Sinister Short Stories

The Tickler

In a well-lit parking lot, Mary Beth, 20, just arrives. She exits her car and walks towards her apartment that she shares with her roommate Sharon, also 20. She had a hard day at work and school and was relieved to finally be at home. She took all her tests, had the next day off work and school, so she was extremely happy.

When she arrived, she was about to insert the key to unlock but looks like Sharon left the door unlocked. Sharon was the ideal roommate to her. She was clean, quiet, didn't party and was the most laid back person she knew. Her only flaw was she always left the front door unlocked. This irritated Mary Beth at first but now it is just routine.

She closes the door. Before she locks it, she drops her purse. She kneels to pick it and her belongings off the floor. When she is done, she heads to the bathroom...forgetting to lock the door as well.

She sees Sharon's bedroom door is partially open. She hears the bed moving in a bouncing motion complete with Sharon's moaning.

This was not typical of Sharon but it's not the oddest thing to happen. Mary Beth gently closes the door.

After this tiring day, Mary Beth decides to take a warm shower. As she showers the door slowly opens, unbeknownst to her.

Just as slow as it opened, it slowly closes as if being extremely careful not to be heard.

After showering, she gets ready for bed. She no longer hears any unfamiliar or familiar noises from Sharon's room.

Mary Beth rarely watched television. She was a self-proclaimed book worm and proud of it.

Her routine would be to lay flat on her back and hold the book above her. She found this to be more comfortable due to her ongoing back problems she has had since she was a child.

Her feet stick out at the bottom of the covers. Suddenly, a scar covered hand emerges and tickles her foot gently.

She dismisses it as an itch and uses her other foot to scratch it.

Then again, the finger tickles it again!

She sits up quickly. She looks at the bottom of the bed to see if there is a bug, which she loathes more than anything in the world, or if it was just the air blowing the blanket's tag on her foot. She covers her feet and lays back down.

At the foot of the bed the hand emerges yet again. About to give her foot a tickle, it stops and grabs her foot, shaking it!

She lets out a loud gasp and quickly sits up, dropping her book to the floor.

"Sharon?" she says in a trembling tone.

Mary Beth leans forward, looking out her bedroom door. She sees Sharon's bedroom door is closed.

Mary Beth was beyond exhausted and wondered if she was drifting off to sleep and just imagined it.

She sits back, catching her breath. She turns to the side of the bed to retrieve her fallen book. She reaches down to grab it when a hand snatches it from underneath her bed!

She gasps yet again and is back on her bed. As exhausted as she is, it is evident, this isn't a dream. Her first instinct is to get off the bed and run but she is paralyzed with fear.

Suddenly, the bed begins to shake violently. She decides to run for it! She places her left foot down when a knife severs through her heel! She lets out a cry and is back on the bed, bleeding profusely.

She clenches her wound. The blood pours through her fingers creating a puddle on her bed.

A slithering noise emerges from underneath the bed in a twisted whisper.

"Shhhhhhhhhh!"

"What do you want?" she asks.

The voice sounds as if it has the tongue of a snake when he replies...

"To tickle you."

Confusion meshes with her agonizing pain and fright.

"Look, I haven't seen your face. You can leave and I won't say anything." She replies with desperation.

"Allow me to tickle your bloody foot once more...then I'll leave."

"No!" She cries out.

She was hoping a neighbor would hear her cries. However, the neighbor behind her worked graveyard shift and the apartment above her is vacant.

"Jussst one.... more.... tickle.... pleassse." says the slithering voice psycho.

Mary Beth decides to give in, thinking this will get rid of him.

"Ok, I will." She says tearfully.

She moves to the side of her bed. She shifts her entire body towards it. She lowers her foot. As she nearly reaches the floor...a hand covers her mouth from behind. She screams but they are muffled through this giant hand. A large blade is slammed into her back! Her screams fade out and she slowly dies.

The Tickler begins using his ice-cold blade to saw her feet off at the ankles. Just another day at the office is how he is treating this. He exits. Later, the cops would arrive and find Sharon dead as well. Her feet also removed.

At the Tickler's Lair as he calls it, a collection of over 2 dozen feet hang from his ceiling. Each are in different stages of decomposition. He walks underneath them constantly while giving them all.... a tickle.