Candle Lit Nightmares

Children

  Endless rows of people frowning stared, searching for the one who had laughed in the cafeteria. One of the had a grey suit with black and white pins on the left side. He cleared his throat as he decided to speak.

   "The person to stand up now and reveal they laughed, the less of a punishment you get. I suggest you stand forward."

   The room had went completely silent. Some of the children had eyed a particular child that looked almost scared, but the expressionless stature was like a statue.

   The tall man noticed the children and decided to take things into his own hands, the poor child's time ran out. He kept a steady pace as his dress shoes made a loud clicking noise. He passed children who moved their legs and did and small head bob to in a way, salute him.

   The man was now in front of the child he suspected had laughed. The child looked up with the same expression as all the other kids, but the man was an expert in telling emotion through the eyes. The boy was shaking with fear, it was evident.

   "Why didn't you stand up when I said to boy?"

   The boy only stayed silent, probably afraid to have his voice waver when talking. His eyes tried to stay on the one man that all kids feared but had to listen to. He finally had felt he was strong enough to speak, thinking about how all the other kids disliked this beast in front of him.

   "Sir, I had no reason to stand up when I never did laugh."

   He felt sure that the man would accept this and leave. But the man did not. If anything, the mans grey eyes sharpened and his eyebrows slightly furrowing.

   "Tell me boy, why do you find the need to lie when I already know why you did?"

   "Sir, I didn't laugh. I swear to you on my mother's life." The boy's tone rose a little.

   "You deliberately try to lie to your leader? This is unbelievable. Your coming with me and I know just the punishment you'll take."

   The children could hear the boy's scream as he was dragged down the hall to the door they children never walked past. One of the past troublemakers had been skipping class when they had heard bloody screams, the child screaming having their vocals gurgle after a while.

   Of course the child who had to have been in there was little Kyle, and they had never saw Kyle again. They'd like to believe he simply moved somewhere else,  but they all knew what really happened.

   Poor James, he never had a chance. He may have been the cause of a child to laugh, but he wasn't the one to have laughed. The children would mourn him, as he was the only one to joke and try to lighten their spirits.
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   Small Ally was the one who had laughed, and she would never forgive herself for being the one to stand up that day. James was her role model and the only person who made everyone happy. She destroyed that because of her actions.

   If Ally could have, she would have taken the blame. She would have if her legs had only worked at that time. It seemed as though her fear got the best of her and she had sobbed herself to sleep for the whole week.

   She was glad she didn't live with parents like the others. And she thanked who ever was watching her for not letting the big man find out yet. If he did, she would probably be punished horribly for not speaking up.

   That next Monday though, her eyes lit up to see James was still alive and fine. But she held in a cry that wanted to escape when she and all the other kids saw his mouth. It was sewn tight, forever a frown.