Writer Games | Death Wish & 51

Task Five: The Dear Departed /QF - David Lowe [6]

It was right behind me,  close enough that I could feel its breath on the back of my neck. Our  feet thudded at the ground in a syncopated rhythm, and the cavern walls  repeated it back to us. My heart thudded in my ears almost as loudly. My  legs burned, and so did my lungs. As my stride began to shorten, and my  footsteps and the creatures' became more and more in sync, I had to  admit I couldn't keep it up for much longer. It was only a matter of  time before It caught me.

"Help," I shouted, my  mouth forming words almost on its own accord, with air I didn't know was  left in my lungs. Again I shouted, this time louder, desperate to get  somebody's attention, "Help!"

In the distance I could  finally see the door to our safe room. It seemed so close, but still  just out of reach. From the reflection of the window by the door, I  could see myself running, my terrified face illuminated by my  flashlight, but It stayed in the dark just behind me.

The door started to  open, at first just a sliver of florescent light in the darkness, a  sliver of hope. Obviously they couldn't see anything besides me either,  if they saw It, they would have left me out here to die, and I wouldn't  have blamed them. I had shouted for help, I should have shouted for them  to close the door. If I had the air to do one I had air to do the  other.

But I couldn't.

Instead I ran towards  the door, as fast as I could possibly go. No matter how close It was  behind me, I couldn't let It catch me. I couldn't die just yards away  from safety, where everyone could see me die. As soon as I was close  enough to touch the door, I pulled it shut behind me, desperately trying  to keep It out. The door almost flew off its hinges shutting so fast.  Until...

Its arm got stuck in the  doorway. For the first time, I saw It, and It was completely  terrifying. Although I could only see its arm, that was enough. It was  flailing around in the door, obviously in pain, although It could do  nothing about it. It was thin and veiny, Its skin seemed almost  translucent. And at the end of Its hand were three long, gnarled, bloody  claws.

"Someone help me shut it!" I shouted, my voice cracking with fear.

*

"David," somebody said,  waking me from my nightmare. "You're screaming again." I couldn't tell  who it was, but it didn't matter to me at all. They were alive. I was  alive. The same could no longer be said about Sarah-Kate or Kerry.

I was the one It was  chasing. I was the reason why It got into the room in the first place. I  should have been the one It killed, not them. They had saved my life  and I'd responded by killing them.

I rolled back over into  my side, and fell back asleep. Maybe I would see them in my dreams  again, but that was less painful than waking up. At least in my dream I  could pretend it wasn't real.