Mr. Belly

It started on a Thursday.

Lily screamed in the middle of the night. I bolted out of bed, heart pounding, and ran to her room. Mom and Dad were already there, clutching their robes, panic etched on their faces.

Lily sat on her bed, trembling, her blanket pulled up to her chin. Her wide eyes were locked on the window.

“There’s someone at the window,” she whispered.

I turned and looked. Nothing. The backyard was still. The wind barely moved the trees.

“I saw him,” Lily insisted, her voice shaking. “He was big. Really big. His skin was oily and sagged like melted wax. His belly... it growled. Loud. Like a monster. He tapped on the glass and said, let me in, little one... I have sweets just for you.”

Dad flicked on the porch light and stepped outside with a bat. Nothing. Just grass and silence.

“She probably had a bad dream,” Mom said, brushing Lily’s hair. “No more scary stories before bed.”

But I saw her eyes. That wasn’t a dream.

“I’ll stay with you,” I told her, climbing into her bed. She gripped my hand until she fell asleep.

I waited a while before slipping out. I was tired. I thought she'd be okay.

I was wrong.

At 2:43 AM, her scream tore through the house like a knife. I flew down the hallway with my parents.

Her room was empty.

The window was open.

Curtains flapped against the breeze. Her blanket was on the floor. No sign of struggle. No blood. Just an open window and silence that pressed into my chest like a weight.

Mom collapsed to her knees, screaming Lily’s name. Dad called the police.

They searched the woods. They searched the neighborhood. Dogs, flashlights, helicopters.

Nothing.

That was five days ago.

Now I sleep with my light on. My door locked. But I still hear it.

The tapping.

Soft. Patient.

Last night, I heard the whisper outside my own window.

Let me in, little one... I have sweets just for you.

And then, the growl.

It wasn’t a dream.

Mister Belly is real.

And now, he’s hungry again.

Tags:
horror, scary story, vocal horror, bedtime terror, creepypasta, missing child, monster at window, urban legend, horror fiction, suspense thriller