Hello, Nightmare at My Window.

“Come on, Annette, it isn’t that bad.” Kate proclaimed next to me.
“Not that bad! Kate, it’s repulsive.” I grimaced while looking back at the girl glaring at me, stuffed into a coral dress that flaired out at the bottom. Don’t get me wrong. It was a pretty dress - I’m just not that kind of girl. In fact, people would consider themselves lucky if they were to catch me wearing a dress.
I groaned as I played with the loose ends of my curlded blonde hair that fell ligtly ontop of my chest.

Kate laughed. “Well, I’m leaving you. The banquet awaits.” She said waltzing towards my door that was decorated with various band posters.
As if on cue, Max appeared at the doorway extending his hand out to her.
“M’lady.” He replied in a fake British accent.
I rolled my eyes as they left the room, applying red lipstick to my lips to finish off my dolled-up attire.

Sighing, I grabbed the hairspray off of my dresser top, coating my curls in another toxic layer.
“Wow.” I heard someone say behind me.
I turned around to greet the familiar face of my twin brother, stiffling a laugh as usual.
I glared back at him.
“I’m sorry, En. Just didn’t think I’d see you in anything that pink after we were five at Mom’s wedding.” I grimaced, remembering how she practically had to tie my down and dress me that afternoon. I kicked and screamed in a tantrum, but she wouldn’t cave. It was her wedding and I was her flower girl - which resulted in me having to wear something so atrocious.
I turned back towards the mirror, scowling.

“Awe. I take it back. You look great…It’s just so, pink. Ya know?”
“Thanks, Oli. You really know how to bring up a mood.”
At this he laughed, and then something strange happened. I heard a distant “help” break my intense glare.

I turned back towards Oli.
“Did you say something?”
He looked back at me concerned. “No…” He said, furrowing his eyebrows in dismay.
“Annette?” Kate came in with her face shown in clear panic.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, desperately.
Oli, Kate, and Max all stared back at me in shock. As if something horrible had happened to me.
I raised my hand up to my face to make sure it had not fallen off. For some reason that was my first thought as to why they looked at me so oddly.

Kate began to sob uncontrollably.
“What? What’s the matter, Kate?” I questioned, making my way over to her. I put my hand on her arm and she pushed it away.
“Help!” She screamed, falling to the floor.
“What?” I questioned, running to her side on the wooden-paneled floor.
“Help!” she screamed again, looking up to me with her hazel eyes filled with desperation .
Suddenly, everything around me becoming fuzzy and I lost my grip on Kate as I spiraled into mid-air, in full confusion.

-

I jolted up, bundled in my dark purple bed sheets. The wind seeping through the crack in my window hit me like a pound of ice. I shivered, pulling the sheets up to my chin.
It was all a dream.
From when I was still living in Norway, Michigan, and spent every waking moment with friends who meant the world to me. But, I wasn’t in my hoven anymore. I was back at the university where no one knew I even existed. Nothing in the dream had actually happened. Max, Oli, nor Kate were here. I wasn’t stuffed into a bright pink dress. And there were no screams for help.

I shook my head, trying to interpret the dream.
“I really don’t need to read depressing poetry before I sleep.” I muttered, prying my fingers through my entangled, blonde waves.

“Help!” I heard once again - this time followed by an ear-shattering scream.

On the other-hand, maybe my dream was real.

My back stiffened in fear. Though, a part of me knew well enough that my conscious was too curious to let something like this go by. You see, if I hadn’t looked in search of the sound, I would have been left in years of resentment for never trying to find the answer. Such as the one time my mother took me to have an afternoon of “mother-daughter bonding” in which she gladly picked out a romantic comedy flick. Half-way through the movie, the film broke and we were refunded our tickets. However, I was left in a terrible mood the rest of the week because, even though I hadn’t really cared for the movie so much – I still needed to know the ending.
This is a common issue in my life. I’m too curious.

I gently pealed the violet covers off of me, causing me to shiver slightly at the sudden abruption of cold air. Then, I pushed my legs over the side of my bed, jolting back a little as my toes brushed against the tiled floor. It felt as if I lived in a room made of ice.

But my curiousity wouldn’t budge. The cold state of my surroundings would not hold me back.

I jumped onto the floor without further hesitation and made my way across the room to the window, drawing back the white drapery. I peered out of the window noticing a young girl laying face-down in the snow.

“Hello?” I breathed out, forgetting that the window was closed.
I sighed at my stupidity, pulling at the latches on the sides of the window.
This time I asked through an open window. “Hello?” I called out to the dark-haired mystery girl.

I bit my lip in anticipation.
She’s not….dead, is she?

I shivered at the mere thought of seeing a dead person. Never in my life had I come across a dead body before. And I certainly didn’t want to now.
I walked over to my bed, picking up my phone to dial 911. Then, I walked back towards the window, placing myself across the window sill, and drawing back the curtains. But just as I began pushing in the numbers, I glanced downwards and gasped at the scene unfolding before me.

The girl was now standing and a boy with dark hair stood nearby her.
She began to whimper as she attempted to walk away, limping slightly. Then, she turned around and upon noticing the man let out another scream.

I covered my ears in reflex. Apart of me wanted to turn my sight away from the scene and close the curtains, but my curiosity left my frozen in place. My back stiffened as I leaned closer to the window trying to get a better view of the people. Unfortunately, I was four floors too high up, and couldn’t make out anything other than gender and hair color.

“Hel-” she began to scream again, but this time something stopped her. I drew back in shock as I witnessed the dark-haired man move towards the woman faster than I ever knew was humanly possible.
He now held her up by her neck in mid-air, letting her fall back helplessly in his hand.

“I told you to keep quiet, girl.” He muttered, barely audible. He spoke so quietly, I only was able to make out a few words.

She whimpered again, and he gently lowered her, letting her feet reach the ground.
“I promise I won’t tell.” She managed to say between sobs. “I – I promise.”
He drew his face closer to her, and seemed to loosen his grip around her neck.
He pulled her body in with his other hand, embracing her tightly again. “It’s okay.” He said, breaking the melody of her sniffling.

I breathed out a sigh of relief, feeling as if whatever had happened had been resolved between them and nothing tragic was going to occur like I had expected.
“It’s okay.” He said once again and I averted my eyes back to the embraced couple, as the girl began to cry louder. Her sobs were beginning to become uncontrollable. I didn’t understand. It was resolved. Why was she crying harder? A release of tension, perhaps?

Then a frightening “snap” entered my ears. My eyes flew open-wide in shock as the girl fell back limply in his hands and he caught her without a moment’s hesitation.
He just snapped her neck...He killed her.

Without realizing my actions, I did the worst thing I could have done in that moment as I let out a loud gasp, forgetting that my window was open. I covered my mouth realizing my mistake. But it was too late - the man’s face shot up to my window, as he took in my appearance.

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