Unbroken

I close my eyes as tightly as I can, seeing purple and blue splotches dance across the darkness. I press myself as hard against the wall as I can, listening closely to my surroundings. I'm about twelve steps from the staircase, hoping with every ounce of my being that I can make it down those old wooden steps without a sound.

My heart rate quickens as I hear its claws clicking along the floor, drawing near where I stood frozen.

Don’t look at it, keep your eyes closed, Marie. I chide myself as I hear it drag its body across the floor then… silence. I count to twenty before inching my way closer to the staircase, freezing once more as I hear a gurgle from somewhere within a spare bedroom. I take this as my chance to lightly prance to the stairs, where I halt once more, hand gripping the banister. I felt its hot breath on the back of the neck, but I keep my eyes closed, pressing my lips together to prevent a scream from escaping me.

I felt its sticky breath inch closer to me until it disappeared all together. Without me seeing it or acknowledging it, it won’t harm me. Yet.

I take one ginger step down, slowly applying my weight a bit of time on the very side of the step. The old house is full of rotted wood, just waiting for a young woman to step down and cause an unforgivable moan.

One step down, eleven to go.

Half way down I hear its thudding foot falls, freezing once more, feeling my muscles scream in protest. I have yet to open my eyes even as I feel it pass me, up and down the steps, several times. I hear its claws on the wall at the end of the hall downstairs, and I decide to risk three more steps.

I regret the decision almost immediately as my forehead comes in contact with a meaty substance. Reflex almost causes me to open my eyes, but I squeeze them tighter, fighting a cry of fear. I feel its hot breath once more, this time on the top of my head. It blows my red hair around as curls fall from the sleepy bun.

There was nothing I could do, but stay completely still, silent, and blind. The monster liked to play games. It knew its appearance was enough of a nightmare, but it also liked to watch as it tortured its prey. The only problem was it didn’t have eyes, so it needed mine.

But I knew its tricks. Unlike my siblings, I believed my grandmother’s stories.

I knew not to look under the bed, or check the closest when I heard a noise. I knew better than to call out at a mysterious racket thinking it was someone I knew.

I’ve hidden from this thing all my life, but now that it has picked off my brother and sisters, I’ve come back to this house to lure it to the one place it hates most: water.

There was a pond across the road that should be thawed by now. If I can make it out of the house without getting caught, it would most likely follow.

Finally the breathing stopped, I count its foot falls back up the stairs, while I silently finish my descent. The front door was mere feet away, but still I froze at the bottom of the steps as I listen to it drag its body across the ceiling.

I strain to hear anything through the silence, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end as it hovers above me. I could smell it.

Rotten fruit and dead animals.

I hear a loud crash from my parent's old bedroom, making my dash for the door, opening my eyes for the first time in hours the moment my feet hit the outside.

Its screech didn’t slow me down as I trudged through the snow, my heart pounding at the sight of the pond. Frozen. I had no time to stop as my bare feet hit the ice and I slide to the center of the body of water. I finally turned, eyes wide open, to look at it.

It was covered in rotten, scorched flesh, its legs were bent at impossible angles, arms of thick muscles. Its head was the shape of a dented melon, jagged teeth stuck out from its mouth, and finally where its eyes should have been was nothingness. Like two tiny abysses sat on its face.

It let out a roar that sent me falling onto the ice, where I heard a loud crack.

It circled the pond hungry as I rolled to my belly, trying to crawl my way to the other side. I stopped, horrified at the monster’s speed. I was surrounded.

I stand, brushing the snow from my plaid pajama pants. I straighten my pink tee shirt, wiping the hair out of my face. I settle my gaze on the monster, taking large strides toward its eager body.

Inches from its grasp, I let my body fall, slamming into the ice. Unlike this ice, this monster, I will remain unbroken.