IT31 || 31 days of IT

29 - Nightmares Are Real

"I understand your concern, Mr. Hanlon. But we assure you, we are dealing with the issue. This change of medication for Bill will be a good thing" the doctor placed the charts back in the correct folder. Mike sighed heavily and just gave the doctor a slight nod. The doctor left the room to give him some privacy. Mike looked at Bill who had fallen asleep just moments ago and frowned.

"Be strong, man" Mike gently ran his fingers through Bill's messy hair. "You're going to be just fine"

Bill heard him. He could hear everything but he wasn't there. Not physically. Bill watched from the opposite side of the bed. He watched as Mike gently folded his hands over Bill's. He watched as Mike leaned against the side of the bed to get some shut-eye himself.

He hated that his best friend brought him into the hospital in the first place. Now, he's stuck on sleeping medication since he refused to sleep beforehand. Nobody believed his fears of his nightmares coming true.

But they would now.

Bill noticed the light in the room dimming. He felt an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He knew what was to come next. The shadows around the room began to leave the various things they were under. The shadows turned into small demonic looking beings with red glowing eyes. They each had a thin tail that swayed with their movements.

He watched as they crawled up onto the bed and ran over the sheets. Bill tried to wake Mike but he couldn't be heard. 

"Dammit" Bill muttered to himself. That's when he heard the familiar stomps. The room shook. The TV started to glitch and the lights flickered. He noticed the small demonic beings forming together. Each little creature let out a high pitched screech until they all morphed together. Their screeching turned into a deep rumble. 

The monster had arrived.

A tall black goo-like monster with large claws and glowing golden eyes peeked in through the window. He exposed his sharp white teeth and let out a rumble of a laugh. His laugh shook Bill's core. 

Bill, panicking, tried to shake Mike. His ghost-like appearance just went through the sleeping boy.

"Please, please wake up! He's real!" Bill begged. Then he noticed the doctor enter the room again. Mike jolted awake and looked at the doctor who was frozen in the doorway. The monster seeped through the farthest wall and suddenly was in the room, hunched over to fit. 

They could see him. 

"Wake me up!" Bill yelled as loud as he could. "Wake up!" He noticed Mike staring at the monster too and hoped he remembered. A small smile started to form as Mike hurriedly shook Bill's sleeping body.

"Bill! Bill get up! Come on!" The monster was getting closer. His footsteps shook the whole hospital.

"W-What is-.." The doctor stammered, backed up against the wall.

"Bill wasn't hallucinating, you idiot!" Mike yelled at the old man and continued to shake Bill. "We need to wake him up!" The doctor rushed over and helped Mike wake Bill.

The monster reached down toward the doctor and Mike.

"Don't make contact! Don't let him touch you!" Bill yelled. But they couldn't hear. The monster grabbed both men, slowly lifting them from the ground. That's when Bill woke.

Bill jolted upward and looked around the room in a panic. Mike and the doctor fell to the ground and everything was back to normal.

"I-I told you.. I can't sleep" Bill spoke in a blank tone. He teared up. Mike quickly got up off his knees and hugged Bill tightly. He was clearly out of breath while the doctor stayed down on his knees in complete shock. "Now neither can either of you" 

"W-What?" Mike looked at Bill.

"He touched you.. Now you'll see him too"