Sweetie

It is dark, with only a sliver of light seeping through the bottom of the door. I strain to see through the tiny keyhole and into the room. There was a large bed with a nightstand on either side. The sheets were in disarray, as if the bed hadn't been made in a while.

Suddenly, my attention is drawn to the other door on the right side of the bed. Daddy enters, talking to Mommy who trails behind him, looking quite exhausted. It seems to be more one-sided than anything else, with her only uttering a few words and turning away from him as they get into bed. She pulls the covers over her, nearly covering her head, and ignoring him. He sighs irritably before turning off the light.

Now I really can’t see anything. Slowly, I open the door, slipping into the room and gliding over the cold wood floor to stand just at the end of the bed. Surprisingly, neither of them reacts to the light pouring into the room.

“Mommy?” I ask, hoping she isn’t asleep yet.

“What is it sweetie?” Mommy mumbles.

“I had a nightmare. Can I sleep here tonight?”

“Sweetie-” she starts and sighs. “Sure,” she pats in the middle of the bed.

I immediately hop up onto the bed and plant myself between them. She rolls over to face me and her eyes widen. Her mouth opens, yet no words come. I gaze at her curiously as she shakily reaches over to the table where the lamp sat.

“What is it Mommy?” I smile.

“Y-you-” her fingers graze the lamp, knocking it off the table.

The lamp shatters on the floor, spreading ceramic shards across the wood. My gaze flicks down to the lamp, then back to her and I give her a sinister grin. Like a viper, my large, bony hand clamps over her mouth seconds before she begins to scream.

Her whole body trembles beneath me. Her eyes were fixed on my own as I maintained my evil grin. I place a finger over my mouth, indicating that she should be quiet.

"You wouldn't want to wake Daddy, would you?"

He finally jolts awake and stares at me, his hands shaking and lips quivering. Without a second thought, he leaps off the bed, desperately running for the gun in the corner. He fumbles with the bullets and a few clatter to the floor and then he aims at me.

My unflinching gaze remains trained on him as he fearfully fires a few rounds into my chest. Once he emptied the magazine, I merely blinked as the bullets passed through my flesh and landed softly on the bed.

"Well that wasn't very nice, Daddy."

His breath came in heavy gasps. “What-” his voice caught in his throat and the color drained from his face.

I crawl off the bed, leaving her ashes to drift into the chilling air. Now standing before him, I stretch to my full height, towering over him. I reach out, touching the cold, wet flesh on his face. Sweat dots his forehead and streaks down the sides of his face. My jaw cracks as I open my mouth wide enough to commence the feast.

When I’m nearly finished with my meal, bright light pours into the room from the door, followed by a loud creak. The sound of small bare feet on the wood gets closer and closer to me.

“Mommy? Daddy?” she whispers, clutching a ragged stuffed bunny in her tiny arms.

“Mommy’s right here, sweetie,” I turn to her and a grin slithers across my face.