June 23rd
My eyes opened groggily. What woke me up? Wait. When did I fall asleep? Feeling disoriented I look around. The laptop laid open; the screen paused at the end credits of a movie that I was watching. Exiting from the browser, I checked the time, it was 10:25 pm.
A loud thunderclap broke through the silence, startling me. Pushing aside the half-filled pack of chips and my bottle of water, I got off my bed and made my way towards the windows of my bedroom. It was raining, not the drizzles for a few minutes and goes away kind of rain, it was a proper storm. The clouds were dark and looming.
“Guess now I know what woke me up.”, I sighed. It was the first decent sleep I got in weeks. I shuffled towards the bathroom and turned on the faucet, splashing some cold water on my face. Feeling more awake I reached for the towel to dry myself. I studied my reflection.
A pale, dark haired and dark eyed individual stared back at me. The dark bags under his eyes were the most prominent feature, indicating the restless days punctuated by the sleepless nights. The more I stared, the more unfamiliar the face became, to the point where I barely recognised it anymore.
Shaking my head at these absurd thoughts I threw the towel over the sink and made my way out of the bathroom. The thunder clapped once more and the lights in the bathroom flickered. I turned around and looked at the bathroom.
“God, I hope it doesn’t fritz out now.”, I muttered staring at the tube light.
The rain continued as I went out of the bedroom towards the kitchen. It was an open kitchen, basically attached to the living room. The house itself was a modest 2 bedroom with an attached bathroom affair. It was perfect for me. Isolated and quiet. I never could deal well with people.
Opening the refrigerator, I grabbed a beer and leaned against the counter to drink. I noticed the clock on the living room wall, it read 10:40 pm. I kept my half-drunk bottle of beer on the counter and went to grab my cell phone from the room.
As I entered, the lights flickered once more, this time in the bedroom. Annoyed, I looked out of the window at the storm clouds accusingly. Grabbing my phone, I returned to the living room. I settled on the couch and began checking through my messages.
Mom 10:00 pm:
Theo, will you be coming home for the BBQ? Its just the family. I know you’re not ready yet. But please, we are worried about you.
Mom 10:10 pm:
At least let me know everything is fine with you.
AmyTheGreat 10:00 pm:
Bro, just call mom. I know you’ll ditch the BBQ but just call her before she comes all the way to your No Mans Land to drag you back.
Dr. Barnes 9:30 pm:
The medications have no ill effects. Continue with them.
Helen 10:30 pm:
I can’t I am sorry. This doesn’t change anything. We need more time.
Unknown 10:00 pm:
Congratulations! You are the 100th visitor! Claim your prize!
Swiping away at the unwanted messages, I sent a reply to my mother and sister, letting them know that I am fine but that I can’t make it to the BBQ. I didn’t want to deal with the questions or the pity.
I looked at Dr. Barnes’s message. I didn’t want the medications. They made me woozy and disoriented. Not in the mood to deal with it, I swiped away the message.
The last message lit up the screen. Helen. I wish could have done things differently. But even I don’t know what happened. It happened so fast. Within a month I lost it all. My wife. My daughter.
I lay back on the couch and stared at the ceiling. The noise of the rain receding to a steady hum as the memories pulled me under and I drifted.
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April 16th
“Dad! Dad! This place is perfect! Look, a yard. I can play here with all my friends!”, my daughter yelled and took off with a peal of laughter and ran towards the yard.
“Well looks like she’s happy.”, Helen laughed as she came down the porch to stand beside me.
“She finally got her yard, but I guess anything’s better than our previous matchbox apartment.”, I replied pulling Helen close and watching our daughter run around and play.
“Welcome to our new home Captain Theo.”, my wife teased.
Laughing, I kissed her, feeling content for the first time in years. “No more army talk please. I am finally home.” And I was. For the first time in many years, I was home.
“Come on Tori! You can play outside later after lunch.”, Helen called out as we went back in.
It was a large 2 storey house with a sprawling yard. Helen had found about it from her real estate friend and had loved it immediately. I couldn’t say no, since she had always been there for me.
I had joined the army as soon as I turned 18. Ten years later I met Helen. It was a whirlwind affair. We had Tori soon after. Six year later I completed my service and left with an honourable discharge.
It wasn’t easy, because even when you left the military, you never truly left it. I lost people, good people. I saw things that still haunted me. There were nights when all I could do was wake up screaming at invisible enemies and lost friends.
Now, after 16 years, it was finally behind me, and I could move ahead.
_______________________________
If I could point out where it had all gone wrong, I’d say it was the moment we decided to buy that house. I am not a superstitious man, never was but neither was I an idiot.
_______________________________
April 24th
Gasping I woke up again. Disoriented. This is the third fucking time this week! I thought, frustrated. My body felt heavy, I couldn’t move but I could see. I could see the shadows, contorting. A writhing mass that moved closer and closer.
I looked at Helen, trying to wake her up somehow, but I couldn’t. I was useless! I tried to yell, thrash, anything. Suddenly, it vanished. As though it was never there. Instead, I saw Helens panicked face above me, shaking my shoulders frantically.
“Theo! Theo are you okay?!”, she cried out. Her voice sounded as though coming through a tunnel.
“What? Helen I am fine. But did you…?!”, I pulled her behind me as I looked for the creature. There was nothing there.
“Theo! What’s wrong? You woke up yelling and screaming. You almost hit me when I tried to wake you up!”, she said accusingly.
“I don’t understand.”, I whispered.
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April 28th
“Sleep paralysis affects 8% of the population. So, you don’t need to be overly concerned. It is obviously due to the PTSD…….”
The doctor droned on and on. His pompous voice grating on my nerves.
He threw around terms like Hypnagogic. Hypnopompic, expecting me to understand it all but all it did was increase my frustration.
None of this made sense!
I agree it always happened when I was asleep. I could not move. But the bruises stayed. How was that possible?
When I told Helen about it, she brushed it aside. Told me that I did it in my sleep, that it was from all the thrashing around that I did.
That’s what confused me the most. How was I moving around then? How could I?
“To deal with this, we must deal with the underlying issue.”, Dr. Barnes continued as I came back to my surroundings and handed me a prescription with a bunch of medications.
Antidepressants and sleep medications. I never did like medications. But I took them, just cause it made Helen happy. According to her I was cured.
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April 30th
I was on the couch; the television was running. I was exhausted. All that medication was trash. It never worked. The monsters continued to march.
I just stopped falling asleep at this point. It worked to an extent. But sometimes if I turned just right, I could see it from the corner of my eye. Crouching in the corners. I blamed this on the exhaustion. I was falling asleep literally standing.
I didn’t want to tell this to Helen. She was already stressed when I asked her if we could move. We were keeping it together for Tori’s sake, she loved it here.
Tired, I was stretching out my legs when I heard a noise behind me. Felling alert, I fell into my military instincts and leapt off the couch and quickly turned around while bringing up my arms in defence.
It was the creature.
A tall black mass, that took some echo of a shape, it moved with a series of clicks. Tick, Tick, Tick. Its head hung to one side; the long neck bent out of shape. Its eye sockets were empty, but I knew it could see me perfectly, the lips were stitched closed, but it still smiled. The spindly arms outstretched as though reaching out to me. The claws hooked.
I backed away in horror. No! No! This could not be happening! I was awake!
I almost lost my balance as I tripped over a table and hit a wall. Unable to back away, I chose to fight. When it came close enough, I pushed at it with all my strength. I heard a hiss as it claws struck deep. I cried out in pain and struck it.
“Dad! What are you doing?!”, I heard a shriek.
I turned around and saw my daughter in the doorway staring in horror.
“Tori! Run! It will…”, my voice trailed away as I looked down. It was Helen.
Nothing could make this right. Helen’s face was pale and frightened, the bruises were beginning to darken. I never wanted to see her like this.
I packed up the same night and left. Helen didn’t stop me. Tori couldn’t understand.
If I had to be absolutely honest, I would admit that in a way I was relieved. I was out of that house. Maybe I would finally get better.
As I put the last of the bags in the trunk, I finally noticed it.
The claw marks had stayed, and I had been awake.
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June 23rd
Another clap of thunder pulled me out from my reminiscing. I got off the couch and stretched my limbs. I looked at the clock, it was 10:50 pm. Planning to grab something to eat I moved towards the kitchen.
Suddenly the lights went off. Startled I looked around.
“Damn weather.”, I grabbed my phone and turned on the flashlight. The light illuminated the kitchen in a dull glow. I rummaged in the drawers for a flashlight.
I found one. I turned it on, but it flickered off in a matter of seconds, keeping my phone down on the counter I opened and checked the batteries. They seemed fine, so I shook it and turned it on again.
This time it worked. It shone bright and I could see well. I made my way towards the fuse box in the garage. I took care of the damaged breaker and headed back inside.
The lights were back. I went around to check all the rooms just to be sure. I had just entered the bedroom when I heard it.
Tick, Tick, Tick.
The hair at the back of my neck stood up. That’s when I saw it. It was standing at the doorway of the bathroom. Watching.
“I am awake! You can’t be here!”, I yelled frustrated. I had left that house! Why was this happening?
Fear clogged my throat as it started walking towards me, clicking away.
I threw the flashlight towards it and ran out.
I ran towards the main door almost reaching the door handle when I felt a sharp pain in my lower back and blanked out.
I never could reach the door.
_______________________________
Gasping I woke up.
What woke me up?
Groggily I looked at the time on my laptop, it was 10:25 pm. Keeping aside the laptop I got off the bed and walked towards the window, it was raining. Lightning lit up the sky and it thundered.
“Guess, that explains it.”, I muttered as I made my way towards the bathroom, almost tripping over something. I bent and picked up the offending item, it was a flashlight.
“How did this get over here?”, I thought, puzzled. Chucking it onto the bed I washed my face and headed to the kitchen.
My phone buzzed on the counter, indicating a message received. I picked up my phone and threw the half-drunk bottle of beer into the garbage as I leaned against the counter to read the message.
AmyTheGreat 10:45 pm:
Alrighty! I’ll stop by tomorrow then!
Stop by tomorrow? Wait. 10:45?! I looked at the clock. It showed 10:30. Wait. I remember something. The phone powered down suddenly. I heard it then.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
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June 26th
It has been 3 days since my brother last spoke to me. Everyone says he just took off because he needed some time alone.
But I know him. He would never leave without saying something.
He last messaged me and mom, promising to call. He never did. I tried to speak to Helen. She became pale and tight-lipped, refusing to say anything.
He never really spoke why they separated. Just mentioned it wasn’t working out anymore.
Sighing, I turned my car into his driveway and got down. I took out the spare key and entered the house. It looked, normal. Like any other house. Knick knacks cluttered about, reflecting the person living in the house.
I walked around, trying to understand.
I tried speaking to the authorities, but they all clucked their tongues and just told he’ll come back. Even mom agreed he needed the space!
“How could they all be so naïve?!”, I thought furious.
All his clothes were here! His damn car was here! So, what happened?
I stood in the empty house, blinking away the tears.
His phone lay on the counter. I tried charging it, but it refused to turn on.
His bed laid unmade, with his laptop open. The empty screen covered in a thin layer of dust.
There were various medications in his cabinet.
When did he start taking these?!
I had more questions now than before and no answers.
All I knew was, he had not left on his own.
Frustrated I left. It was getting late.
As I turned on my car I heard a weird sound, kinda like a clock. I felt cold.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
I turned around and saw nothing.
Brushing it off I drove home. It had begun to rain.
