Things That Go Bump In The Night!

Dear Journal,

Tonight I had one of the weirdest, most scariest experiences of my lifetime. It all started when I got back from showing Rhys around the neighborhood. My mom had unlocked the doors by the time I got back, so I didn't get to spend the night in my tree house. I was reading my favorite book in bed when it happened.

* * * *

"Honey, don't forget to turn out the lights at ten. Your father and I are heading to bed."

I've always wondered what is so comforting about calling your daughter "honey". Aside from the fact that my mother likes honey, I have absolutely no idea. I said "goodnight" to my parents and curled back up on my bed, book clutched tightly in my hands. I was right at the part where the main character is falling down an ice shaft, when my world went crazy! I heard my window shatter. Shards of glass flew past me as I huddled on my bed. A chunk of the ceiling came loose and crashed to the floor, nearly flattening my shoes. I was beyond panic by now. Thunder clouds rolled outside my glass-free window. Books slid off their shelves. My window curtains flapped wildly in the gusty wind. I shuddered.

 

"Why aren't my parents coming to get me?" I wondered worriedly. The whole house seemed to groan and creak. Immediately I hoped that our house was built securely. Just when I didn't think it could get worse, it did. 

Everything stopped.

The wind went away, leaving the curtains trembling. The house stopped shaking. Even the thunderclouds disappeared, leaving nothing but a dark, night sky. Silence reigned. But that was the worst part. Dead silence. Not a sound. I almost wished for the thunder, the wind, and the shaking. In the silence, as I huddled on my bed, I found myself angry. Angry at Rhys. Somehow this was all his fault. I knew it. Nothing as strange as this happened in our neighborhood until the creep moved in. Deep down I determined to get to the bottom of this, when it was all over. That is, if I survived.

I remained, knit into a ball, on my bed. Thoughts flew through my brain faster than a cat jumping out of a bath. My heart pounded in my chest. I shrieked as a stack of books slid off my shelf, nearly knocking me on the head.

Abruptly, my door flew open. I spun around, a scream on my lips. But I didn't scream, for there were my parents. I staggered into their arms, reveling in their familiar touch.

"Mom, Dad. Why weren't you here sooner?"

My mom gave me a quizzical look. "We came as fast as we could."

I was a little shocked. "But it's been almost fifteen minutes since it all started."

"Since what started?" My parents exchanged looks.

I searched their faces for an explanation. Were they joking? Was I dreaming? I glanced up at the ceiling and saw the dark hole where the chunk of ceiling had been knocked out.

"Wait," I said. "What do you see up there?" Pointing at the dark hole, I studied their faces carefully.

The sharp intake of breath was clearly audible. "What have you been doing in here?" My mom's eyebrows slowly dropped. "I said, what have you been doing in here?"

I wasn't at all sure how to respond. Lets just say that I was expecting more of something like "Are you okay?" or "You must be pretty shook up". My parents gazed around the room taking in the haphazardness of my room.

Suddenly I shivered. My window was still open and the frigid air had swiftly filled my room. Forgetting about my parents for the moment, I stared at someone outside my window. Rhys.

He stood, head bowed, in his backyard. I stared at his fingertips. They were glowing. Glowing bright blue. I narrowed my eyes. Rhys spun around and stalked into his house. What was my strange neighbor up to? If it had anything to do with my perfect room being up-turned, he was going to have a lot of explaining to do. Besides, it isn't everyday that you see your next-door neighbor standing outside with glowing fingers. Definitely strange.

My parents eventually were persuaded that something drastic had happened. I didn't lie too often, and my parents didn't think that I had enough imagination to create such a intricate story. They made sure that I was okay and then they let me go back to bed.

Of course, I had to lay in bed staring up at the dark hole in my ceiling. That hole led right into our attic. And who knows what creepy little things run around up in our attic. With my luck, some filthy rat would fall through that unfortunate hole and land on top of me. So with those thoughts flying through my head, I fell asleep. My last thought was, "Rhys is SO going to pay for this."