Fright Night! #Wattys2016

Visitor

he room has a distinct odor. Not a bad smell, but a home smell. The unique scent of a house lived in, imperceptible to its occupant, but immediately recognizable when returning from a long absence.

My eyes panned the room, taking in what little I could as I adjusted to the faint light coming through the window. Shapes begin to form. A desk (cheap IKEA), a monitor pushed slightly to the side, and a smattering of other objects that can't be made out. One discernible item is the box of tissues, and the small pile of crumpled remains that lay to the left of the monitor.

Seeing these, I begin to search the room for other telltale signs. Clothes piled on the floor, an unhung frame propped against the bookshelf. Not the room of a slob, but certainly of a man well acquainted with loneliness.

Suddenly in my peripheral I detect motion. I look down to the bed as if noticing it for the first time.

A shape in the bed, moving, resituating. The movement stops.

Funny how the sudden activation of one sense can awaken the rest as well. Now my ears are primed, easily picking up the faint breathing coming from the bed, finally able to distinguish it from the ambient noise of the air conditioning, the street outdoors, and my own quiet sounds. And is that a distinct bodily odor I now detect?

I pull out the chair at the desk, slowly lower into it, and wait.

It doesn't take long. Can our animal instincts detect another life nearby? Or maybe, in my excitement I made a noise (intentionally?). Either way, the man, for I was now certain it was a man, awoke.

For a second the man notices nothing. Only natural I suppose, the eyes have not adjusted, the brain not fully functioning. I decide to help, and lean forward ever slightly in my chair. Very effective.

The man freeze instantly, clearly paralyzed with fear. Maybe he thinks he is still dreaming. Maybe he hopes he is.

I let him wallow in that one great fear, the hopeless pit of uncertainty. Let the wild scenarios race through his brain. For the mind has an incredible knack of amplifying the unknown.

Finally, he reacts. Pitifully, he tries to speak (coward), but mostly all that comes out is a stammer. I decide to help him out, cut out some of the unknown.

"Don't worry," I inform him reassuringly. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Amazing how well my eyes have adjusted to the lighting. I am able to read his facial expressions, and now I see some relief. Very slight, but noticeable. The dream of hope begins to creep into his face.

I move closer, careful not to startle the man, but close enough to observe his face in great detail.

"You see," I continue, as the door to the room opens slowly behind me, "I just like to watch."

The hope drains.

~•~•~
Was that good? One of my personal favorite ideas!