Post by Stelpher on Aug 21, 2014 6:56:53 GMT -5
The House
I pressed my head against the car window as fence posts rushed by outside. My brother was sitting across the vehicle from me, playing an obnoxiously loud game on the electronic device in his hands.
“Mum, can you tell Max to turn that thing down?” I whined, the sounds of the device beginning to get on my nerves. Max glared at me for a moment, mumbling spitefully.
“Just because you’re bored doesn’t mean I have to be.”
I returned his glare, choosing to turn back to the window instead of pushing the argument.
‘Brat…’
After another ten minutes in the car, I caught a glimpse of something - a dark shape in the now hill covered field we found ourselves in. We soon reached an old wooden gate, with the words ‘Fernbreach’ engraved on the front. The car stopped beside this gate, right indicator blinking rapidly.
“Here we are, this is your grandfather’s place.” Mum said, as she unclipped her seatbelt and opened the door of the car. She pushed the gate open, and the sound of its old hinges was like that of a cat dying. I cringed at the sound, as Mother returned to the car. We drove through the gate, following a long gravel driveway between the hills. We soon pulled up outside a large wooden house, the dark colour of its planks giving off a mysterious and menacing aura.
I helped Mother unpacking the car, while Max sat by the unopened front door. I yelled at him from the car, annoyed by his lack of assistance.
“Hey Max! Feel like giving us a hand?”
He just poked his tongue at me.
“No thanks Jess, you look like you’ve got everything covered.”
I frowned once more, bringing the last of our bags to the doorstep. As I set the bags down, Mum withdrew an old and weathered key, inserting it into the door. The key twisted and the tumblers made a deafening click, the door swung open. Max went inside to turn all the lights on, and I moved the bags. A dark set of clouds thundered on the horizon.
The Dream
The interior of the house was cosy and warm, with the kitchen, living room and dining room being downstairs. Heading upwards, three bedrooms and a bathroom could be found, as well as an entrance to the attic.
The sunlight had faded, and rain began to pound against the roof. Max and I sat in the dining room as Mother brought in a steaming pot of stew. Max made a comment about the smell, and my stomach growled in agreement.
The pot was filled with a delicious curry, billowing clouds of steam in its wake. Mum poured the meal into three bowls set on the table, and I thanked her graciously.
We ate mostly in silence, with the occasional small talk being made. Max finished first and the room was soon filled with the obnoxious electronic noises I hated so much. I looked down at my own meal, still a quarter left, and new I would not be able to handle the sound for that long.
“Max, could you turn that off for a few minutes? We’re eating.”
He simply shrugged in response.
“Mum doesn’t seem bothered by it, so no.”
I sighed, frustrated.
“Mum, can you please ask Max to turn it off?"
“Honey, it’s really not that big of a deal.”
I sighed once more.
“But it is! We’re still eating. At least he could have the manners to wait until after dinner.”
His face changes into a smirk as he mumbles a response.
“Then I’d be waiting here a very long time…”
I jolt to my feet in anger, my chair sliding along the carpet behind me.
“That’s it, I’m done!”
I grab my bowl, then walk to the kitchen and thrust it onto the bench beside the sink.
“I’m going to bed.” I mutter, as I pass through the dining room to reach the staircase. I quickly shuffle up the stairs, reaching the top and trudging towards the door at the end of the hallway. I swing the wooden door open, slamming it shut behind me.
My eyes shot open, and my head spun for a second.
‘Where am I? What happened?’ I thought as I realized I was looking up at a dull, grey sky.
‘I was angry and went to sleep. Am I dreaming?’ As I put my arms beneath me to push myself up, I noticed the floor was not a comfy bed, it was hard and jagged. It was gravel. I lifted myself off the ground, trying to get a better grasp of my surroundings.
I was standing on a long gravel road, surrounded by hills. The hills also seemed dull, lacking in colour and life. To my left, it the path winded between the hills, slowly disappearing between them. To my right the path continued, but quickly stopped outside a large shape. It was dark and old, its gnarled skin weathered from the ages. I realized this was a house, the house I had fallen asleep in. I slowly walked towards the house, and I began to notice a sound. It was blurred and hard to distinguish, so I closed my eyes. The blur soon revealed itself to be a voice.
‘What is it saying?’
It was the voice of a girl, probably close to my age.
“You look sad. Are you unhappy?”
I looked around, but the voice seemed to be coming from everywhere.
“If you want to be happy, all you need to do is smile.”
I turned around, but the road behind me was completely empty.
“All you need to do is smile.”
I turned back to the house, and was horrified by what I saw. It was the shadow of a girl, and in its hand was a glint of metal coated with red. I heard a scream in the distance and as the world faded around me, I realized it was mine.
The Aftermath
My eyes shot open for the second time and I sat up in my bed, breathing rapidly. My bed was drenched in cold sweat, and my heart was pounding in my ears.
‘It was just a nightmare.’ I think to myself, and I slowly begin to calm down. As my heart rate returns to normal, I take a moment to look around. The room was dark despite the lack of curtains, so it must have still been night-time. The rain was still outside, but it had died down to a quiet drone, and I decide to go down stairs to get a glass of water. As my feet made contact with the floor, it felt damp. In the dark I conclude it must just be a leak somewhere, and would check on it in the morning.
Walking down the hallway, I notice the floor was still damp in many places.
‘It must be a pretty serious leak…’
As I pass by Max’s door, I contemplate going in and apologizing, but know that it would be best to do so in the morning. I continue on, reaching closer to the stairs. My foot splashes into what must have been a puddle. Confused and a little worried, I look at the door to my left.
‘Mother’s Room.’
I notice the door is slightly open.
‘Odd, Mum always closes her door when she goes to bed.’
I try to close the door for her, but something stops the door. I push a little harder, but something is obviously blocking the door. I peak around the door, squinting in the dark to see. I immediately regret the decision, and hold my mouth to prevent myself from screaming. In the doorway on the floor, a hand and a wrist lay, the rest of the arm falling into the shadows of the room. As my eyes fall upon one of my Mother’s bracelets, I run as fast as I can back to my room, slamming the door shut behind me.
I sit a stool next to one of the dressers, one with a mirror, and stare at the floor as I try to catch my breath.
“It’s just a dream, it’s just a nightmare.” I tell myself aloud, in an attempt to calm myself. But as my eyes adjust to the darkness of the room, I start to notice smudges on the floor. They were the damp patches I had noticed before, and they were all red.
As my heart rate continues to rise, I find myself looking into the mirror. I begin to notice, in the darkness, how much I resemble the shadow from my dream. As I realize this, terror crosses my features while a grin crosses my reflection. It looks deep into my eyes, as its mouth begins to move.
“Are you smiling yet?”
I pressed my head against the car window as fence posts rushed by outside. My brother was sitting across the vehicle from me, playing an obnoxiously loud game on the electronic device in his hands.
“Mum, can you tell Max to turn that thing down?” I whined, the sounds of the device beginning to get on my nerves. Max glared at me for a moment, mumbling spitefully.
“Just because you’re bored doesn’t mean I have to be.”
I returned his glare, choosing to turn back to the window instead of pushing the argument.
‘Brat…’
After another ten minutes in the car, I caught a glimpse of something - a dark shape in the now hill covered field we found ourselves in. We soon reached an old wooden gate, with the words ‘Fernbreach’ engraved on the front. The car stopped beside this gate, right indicator blinking rapidly.
“Here we are, this is your grandfather’s place.” Mum said, as she unclipped her seatbelt and opened the door of the car. She pushed the gate open, and the sound of its old hinges was like that of a cat dying. I cringed at the sound, as Mother returned to the car. We drove through the gate, following a long gravel driveway between the hills. We soon pulled up outside a large wooden house, the dark colour of its planks giving off a mysterious and menacing aura.
I helped Mother unpacking the car, while Max sat by the unopened front door. I yelled at him from the car, annoyed by his lack of assistance.
“Hey Max! Feel like giving us a hand?”
He just poked his tongue at me.
“No thanks Jess, you look like you’ve got everything covered.”
I frowned once more, bringing the last of our bags to the doorstep. As I set the bags down, Mum withdrew an old and weathered key, inserting it into the door. The key twisted and the tumblers made a deafening click, the door swung open. Max went inside to turn all the lights on, and I moved the bags. A dark set of clouds thundered on the horizon.
The Dream
The interior of the house was cosy and warm, with the kitchen, living room and dining room being downstairs. Heading upwards, three bedrooms and a bathroom could be found, as well as an entrance to the attic.
The sunlight had faded, and rain began to pound against the roof. Max and I sat in the dining room as Mother brought in a steaming pot of stew. Max made a comment about the smell, and my stomach growled in agreement.
The pot was filled with a delicious curry, billowing clouds of steam in its wake. Mum poured the meal into three bowls set on the table, and I thanked her graciously.
We ate mostly in silence, with the occasional small talk being made. Max finished first and the room was soon filled with the obnoxious electronic noises I hated so much. I looked down at my own meal, still a quarter left, and new I would not be able to handle the sound for that long.
“Max, could you turn that off for a few minutes? We’re eating.”
He simply shrugged in response.
“Mum doesn’t seem bothered by it, so no.”
I sighed, frustrated.
“Mum, can you please ask Max to turn it off?"
“Honey, it’s really not that big of a deal.”
I sighed once more.
“But it is! We’re still eating. At least he could have the manners to wait until after dinner.”
His face changes into a smirk as he mumbles a response.
“Then I’d be waiting here a very long time…”
I jolt to my feet in anger, my chair sliding along the carpet behind me.
“That’s it, I’m done!”
I grab my bowl, then walk to the kitchen and thrust it onto the bench beside the sink.
“I’m going to bed.” I mutter, as I pass through the dining room to reach the staircase. I quickly shuffle up the stairs, reaching the top and trudging towards the door at the end of the hallway. I swing the wooden door open, slamming it shut behind me.
My eyes shot open, and my head spun for a second.
‘Where am I? What happened?’ I thought as I realized I was looking up at a dull, grey sky.
‘I was angry and went to sleep. Am I dreaming?’ As I put my arms beneath me to push myself up, I noticed the floor was not a comfy bed, it was hard and jagged. It was gravel. I lifted myself off the ground, trying to get a better grasp of my surroundings.
I was standing on a long gravel road, surrounded by hills. The hills also seemed dull, lacking in colour and life. To my left, it the path winded between the hills, slowly disappearing between them. To my right the path continued, but quickly stopped outside a large shape. It was dark and old, its gnarled skin weathered from the ages. I realized this was a house, the house I had fallen asleep in. I slowly walked towards the house, and I began to notice a sound. It was blurred and hard to distinguish, so I closed my eyes. The blur soon revealed itself to be a voice.
‘What is it saying?’
It was the voice of a girl, probably close to my age.
“You look sad. Are you unhappy?”
I looked around, but the voice seemed to be coming from everywhere.
“If you want to be happy, all you need to do is smile.”
I turned around, but the road behind me was completely empty.
“All you need to do is smile.”
I turned back to the house, and was horrified by what I saw. It was the shadow of a girl, and in its hand was a glint of metal coated with red. I heard a scream in the distance and as the world faded around me, I realized it was mine.
The Aftermath
My eyes shot open for the second time and I sat up in my bed, breathing rapidly. My bed was drenched in cold sweat, and my heart was pounding in my ears.
‘It was just a nightmare.’ I think to myself, and I slowly begin to calm down. As my heart rate returns to normal, I take a moment to look around. The room was dark despite the lack of curtains, so it must have still been night-time. The rain was still outside, but it had died down to a quiet drone, and I decide to go down stairs to get a glass of water. As my feet made contact with the floor, it felt damp. In the dark I conclude it must just be a leak somewhere, and would check on it in the morning.
Walking down the hallway, I notice the floor was still damp in many places.
‘It must be a pretty serious leak…’
As I pass by Max’s door, I contemplate going in and apologizing, but know that it would be best to do so in the morning. I continue on, reaching closer to the stairs. My foot splashes into what must have been a puddle. Confused and a little worried, I look at the door to my left.
‘Mother’s Room.’
I notice the door is slightly open.
‘Odd, Mum always closes her door when she goes to bed.’
I try to close the door for her, but something stops the door. I push a little harder, but something is obviously blocking the door. I peak around the door, squinting in the dark to see. I immediately regret the decision, and hold my mouth to prevent myself from screaming. In the doorway on the floor, a hand and a wrist lay, the rest of the arm falling into the shadows of the room. As my eyes fall upon one of my Mother’s bracelets, I run as fast as I can back to my room, slamming the door shut behind me.
I sit a stool next to one of the dressers, one with a mirror, and stare at the floor as I try to catch my breath.
“It’s just a dream, it’s just a nightmare.” I tell myself aloud, in an attempt to calm myself. But as my eyes adjust to the darkness of the room, I start to notice smudges on the floor. They were the damp patches I had noticed before, and they were all red.
As my heart rate continues to rise, I find myself looking into the mirror. I begin to notice, in the darkness, how much I resemble the shadow from my dream. As I realize this, terror crosses my features while a grin crosses my reflection. It looks deep into my eyes, as its mouth begins to move.
“Are you smiling yet?”