Frightful Flash Fiction

This World Of Sleep Before Me

I had awoken from my bed. I put my bare feet on the ground. I could feel the rug underneath my toes. I walked down a long path in my home. I felt the cold linoleum floor with every step I took. I thought of all the things I had in my life and told myself that there couldn’t be anything better than this. I combed my short black hair. I brushed my teeth and put on a white sweater that was too big for me. I put on red shorts and a pair of red sneakers. My mother had given me my bookbag and walked me to school. The sun beating down on my pale skin. School was never a problem for me. I actually really enjoyed it. I returned home and did my homework. Come by eight o’clock my parents wanted me in bed. It was at this time that things weren’t very normal. I went to sleep thinking of a different world. And, when I closed my eyes, I felt myself sinking into my bed. I felt myself spinning. It seemed like I was lying on the ceiling, but a few seconds had passed and everything felt normal. I opened my eyes. I saw the bright moonlight shining over me. The extremely tall trees that stood above me. The smell of nature filled my nostrils. This place never seemed to change. I heard a croaking sound coming from a frog sitting next to my bed. I turned my head and stared at the frog. The frog had realized I noticed it, so it started to hop away. I got out of the bed and followed it. It lead me to a pond with multiple other frogs. Then, before I knew it, all the frogs came together to make the form of a ballerina. The multiple frogs that made up the ballerina turned to look at me. The ballerina then began dancing on the lily pads that floated gently on the pond. The ballerina seemingly almost never made contact with the lily pads. For each time she did, only small ripples were sent through the pond. I sat there in awe as the ballerina moved swiftly and gently. When the ballerina finished her dancing, the frogs all let go of eachother and returned to the pond. With the show being over I went back to my bed. I thought of home and closed my eyes. And when I opened them, I was back in my house. Life was never too different in the real world, but I liked that. My mother, my father, my friends. They’re what made the real world fun. Day had come to a close and it was ready for me to go to bed. Like every night, I went to that different world. This time I decided to travel down a long path in this never ending forest. I came across a river, so I assumed my journey would end there. But, out of the forest came a very tall man. He looked nine feet tall. Wore a midnight blue top hat and a wacky suit of the same color. He had a white bowtie on, and striped pants of white and midnight blue. He kneeled down and looked a me. His face was made of birch and had two circular eye holes. I looked back at him. Not in fear, but with amazement. He smiled with this large grin. The tall man waved his hand at a flower. It began to grow and change form. The flower had become a lion, made of vines and leaves. The tall man had motioned his open palm over the river. The water had risen and shaped itself into a whip. I watched as the tall man commanded the lion to do tricks. I had always wanted to go to the circus but my parents didn’t have enough money to take me. But here I was, able to see a real lion tamer. Some time had passed and the lion returned to it’s original state of a flower. The tall man then walked me back to the bed, where I then fell back asleep. The next day was simple. The same routine like usual. It was only ever different in that different world. Once again, when I went to bed, I went to see that world. I awoke to see several fireflies hovering over my head. They started to fly away, so I followed them to see where they were going. While following them I had found a large lake. The fireflies had continued ahead. I didn’t know how to swim, but my curiosity took control, so I went to jump in the lake. However, instead of falling in, I stood on top of the water. The water was cold and tickled my soles. As I walked across the lake, I began to get tired, so I decided to turn back and go to bed. The fireflies saw me leaving and started flying frantically. There greenish-yellow glow turned crimson along with the water. I was afraid, so I began running back to the bed. The wind picked up and I began hearing voices. They told me not to leave. That they wouldn’t let me leave. That I would love it if I stayed. That I don’t need to go back to my world and to forget it. The very thought of never seeing my parents again made me even more scared. The closer I got to the bed the more distorted the world became. The voices became louder and incomprehensible. The branches on the trees began to break away and fall to the ground. I had gotten back to the bed. I wanted to leave and never come back. I thought of home and closed my eyes. I had awoken from my bed. I put my bare feet on the ground. I could feel the dirt underneath my toes. I walked down a long path in my home. I felt the cold wet soil with every step I took. I thought of all the things I had in my life and told myself that there couldn’t be anything better than this.