HUNGER || #Wattys2018

Chapter 1 'The dream'

DING DONG. Went the clock as the hands struck midnight, accompanied by the smiling ceramic bird that popped out of the wooden chute.

I didn't realise it was a dream until I remembered Papa had sold our grandfather clock to the old Jewish couple that lived at the end of our road years ago. That was long before he died.

Mother had filled the empty space with an antique wooden coffee table but, I still missed it.

Beside the clock, the see through drapes fluttered in the wind as moonlight poured in from the window and bathed the room in blue. I sat up in bed and looked behind the vale of shadows where the faceless man was waiting.

The peculiar dream had plagued my mind for the past few weeks. I would often lay awake and wonder what it meant. Sometimes, I would doze off into space, thinking about the faceless man and the mysterious grandfather clock.

I could feel him watching. Even though he had he was always watching me.

Sometimes, in the darkness, when I lay awake at night, I could feel him standing over my bed.

And I knew, deep down, that there was something he was trying to tell me. I just hadn't figured it out yet.

Calling out to the creature, I said, "hello? Why are you here?" But only my voice echoed back at me.

All of a sudden, the windows slammed shut, sucking all the air out of the room until the gentle hissing of the wind was just a distant hum.

The faceless man leapt out of the shadows and prowled towards me as I scrambled against the headboard, pulling the covers up to my chin like the thin piece of fabric could protect me from the monster.

His dark figure loomed over me, blocking out the moonlight and casting a tall, menacing shadow across the room as he stretched his claw like fingers towards me.

Despite my desperate pleas for mercy, he yanked the covers away from my body and began to rake his sharp nails across my skin until, finally, he pried my flailing legs apart and pierced my womanhood.

The bed gave way beneath me, sending me tumbling down a long, dark rabbit hole as the dark silhouette of the faceless monster faded into the distance.

"See you again..." I could almost hear it say before I woke up with a start.

Gasping for breath, I shot up from my sweat covered bedsheet, looking around the room to see if the monster was still lurking in a corner somewhere. In my frazzled state, I thought I had seen his lean form behind the drapes but it was only the wardrobe.

There was nothing to fear. I consoled myself. It had only been a dream.

The metalic smell of blood made me look down at my thighs to find a sticky puddle between my legs, staining my brand new night gown. Mother had bought it on sale at one of the charity shops on the high street. It was good quality stuff, she'd said. Now it was ruined.

Hearing my cries, mother rushed into the room, stopping at the foot of the bed as she gazed