The Ninth Story: There
Title: There
Word Count: 701
Prompt: Watching way too much Torchwood.
Authors Note: So I haven't posted anything this weekend *Hangs head in shame*. I blame theater and Torchwood! Anyhow, I'll be posting four strories today!
“There’s something out there.” Sadie pulled her skinny legs up to her chin and wrapped the blankets close around her. She refused to look out the window, just knowing if she did she’d see the ghostly luminescent eyes staring back at her...
“There’s nothing out there kiddo. Look, it’s just the yard.”
Sadie didn’t move, not willing to listen to even her big sisters logic tonight. Because she knew that there was something out there, just waiting for her to be alone.
“I promise Sadie, there is nothing out there.”
“I saw it.” Sadie shuddered, cold despite the blanket cocoon.
“Maybe it was just a racoon or something. There are lots of racoons out here.”
“It wasn’t.”
Hilary sighed and stood up.
“Look kiddo, I promise you’re safe. But if you’ll feel better you can come in and sleep with me tonight.”
Sadie nodded and quickly jumped off the bed, dragging her blankets with her. Her sister wrapped an arm around her shoulders and quickly led her down the hall and into her bedroom.
“Can you close the window?”
Hilary nodded and went to draw the blinds as Sadie crawled into her bed. Hilary joined her a minute later and Sadie immediately curled tight against her.
“Don’t tell Daddy, okay?”
“Okay kiddo. Now come on, go to sleep. Nothing can get you in here.”
The little girl snuggled against her sisters side and closed her eyes, sleep finally finding its way into her mind.
***
“Hilary?”
Sadie pulled the blankets up to her chin, listening to her sister’s soft snores and the sound of something scratching against the window.
“Hilary?”
Her sister snorted and rolled over, but didn’t wake up.
Sadie glanced over at the window just in time to see the blinds slowly blow open. A pair of bright orange eyes stared back at her, blinking owlishly in a face so black it might as well not have been there.
“Hilary...” Sadie whispered. “Hilary!”
“Mmm. Wha?”
“It’s there. It’s right there!”
Hilary sat up and rubbed her eyes.
“Sadie, it’s two in the morning. Go back to sleep.”
“But it’s there! Right there!”
Hilary followed her sister’s finger to the window.
“Why did you open the curtains?”
Hilary jumped out of bed and walked over to them.
“I didn’t. The thing did.”
“This isn’t funny Sadie!” Hilary jerked the curtains closed. “Now go back to sleep!” She threw herself back into the bed and pulled the covers over her face. “If you wake me up again I’ll pound you.”
Hilary was soon snoring again, but Sadie couldn’t sleep. She sat up all night watching for the eyes, but they never came back.
A week went by, then two, then three. And every night Sadie sat up as long as she could, waiting for the eyes. But they never came back.
One night, nearly three years later, Sadie woke up in the middle of the night. There was a strange scratching sound coming from her window. She slowly got out of bed and walked over to it, peeking out into the night. Suddenly two orange eyes blinked to life inches away from her face. She shrieked, falling backward.
“What do you want?” She whispered.
“We’re too early.” A ghostly voice murmured. “We’re not here for you.”
And the eyes were gone.
Sadie’s mother to her to see a doctor that week, and for the next ten years she saw Dr. Barnes every Saturday. She knew now that the eyes weren’t real, that she had never actually seen anything in the dark. And five years later, when her own daughter got scared, she told her there was nothing out there that could hurt her.
One morning Sadie woke up to the sound of her oldest daughter screaming. She tore into the children’s bedroom and found Mellissa staring out the window, a horrible keening wail coming out of her mouth.
“Mel! What is it! Sweet heart, what’s happened!”
“It was there!” Her daughter pointed out the window. “It was right there!”
“What was! Melissa, what!”
“Jenny’s not in her bedroom!” Her husband cried, running into the room. “Mel! Where’s Jenny!”
“It was there,” She repeated, eyes wide and unblinking. “It was right there.”