I sighed in sweet relief as I peeled my covers off the bed and slid my cold body between the warm, flannel sheets and the thick layer of heavy blankets. I stared up at the shadows cast about in the room from the light that fluttered in through my window. The moon was full, and stars shone in the night sky. For a fraction of a second, I could've sworn I saw the shadow of a tiny, winged creature flitting across my room, but I blinked my eyes and it was gone. I shrugged it off as a sleep deprived hallucination; a figment of my own imagination. And a very tired imagination at that, if I couldn't think up anything more exciting than a fairy. Whatever happened to monsters in closets?
"Nadia!" I heard a voice whispered through the darkness. I sat up bolt right and stared intently into the darkened corners of my room, listening intently. Great! i thought. Now I'm hearing things!
"Nadia!" I heard my name called out again, like the distant chime of little bells. I mentally slapped myself before reassuring myself that no one was in my room. I was probably just having pre-first-day-of-school stress, I reasoned. I reached my hand out blindly, searching for my iPod, which I knew lay somewhere amidst the jumbled pile on my wooden bedside table. My fingers clasped around the little metal piece of technology and traced the wire to my ear-buds.
"Nadia!" the voice hissed one last time before I violently shoved the cold ear-buds into my ears. I turned it on and turned the music up loud. Within no time, my eyes had drifted shut. A shiver like the prickling of a thousand needles ran down my spine as I felt eyes raking down my body. This is nonsense! No one is in my room!
Suddenly, and without my intent, my iPod switched to a Taylor Swift song I wasn't even aware I had owned. The song was Invisible, and I quickly switched it back to the song I had been previously listening to, officially creeped out. I silently cursed my stupid, second-hand iPod, officially creeped out. This is just so weird, I thought as I rolled over.
Just as I was about to fall into the glorious embrace of sleep, my phone vibrated, jolting me out of my stupor.
Nadia, do you believe?
It read. Believe in what? I thought. What did it mean? I checked the caller ID, but found the number had been blocked. Another shiver ran down my spine. I dropped my phone back onto my bedside table after turning it off. I need sleep, and I need it now, I thought grumpily. I stared blankly at my alarm clock. Three in the morning, my alarm clock blared in shining red light. Maybe my mom was right, and nothing good ever happens after midnight. Despite how arguable that statement seemed to me, it was starting to make sense at the moment.
"Nadia." the voice whispered once again, seemingly frustrated. My ear-buds must've fallen off sometime between the weird song switch and my dozing off. Okay, this definitely isn't my imagination, I consented. I threw the covers off the bed and stood up, my toes shivering against the cold, wood floor. I adjusted my fluffy, zebra print pajama pants so that they skimmed the floor and were no longer bunched up around my thighs. I shuffled over to the window and threw it open. A cold breeze trickled in, causing me to shiver violently as my teeth set to rattling.
"Nadia..." this time the voice sounded more relieved, almost friendly, but still goose bumps broke out across my skin in a wave.
"What do you want? Who is it?" I called out into the wind. Then I mentally slapped myself for the second time that night. A burglar or a creeper wouldn't know my name! At least, I hope not... It had to be one of my friends, trying to pull a prank on me. I rolled my eyes a gave a silent 'Ha ha,' deciding then and there that I'd play along.
Just then, a slight movement caught in the corner of my eye. My breath caught in my throat as I flicked my gaze to the ground. Below my window was a piece of paper, pinned to the ground beneath a gorgeous, ruby-colored stone. I leaned over the sill and picked up both objects in my right hand. A sudden burst of wind snatched the paper from my grasp, but I lashed out with my left hand and caught it before it could fly out of my reach.
