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I awoke to find my room almost pitch black. The nightlight to my right was the only thing on. As my eyes slowly adjusted to the room I heard a noise in the corner.

"Hello?" I whispered, cowering in my blanket.

I knew what was in my room. They were the shadows that constantly scared me every night since my birthday. This past week they've gotten worse. Trying to get closer to me. Last night they were a foot away before my dad turned on the lights. Maybe today they would get close enough to do something.

My mom always said I was being childish, that if I just go back to sleep they'll go away. I squeezed my eyes shut and told myself they weren't real, hoping with every fiber of my being that they'd disappear.

But I couldn't help myself; I peeked.

Looming before me was a long dark shadow, tendrils reaching towards me. I screamed scrambling off my bed, narrowly missing the Shadow as I fell to the floor.

I yelled, running to the corner of my room. I brought my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around them, slowly rocking back and forth. "You're not real. You're not real."

As if things could get any worse, tendrils broke off of it and formed into more Shadows. Tears started running down my face, each one coming faster than the other. My stomach felt as if it were going to come flying out of my throat.

Just as one of the Shadows was about to reach me I heard a loud bang. One that most definitely saved my life.

"Callie!" My dad yelled.

The Shadows turned to him, making a horrifying screech as they saw him reach towards the light. As he flicked the switch, one of the taller ones flung itself towards the light, wrapped itself around it, and soon it made a pop sound and sparks flew from it. They moved towards me again, faster than before.

"No! You can't have her!" My dad flung himself towards me just as the Shadows were about to touch me. One made contact with him and his body began to spasm as if their tendrils were filled with electricity.

"Leave him alone!" I yelled desperately.

"Callie," my dad gasped as another spasm passed. "Get away from here. Go to my room and don't come out!" I looked at him for a second, not sure if I should listen. But what else was I supposed to do?

So I ran. I ran as fast as my little chubby feet would let me. The other two Shadows came behind me, one grabbed my foot just as I reached the hallway.

"Get off of me!" I looked behind me and saw that its arm--if you could even call it that--was starting to sizzle. It pulled back, screeching in pain.
I sprinted down the hall to my parents room, banging the door open.

"Mommy! They have daddy!" I yelled, jolting my mom awake. As if to emphasize what I had just said, there was a loud piercing scream coming from my bedroom.

My mom was instantly up, ready to bolt into my room. She grabbed a flashlight from under the bed and raced down the hall. I didn't go after her. I knew it would be too late to do anything. Too late to save daddy. Too late to save me.

Everything after that became a blur. All I remember from that point was my mom screaming, police sirens, me standing in the threshold of my room, and a dark stain on the floor. I sat next to that stain and cried as a numbing sensation took over. I knew this was the only thing that was left of my dad. I didn't know whether they took him or if he was dead. How could I possibly know? I was only a kid. Yet, it seemed the police expected me to know exactly what had happened to him...
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"Did he walk out the door?" I stared at the small rounded man who was asking me the question.
I don't know how many times they've asked me the same questions. Did he hurt you? Was he acting weird? Did he tell you where he was going?

They didn't seem to understand that he didn't leave, or hurt me. On the contrary he saved me. But they didn't believe me after seeing the burn on my leg. The thought of those creatures leaving their mark and taking my dad brought tears back to my eyes.

"No," I said rubbing my eyes. "I told you what happened. I just want to go home."
Maybe they would have at least giving me the benefit of the doubt if my mom hadn't told them I've been making up stories about the dark and what not.

"Listen sweetie," the man said leaning close to me. "You don't have to protect him. If he hurt you we have to know. People who hurt kids shouldn't be out in the world."

"Please mister, I just want to go home. I already told you everything I know." I said looking down at my bandaged leg.

"Alright." He said padding my shoulder.

I was left alone in the colorless room. I was exhausted. All I wanted to do was go home and sleep. Maybe if I slept and woke up I'd find that everything was a dream. So I laid my head on the cold metal table and closed my eyes.

What am I going to do? What are me and mommy going to do? Daddy was go--

Before I could finish the thought I heard a door slam.

"Hello?"
The light above me started flickering. A shiver went down my spine as I stood. To my surprise there was something black forming in the far corner of the boxed room.

"No..." I whispered. Every time the light would flicker on the Shadow moved closer to me. By the fifth flicker it was standing right in front of me.

"You want your daddy? I'll take you to him!" It said. It sounded like that one bulky dude from Resident Evil: Apocalypse. Well if he made coherent sentences, I'd imagine this is what he would have sounded like.

I screamed my lungs out as it touched me but instead of a searing pain I expected to feel, the Shadow disappeared. And Frank Sinatra was standing in its place.
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I jolted awake to find Frank Sinatra's I did it my way playing on my radio. Just like every morning since my dad 'disappeared'. And just like every time I've slept, I had that reoccurring nightmare about that night. I looked around my room to make sure every lamp was still illuminating every square inch of my room. Although my clock read 5:25 a.m. it was still dark outside. Which meant those damned Shadows could come for me.

It was the same thing every time. Right before it turned dark outside I would turn on every light there was in my house, I'd go to sleep and have that blasted dream, I'd wake hoping my mom hadn't turned everything off, and when the sun finally came out I'd turn the lights off.

The Doctors had called this achluophobia; fear of darkness. I guess you could say they aren't wrong. But I have reason to be afraid. Even if they thought it was just a silly way of coping with what had happened to me as a child, I knew that they were real.

As real as the burn scar on my leg.

Another awful reminder of that dreadful night. I picked up a picture of me and my dad--something I also did every morning--and shed a tear. I'd lost my innocence as a child that day, but most importantly I'd lost the one person who would keep the monsters away. But I hadn't lost hope of finding some way to bring my dad back. I mean I didn't actually know he was dead. Maybe they just took him hostage.

Maybe one day I'll hear my dad singing along with Frank again...