A Collection of Short Stories

Bless You

Looking up from the book you're reading, you glance at your phone to check the time. The clock on your phone says that it's well past 3:00am. Shit! Staying up this late on any night is never a good idea. Staying up this late when you have work tomorrow is even worse. You'll be absolutely beat tomorrow, and probably as grumpy as a bitter old man. At least when you still lived with your parents they would remind you to be in bed before 11:00. Now that you live alone you can hardly keep track of time.

You quickly close your book and dash into the bathroom, hastily brushing your teeth and washing your face. It's only then that the need for sleep catches up with you. As you're splashing water on your face, the heaviness seeps into your muscles. While watching yourself brush your hair, your eyelids begin to droop, like there's a weight pulling them down.

You stumble back into your bedroom, turn off the lights, and hop into bed. When your head hits the pillow you feel a tickle in your nose. Something must have bugged up your nose and now you need to sneeze.

ACHOO!

With your nose cleared out, you can finally rest. You settle back down, pulling the blankets up to your chin. From the darkest corner of your room, you hear a voice.

"Bless you."