Midnight Dance

He felt his eyes close. Shadows danced as a train passed and his light flickered on and off. The clock ticked to midnight. The walls had long since lost their charm, with the wallpaper peeling, slowly. He got up and washed his face in the bathroom, trying not to inhale the mold as he entered.

He had liked his old neighborhood; off the river, in a quaint, little suburb where life seemed to stand still. But the new job was too great an opportunity to pass up.

The bathroom light began to flicker as he soaked his face in the sink. His hands began to feel numb, so he turned the faucet to the left and stumbled his way back into his single bedroom. He checked the time; it was one. He crawled back into bed and lay, staring at the ceiling. The wind began to howl and the sky began to pour. His eyes scanned the room and went slowly from the window up the wall. There was a crack and water dripped as the rain fell.

A flash of lightning and the shadows grew more pronounced, making shapes in the dark. He checked the clock and it was two.

He had heard the neighbors whispering the day before. He had said hello and was met with worried looks. A year before, the previous owner had committed suicide. When the police had come, they had only found a pool of blood and a finger, no body. The pool of blood trailed off to where the crack now laid and tiny scratches left their marks on the hardwood floor. The police theorized that he had gone insane, cutting off his own finger and then gutting himself before driving his car into the river. However, this was just a theory.

Another drip of water and the clock hit three. Another flash of lightning and the shadows seemed to inch closer to the bed. He heard a tapping on the window and another flash. The light bulb shattered and he was in utter darkness. The train passed and he could make out the outlines of a face; he was not alone.

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Hi all, it’s been a bit! I’ve been extremely busy but felt in the mood to write, so here we are. As you are aware, I’ve started diving into short stories and have been mostly be doing fantasy and near-future apocalyptic story-lines. As Autumn has come around, I thought it’d be fun to dive further into horror. It’ll be sloppy at first but I’m hoping to improve through practice. Hope you enjoyed this piece and as always, feel free to comment below!