Don't Close Your Eyes

Chapter Four: Strange Ideas

Nic put the phone in his pocket without a response, and began sprinting back to his car. His mind was going wild, imagining all the various possibilities of what could've happened to his son.

Surely nothing has happened to him...right? I mean, it's not Halloween's Eve yet! He couldn't be missing!

Nathanael's voice echoed in his mind. Ya boy. She likes ya boy, she does.

Nic felt a new wave of fear, before shaking his head.

No....there's no such thing as a curse. Ghosts, spirits, demons....whatever you want to call them, they're not real! It's a story made to scare children into obeying their parents!

As he reached his car, Nic had fallen into utter denial of the supernatural. He could not bring himself to believe there was something out there he couldn't explain. He was a detective for god's sake! There was no case he couldn't solve, and this one was no exception.

He raced home and barreled in through the front door. "Anna?! What's wrong with Ciel?!"

"In here, Nic!"

Nic followed the sound of his wife's voice, which led him straight to Ciel's room. This was not looking good, but he refused to give in to the pessimistic thoughts swirling in his mind.

He pushed the door open slowly, and was met with a strange darkness.

Strange, Nic thought, its the middle of the afternoon. Even with the curtains shut, it shouldn't be THIS dark....

He squinted, barely making out the figure of his wife standing over Ciel's bed.

"Anna? Honey?"

As his wife turned towards him slowly, he froze in his tracks. A chill ran up his spine, and he knew deep down, something was very, very wrong.

The woman looking at him looked like his wife...but at the same time, wasn't. Her skin was pale, and her eyes were cold as ice itself. There was an almost eerie aura around her, and as she slowly began to smile, Nic felt the very hairs on his skin stand up. The smile was stretched, like a deformed scar in the place her mouth, and her eyes seemed to grow colder than before.

Her sheer gaze had him completely frozen in place. Time slowed, and the very air around him appeared to grow colder with each passing second.

"Nic?"

Nic blinked, turning slowly to see Anna in the doorway.

"What are you doing here?"

She looked concerned, her green eyes searching his, as if to silently discover the source of the problem.

Nic didn't answer, and instead whipped back around to the bed where he saw "her". To his great surprise, the room was not how he pictured it just moments before. The curtains were wide open, spilling bright light throughout the entire room. And there was no woman next to his son's bed.

"Nic, honey, what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."

The word "ghost" startled Nic back into reality, and he turned back to face his wife.

"Ah...no, never mind it. I thought I saw something rather strange, but I must've been imagining it."

This seemed to bring a smile of relief is his wife's face. "I'm glad to hear that. Are you done with work now? It's rather early....

"Ah...right. I collected enough information for today so I thought I'd spend some time with you and Ciel."

Anna smiled brightly, her eyes practically twinkling with joy. "Wonderful! Ciel will be so pleased. Come on, I'll fix you something to eat and let Ciel know you're home. You can get changed and then come to the living room, alright?"

She walked out, leaving Nic alone once more. He slowly turned around to face the bed again.

I could've sworn I saw my wife standing over Ciel's bed. But...there's also the problem of the room itself. How did my mind manage to create the image of it being dark in here? I must've been hallucinating. That's the only explanation that makes sense. Maybe I've been working too hard lately...

Nic shook his head once more, before leaving the room, shutting the door behind him. And as he walked away, a small giggle resounded through the empty room.

"I have a feeling this time will be very fun~. So....let the games begin."

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A/N:

I'm alive!!!!! Surprising, I know. Sorry I've been gone so long! I will try sooooooo hard to get better at updating! Until next time!