literature

The Ongoings In The Night (a short horror story)

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Published: May 20, 2014

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Literature Text

The Ongoings in the night

Amy woke up slowly, her eyelids flickering open. It's too dark to see much. She feels around the bed for a moment, her hand brushing his soft hair. A warm smile settles on her lips as Amy snuggles against Josh. His chest rises and falls regularly while he sleeps. Amy sleepily wonders why she awoke, the small bedroom was quiet aside from their soft breathing. Her eyes close again, and she drifts back to sleep.

A crash in another room makes Amy jump slightly, her heart pounding. She watches Josh for a moment, he doesn't stir, then she climbs from the bed. Another noise, muffled, comes from beyond the bedroom. Amy cautiously looks around the room, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She grabs a pocket knife off her bookshelf. The blade flicks out, and Amy silently moves across the floor to the bedroom door.

She is careful to avoid the creaky wooden boards, her eyes in the sliver of light under her door. Amy reached the door, her hand nervously easing the door open slowly. She slips out the narrow gap, into the dimly lit hallway. Amy was positive she had turned off the lights before going to bed. Holding the blade tightly, she made her way down the hall.

At the end of the hall is a window, light from a streetlamp streaming in. Broken shards of glass are scattered across the floor, glittering in the streetlight. The gap in the broken window was more than large enough to fit a person through.

A noise from the kitchen catches Amy's attention. Tiny bits of glass stick in her feet and Amy clenches her teeth. She raises the knife and creeps over to the kitchen doorway. A scream nearly bursts from her lungs. She clamps a hand over her own mouth, staring at the burglar hunched over in her kitchen, rummaging through Amy's purse. His back is turned to her, and she realizes this may be her best chance to stop the large man.

Amy runs at him, knife raised. The man, a ski mask covering his face, turns and looks at her at the last possible second. The blade is plunged deep in his neck. Time seems to slow down as Amy steps back, staring at what she had done. The burglar's eyes bulge, he rips the knife from his neck as he falls to the ground. Blood gushes from his neck, spilling across the kitchen floor. He thrashes, his hands grabbing at his neck, feebly trying to stop the blood flow. Amy watches the life drain from the robber.

When he is dead, Amy grabs the broom, turns off the kitchen light, and goes back into the hall. She sweeps up the broken glass, and pulls the blinds over the window, making the hallway dark again. Amy leaves the broom in the hall, and enters her bedroom again. Josh is in the bed, still asleep. Amy crawls into bed next to him, making sure the gag in his mouth is secure. The digital clock on her wall reads three-thirty four in the morning. It would be a few hours before the drug wore off and Josh would be very confused. Amy snuggles against his chest, giggling softly at the prospect of terrifying her newest cuddle buddy.