The Clock

Chapter Two: The Finger

Smashed into a tree is a grandfather clock, ticking extremely loud. It had a big crack in the center of it. I can't even focus on any other noise around me. I don't sweat this time. I turn cold. Suddenly I remember, he likes it cold. As the hairs stand up on my neck, I hear a deep, blood-curdling voice.
"It's time, Carson." He stated as if he wanted something from me.
I didn't waste a second. I ran past the clock and into the dark and eerie forest. But then, I froze. My emotions got the best of me. I curled up under a tree log in hopes to be safe. I look through my bag and find a pocket knife.
"You can't hide from me, Carson."
"Shit shit shit," I whisper.
I hear leaves and twigs crush as he strides slowly, but surely towards me. Then all the sound stops. Everything is silent. I can't even hear my own heartbeat.
The clock lets out an ominous, "DONG!"
Right in front of me, is anyone's worst nightmare. He was covered in vines that had motions like snakes. It was even creepier that he had a human-like form. He bent down to me, but as soon as he got really close I whipped out my pocket knife and cut off one of his fingers. Almost instantly after that he vanished. So did the particles, the lightning, the dark sky, and I was back in reality. There was one thing left behind.
In front of me, was his finger, covered in dark blood. I quickly wrapped it up and put it in my backpack making sure nobody saw me.

🕰

I walk up to Max's doorstep, brushing off leaves and dirt. In relief, she opens it up and gives me a big hug. I am beyond happy to be able to hug her right now.
"Hey, how are you?!" I exclaim.
"I love you," says Max.
I go in for a kiss. She starts to giggle, but then I realize we should get inside before someone sees us out here.
She walks backwards inside while holding onto my neck tighter. I shut the door slowly behind me, and we shuffle over to the couch in the main room. We both grunt loudly over and over. We finally release our lips from each other to breathe.
"Ouch, something is poking me," she says.
"Sorry, my bad."
"Hehe, you're an idiot Carson Wheeler." Max says as we continue to moan. Instead of responding, I lean in more.
Our legs wrap around each other and we start undressing. We started sucking each other in numerous places. As I was about to take off my underwear, the phone rang.
She got up to answer the phone while I admired her as she walked over. I glanced off to the window next to me.
"DONG! Tick...tock...tick...tock."
The grandfather clock is outside on the edge of the forest, cracked open once again. I turn back to see Max yelling my name until I snap back into reality.
"Carson! Carson! Carson!"
I put my forehead against her naked shoulder, and hold her tightly, as tears start to run down my cheeks and onto her back. We sat like this for what seemed like an hour. I lifted my hands from her, which was sticky from our shared tears. I look her dead in the eyes and say...
"We need to talk."
"I think we do." She says.
"Please promise, pinkie swear that you'll believe everything I say."
"I pinkie promise," Max says.
"It seems as if my ADHD has gotten worse, and is going downhill. I feel like my hearing problem is taking over my life. Doctors diagnosed me with something called hyperacusis. They say it's pretty normal.
"Oh."
"There's th-this thing I've been seeing."
"What do you mean?"
"I've been having visions lately. There's this thing, this monster that I think is coming after me. To kill me."
"Like maybe it's just visions from your past or something?"
"No. Something far much worse. Something...new."
"It can't be- there's no way." She says frightenedly.
"Oh, and I kinda chopped off one of its fingers."
"WHAT THE HELL?!" She yells.
"Don't worry, it's okay. I have it in my backpack. It came with me out of the upside down."
"Carson, stop scaring me like that, okay?"
"Okay, sorry."
We grab some snacks, and rush out of her house and go to her bike. It made us uneasy that it was late at night. On our way out, we look at the trailer across from Max's.
"Is that, Chrissy Cunningham and Eddie Munson?" I say confused.
"That's crazy." She says. "I can't believe my best friend is with Eddie."
"We have to get out of here, let's go." I say abruptly.
We didn't think much of it, but it was weird that the queen of Hawkins High was hooking up with the 'biggest freak' in the school. I sit on the back of her bike, placing my hands around her. We make our way to Will's house as quickly as possible. The sky was clear, not a cloud in sight. As we rode, I heard the slight rustling of trees, and critters scurrying around in the forest surrounding us. The road wasn't visible because of how dark it was.
As we arrived, it seemed that everyone was here. Joyce, Will, Jonathan, and Ella.
"Where is Nancy?" I asked.
"She had to babysit Mike and Holly," Jonathan says.
"Let's sit down for a bit," I say with great urgency.
Their faces were in shock as I explained what I've been going through. I make sure to mention my hyperacusis.
After a night of almost complete silence, Max and I decide to crash over at my house.
"Stay safe," says Ella.
"Thanks," we say in unison.

🕰

"Carson, wake up!" says Max.
My eyelids slowly open to the sight of gray clouds covering the sky like a blanket. The birds were not chirping. The wind was not blowing. It seemed as if everything was still, as if a clock stopped ticking. We got dressed, brushed our teeth, and ate breakfast like it was a normal morning.
"Hey Max, would you mind getting me a couple more pancakes darling?" Ted says.
"Sure, no problem," she says.
Max grabs the pancakes and pours a drizzle of syrup across them. As she walks over to his lazy boy, she glances over at the television. She pauses for a second, and suddenly her jaw drops. She dropped the plate onto the ground, and it shattered everywhere. She called everyone over to see the horrifying sight of the murder of her best friend, Chrissy Cunningham.