Pseudonym "Sheep" #Wattys2015

Chapter I

I opened my eyes only to let the obscure darkness engulf me and leave me shaken - I was drowning in sweat.

I sat up on the bed and tried to think back to the nightmare I had envisioned, but only thing I could remember was the vague feeling of helplessness.

My wife gently nudged me, reminding me of her presence and shifting her side on the bed, "Calm down, Tay," she said, her voice growing from a whisper to a quiet murmur. "Just a nightmare."

I nodded my head, but I realized that she couldn't see me and just as silently I replied: "Yeah... Sorry, Sarah."

I reached for my phone and turned it on. The luminous colors glimmered in my eyes, forcing them shut. I waited impatiently for my eyes to get used to the light and looked at the time: six after midnight.

I cussed in my head - there was no way I could fall asleep anymore. Besides, I found falling asleep pretty difficult. My thoughts wouldn't let me close my eyes most of the time.

I slid from the bed to the floor as carefully as I could, grabbed a pair of jeans and went out of the room, my steps echoing on the wooden floor.

I passed the windows - white, humble snow glaring at me as I walked by them. It was relatively warm in the house, though electricity bills were going to come in soon and my boss kept being an ass-wipe, not paying me enough money.

"Hey daddy!" A childish voice startled me, broke my train of thought.

"Al!" I looked at the blonde haired boy who was grinning at me, his teeth still undergoing growth. He was sitting on the marble floor in the kitchen. "Why are you up so early?" I squatted next to him, pulling off the best smile I could manage, but ended up looking creepy.

"Denis told me to go play elsewhere." Al said, his face somewhat bemused.

"Who's Denis?"

"Oh!" Al yelped cheerfully. "He's a sheep!"

A sheep eh? I thought to myself and chuckled. "You've been counting sheep again, haven't you, Al?"

Al smiled oddly, shrugged and made a serious face again.

"C'mere." I picked him up carefully and made my way towards his bedroom.

The bedroom was light-colored. Al's toy robots were proudly standing in the left corner of the room. I was aware of his love of robots, that's why I had decided to buy him some.
Across the wide room was a large wardrobe in which Al kept his comic books along with his clothes.

I put him down on his bed which was covered with Toy Story sheets and messed his hair up.

"Sleep for a while, yeah? I'll wake you up later and we can have some bacon - your favorite."

"Okay..." Al said dispassionately.

"Sleep tight, macho." I winked and kissed his forehead.

As I was leaving the room, I caught a glimpse of Al looking in the window - his eyes fixed on a tree branch.

I could never understand kids. I mean, I was a kid once, but I wasn't too complex of a child. Only thing I wanted was to sleep and eat, that was all.

I went out on the balcony, flicked a lighter and lit a cigarette. Smoke gently curved in the air while I stared at it with a satisfied expression.

I heard a low pitched whistle coming from below and I automatically craned my neck down.

A figure was standing right next to my car, his body covered grey with wool and his face covered with what seemed like a sheep's head.

I dropped my cigar.