.