CLOSET

II

YOUNG Jared meandered with his little brother through his grandmother's ancient house. Dust collected on the antique furniture that filled the house. Despite that, the house was scarcely decorated--and much less, nothing to entertain two young boys. This was Grandma Bonnie's first time babysitting the children. She was ill-equipped, and without any games for the boys. 

They scampered rambunctiously in exploration of their new environment. On one wing, there was a narrow channel, resembling a hallway. There, four doors made of lumber remained closed. Jared and Lance entered the hallway curiously, taking turns twisting each brass doorknob. None of the doors would open.

"There's nothing to do here," Jared complained aloud bitterly, invading into his grandmother's living room and plopping his back onto the seat of the old couch. 6-year-old Lance followed behind, mimicking his older brother's movements.

Grandma Bonnie toddled into the living room after the boys, seating herself on the couch beside them. "Would you boys like to help me make supper?"

In answer, the pair of them contorted their expressions to discontent and disgust.

"I know!" Lance bounced up from the couch. "Let's play Dead Man!" he suggested instead in glee.

"No. You always cheat," Jared alleged. 

"I do not!"

"You peek. I've seen you!"

"Here, why don't you tie this kerchief over your eyes? That way, nobody can cheat," Grandma Bonnie advised, showing the boys a piece of white fabric. Lance nodded this head enthusiastically, and Grandma Bonnie placed the material over his brown eyes, tying a knot on the backside of his head.

Lance knelt on his knees, and then laid down on his back in the middle of the red, oriental rug in Bonnie's living room. Jared marched in circles around Lance. 

"Dead man, dead man, come alive, by the time I count to five," Jared chanted. "One... Two... Three... Four... Five! Come alive."

Gradually making his way to his feet, Lance chased around the living in search of Jared. Jared danced about the living room, diving and ducking to avoid Lance's attempts to capture him. 

Grandma Bonnie sat in delight as she watched her two grandsons play together. After observing the game for a few moments, Bonnie departed into the kitchen to make supper.

An idea struck Jared--he was going to hide somewhere to trick Lance. He smiled slyly to himself in self-satisfaction while trying to repress a laugh from escaping his mouth.  He scanned the room for somewhere to take cover, but eventually settled on hiding away in the other wing of the house. 

"Marco!" Lance called out, losing patience. 

"This isn't Marco Polo, Lance!" Jared shouted back indignantly.

From Jared's voice, Lance discerned that Jared was on the other side of the room, and moving farther and farther away. "You can't leave the living room, Jared! That's not fair!"

"I'm not!" Jared lied from the hallway in the other wing. He contemplated for a moment, but after deciding to play fair, Jared turned around to retreat back into the living room.

A creak pronounced from behind him.

He stopped, believing that the floorboards from underneath his feet were the culprit. He tested the ground, stepping over the area again and again. There was no sound emitting from the floor, but rather there was a squeak of a door opening.

Jared's head shot back in the direction of the hall. A crack in a door exposed the darkness that consumed the room closest to where he stood. It was open. Though he was startled, curiosity overtook his mind and body. He eased slowly up to the door. Placing a hand on the doorknob, he drew the door open. It was dark, but he recognized that it was just a coat closet.

Shrugging it off, Jared turned around once again to rejoin his brother in the living room. He stopped again when a sound filled the air as he withdrew from the closet. It was a whisper--a mumbled whisper.

"Jared....."

Jared's eyes burned as they watered. His heart pounded impetuously in terror. As he lifted his feet in flight, he heard the door slam shut from behind him. He dashed back to the living room, reuniting with Lance in collide.

"Ha-ha-ha, I found you!" Lance cheered, pulling the kerchief down from his eyes so that it hung around his neck. He then realized that his brother was in the middle of crying. "What's wrong?"

 "There's--there's somebody--somebody's--" Jared cried out through his tears.

"Grandma Bonnie! Jared's crying!" Lance screamed, informing his grandmother, who was in the kitchen preparing dinner in next room.

Grandma Bonnie made no attempt to console weeping Jared. Jared was unsure if it was because she couldn't hear Lance's attempt to alert her, or if she was too caught up in her dinner preparation. Either way, he chose to toughen up. 7-year-old boys aren't supposed to cry. He convinced himself that what he experienced was only his imagination. It had to be--Grandma Bonnie lived alone.