Night Terrors

Going Down

Feeling disoriented, Richard stepped into the elevator. He had felt fine up to just a few seconds ago, but now all the sudden he didn't quite feel right. He could quite put his finger on it but there was just a general sense of feeling off.

"Which floor," he heard someone ask.

Richard looked up and saw a middle-aged man dressed in an all-white suit. He smiled.

"Lobby," he replied.

The man reached forward and pushed the button marked L. Richard smiled back and watched the elevator doors close. At first the elevator didn't move and just as he was starting to get worried, the motor overhead kicked in with a dull clunk and the elevator began to slowly descend.

"How are you today Rich?" The man asked.

"Fine," Richard replied casually.

How does he know my name? He thought to himself. This was a problem. Given what he liked to get up to in his free time, he tried his best to blend in. He didn't want to be someone people would remember. Richard tried to remember if he had ever seen this man around the building before but he was drawing a blank. Still, that meant nothing. It was a big building and just because he couldn't remember ever seeing this man before didn't mean the man had never seen him. That still doesn't explain how he knows your name. Richard thought. He was starting to feel uncomfortable. He looked down at his feet and that was when he caught sight of the piece of plastic still pinned to his shirt. It was his nametag. The man must have seen it when he got on the elevator. Richard smiled and let himself relax. He was now aware of a tingling sensation in his chest, and was it him or was this elevator taking its sweet time? It was the end of the day and he had somewhere to be. His mind went to his basement and what was waiting for him there. His heart skipped a beat as he felt the anticipation begin to tug at him. His palms started to sweat and his tongue shot out and licked his lips in a quick motion.

"Big day?" The old man asked from behind him.

"The biggest," Richard replied.

He didn't realize the man was picking up on his excitement, he was too busy thinking about his basement again. He felt himself getting hard. What in the hell is going on with this elevator? He thought to himself. The building only had six floors, they should be at the lobby by now. He reached out and pressed the already lit L button three times in rapid succession.

"I don't think that is going to work," the man said.

"Well it fucking should!" Richard snapped, letting his excitement get the best of him. He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants and noticed that the tingling feeling in his chest was getting more pronounced. He tried to put his basement out of his mind but it wasn't working. Inevitably his mind kept going back to the chains.

"There is no need to rush. Sometimes you just have to stop and enjoy life," the man said.

"Oh, I take the time to enjoy life. Trust me," Richard replied.

Again, his thoughts went unbidden to his basement. The dark, gray, concrete walls. The cement floor, the damp smell. The way the second and third wooden steps creaked and groaned under his weight as he made his way down to do his special work. He thought about the feel of the duct tape that he bought for a dollar ninety-nine at the hardware store. Then there were the tools, the wooden work table, and lastly... The chains.

"I bet you do," the man replied.

This brought Richard out of his thoughts and back to the elevator. The elevator that believe it or not, was moving slower than before. Once again Richard felt the tingling in his chest only now it went deeper, it was almost like an itch or a tickle. It didn't feel uncomfortable but it wasn't exactly comfortable either. He chalked it up to excitement. He really couldn't wait to get back to his basement.