The
October weather was getting
cooler and it couldn't be long till it
would start
snowing. A little past eleven it was and
pitch black
outside. My face was just a few inches clear of the cold winds blowing
outside the window. I listened to the
wailing as they made
nature's
instruments
vibrate. I could almost see
the Bogeyman in front of me,
playing the
doomsday organ. Chills ran up my
spine.
The sound of my wife turning in the bed brought me back to the
reality. I shrugged off the frightening thoughts. Once again that day
I noticed being exceptionally tired. A long and demanding day of work
was past. Wonder why I wasn't sleeping already. No reason to stay up
any more. I hit the sack without my nightly routine of reading. Too
tired to concentrate. For a moment I hoped I wouldn't have to wake up
the next morning and face the challenges of the day, but I found the
thought somehow scary - as if I was going to die before dawn. I tried
to cool down.
Somewhere in the borderlines of sleep I started to hear
footsteps. I could tell they were approaching. I got scared. A
burglar, a serial killer or something even worse? I was frozen with
the expectation of my own death. Then I woke up to reality. I could
now hear the steps more clearly, the paws of a dog hitting the
parquetry. That must be Spot! I sighed of the relief. But still - I
sensed there was something metallic about the sound. I was too tired
to care, though, as long as I could get back to sleep. Then I heard a
door creak open. It was too dark to see, but it was obviously the
bedroom door. Now I could hear Spot walk very clearly. He came closer
and I felt him climb onto the bed, on top of me. That stupid dog, I
thought. Coming to disturb me at this time. However, I was too tired
to send him away. I could feel him walking over me. His paws felt
surprisingly hard, but I couldn't be sure of myself, being half
asleep. Next he licked my cheek. At first the sensation was pleasant,
but suddenly my cheek felt hot and I sensed a weird tingling, that
escalated into a pain.
"Ow!" I went with a muffled moan.
Spot continued licking my face, and soon the pain was unbearable, it
was all over my face.
"Quit it, Spot! Get away, it hurts!" I yelled.
The noise had awakened my wife, and she said with a surprise in her
voice:
"Spot? Don't you remember we lost him in the summer."
Then she switched on the light and turned to see.
Originally written for my
IB Finnish A1 class on
Feb 15, 1995, after
inspiration from
Ray Bradbury's
stories.
Translated into
English for the
scary stories quest.