Burn
Burn
The wind howled as it raced between the branches. Joey Riche raced across the damp grass, seeking refuge from the relentless rain. The porch roof provided shelter from the elements as Joey searched for his keys. He finally found the keys stashed away in one of the grocery bags he was carrying. He made his way into the house and kicked the door closed behind him as he dumped the groceries on to the counter.
“Emma, you here?” he asked. He started to navigate through the maze of half unpacked boxes. “Emma Grace, would you just answer me already?” The house creaked in response. Joey groaned as he realized his girlfriend wasn’t there. He headed back to the kitchen to put away the rapidly defrosting food when the lights flickered on and off before finally sputtering out. “I knew we never should’ve bought this house,” Joey mumbled under his breath. He just had to buy it though. Emma had fallen in love with the house and it’s quaint, quiet charm. Fumbling around like a man without eyes, he made his way to the cabinet where they kept candles, matches, and flashlights. Joey grabbed a thin candle and struggled a bit as he tried to ignite the match. It finally struck and he looked at what he held in his hand. A hissing serpent was trying to wiggle out of his grasp. With a scream, he released the snake. It hit the floor with a small thud and slivered away.
Looking into the cabinet, he realized it was full of vermin as they scurried to hide away from the lit match. Cringing slightly, he slowly reached in until his hand held a candle. Quickly, he snapped his arm back to him and slammed the cabinet door. He heard the creatures all cry out at once, but their sounds ceased as soon as he lit the candle. Intrigued, Joey dared to take a peek inside the cabinet. The creatures were gone. Taking his chances, he decided to grab a flashlight. He was pulling one out when the cabinet slammed shut on his wrist.
The flashlight crashed to the floor as Joey yelped in pain. Cursing under his breath, he retrieved the metal flashlight from the cold tiled floor. He felt a warm liquid snaking its way down his hand. Figuring it was blood, Joey headed to the bathroom. The flickering candle somewhat illuminated his path and cast his shadow across the wall. He turned a corner and blindly tripped on the corner of a cardboard box. He fell and the contents of the box splayed over him as the container tipped over. He brushed Emma’s knick knacks off of him and wearily pushed himself up to his feet. Taking a step, pain coursed through his body. Joey limped to the bathroom, dragging his sprained ankle behind him.
He stepped inside, turned the flashlight on, and placed it on the counter where Emma kept her make-up. The light cast eerie shadows on the walls and in the mirror, but Joey tried to ignore them. Able to see his wrist for the first time, he turned the faucet on and let the blood run off of his fingers and through the drain. He watched as the thick crimson liquid mixed with the water.
Wanting to see if he had hit his head when he had fallen, he looked into the mirror. He was messing with his hair when his reflection faded away. He was staring into a blank mirror. Well, almost blank. In the very depths of the mirror, there was… something. He leaned closer to get a better look. A girl who appeared to be his age was walking towards the mirror. Her pink nightgown swirled around her ankles and her golden hair was being blown off of her shoulders. With every step she grew in size until she and Joey were face to face.
Very faintly, the girl smiled. Joey felt like he was dreaming. He knew he was moving but felt as though he had no conscious say in the matter. He felt compelled to touch the beautiful girl that was standing before him. Her smile grew wider as she realized he wanted to touch her porcelain skin. He became lost in her sapphire blue eyes. As soon as his hand touch the cold, smooth surface, the girl’s smile took on an evil quality. She laughed and the flashlight went out as the mirror shattered. The falling shards of glass sliced open Joey’s good arm. Being plummeted into darkness, Joey dropped to the floor and began to feel his way around. He needed to get out. Now.
Whispers began to torment his ears. “Joey. Joey. Joey. Joey. Joey,” over and over again like a broken record. The chorus of voices wouldn’t leave him alone. He felt like the house was closing in on him; maybe it was, but he couldn’t see a thing. He started to hyperventilate as he reached the kitchen. Standing up, he tried to run towards the door but ended up limping, dragging his ankle behind him. God, where had he put those keys?
He searched for them frantically when the lights suddenly came back on. He sighed heavily in relief and gingerly leaned his weight against the counter. He felt like eyes were trained on him though, and he slowly turned around. The girl from the mirror stood there crying but he couldn’t hear her sobs. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she shook from the tears. Feeling like he needed to comfort this poor weeping girl, he took a step forward.
The room sprung up in flames that licked his face, singeing him. The room became unbearably hot and Joey struggled to breath clean air. The girl mouthed a single word. Help. Her unheard voice seemingly fed the flames as they sprung up higher. Everything was on fire but nothing burned. Joey and the girl were the only things affected by the fire. The girl seemed as though she was glowing, her blonde hair and white skin replaced with greedy flames. Joey raised his arm to shield his eyes from the growing light radiating off her skin.
A chilling breeze had swept through the room and Joey looked up. The room seemed frozen in time. The fire was gone without a trace save for the badly burned girl. She had stretched her arm out towards him, her hand sprawled open as if she was waiting for him to grab it. He felt the urge to touch her once again. As soon as their skin came in contact with each other, her body started to slowly disintegrating. Piece by piece fell of slowly, turning into ash as it fell off her body. It happened as quickly as the wind scattering ashes across the sea but it felt like an eternity.
When her form collapsed, the lights flickered back out. Maniacal laughter surged throughout the house like someone was running while the were laughing. He jumped as a voice whispered in his ear, “Did you really think I was going to allow you to escape?” The laughter rang out again and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end.
The click of a key in the door drew Joey out of his petrified stance. He limped to the door as quickly as he could and stared into Emma’s bemused face. He could hear objects crashing around. The zing of a knife pierced the air and it thudded into the doorframe, inches from his face. “What the hell is going on?” Emma demanded, “And what happened to you?”
Joey just grabbed her arm and hobbled into the cool October air. “We’re leaving! Now!” he yelled to be heard over the screeching wind.
“But everything we own is in that house!” she argued. “Why do we have to leave?” She must not have seen the knife.
Joey crashed against the passenger door as he struggled to open it. “Just get in the car and drive!” he snarled.
The house erupted into flames again, this time burning everything with it. A gut wrenching scream of agony and hopelessness filled the chilly night air. Terror swam in Emma’s eyes as she jumped into the car. Without asking anymore questions, she sped away into the night.
“Emma, you here?” he asked. He started to navigate through the maze of half unpacked boxes. “Emma Grace, would you just answer me already?” The house creaked in response. Joey groaned as he realized his girlfriend wasn’t there. He headed back to the kitchen to put away the rapidly defrosting food when the lights flickered on and off before finally sputtering out. “I knew we never should’ve bought this house,” Joey mumbled under his breath. He just had to buy it though. Emma had fallen in love with the house and it’s quaint, quiet charm. Fumbling around like a man without eyes, he made his way to the cabinet where they kept candles, matches, and flashlights. Joey grabbed a thin candle and struggled a bit as he tried to ignite the match. It finally struck and he looked at what he held in his hand. A hissing serpent was trying to wiggle out of his grasp. With a scream, he released the snake. It hit the floor with a small thud and slivered away.
Looking into the cabinet, he realized it was full of vermin as they scurried to hide away from the lit match. Cringing slightly, he slowly reached in until his hand held a candle. Quickly, he snapped his arm back to him and slammed the cabinet door. He heard the creatures all cry out at once, but their sounds ceased as soon as he lit the candle. Intrigued, Joey dared to take a peek inside the cabinet. The creatures were gone. Taking his chances, he decided to grab a flashlight. He was pulling one out when the cabinet slammed shut on his wrist.
The flashlight crashed to the floor as Joey yelped in pain. Cursing under his breath, he retrieved the metal flashlight from the cold tiled floor. He felt a warm liquid snaking its way down his hand. Figuring it was blood, Joey headed to the bathroom. The flickering candle somewhat illuminated his path and cast his shadow across the wall. He turned a corner and blindly tripped on the corner of a cardboard box. He fell and the contents of the box splayed over him as the container tipped over. He brushed Emma’s knick knacks off of him and wearily pushed himself up to his feet. Taking a step, pain coursed through his body. Joey limped to the bathroom, dragging his sprained ankle behind him.
He stepped inside, turned the flashlight on, and placed it on the counter where Emma kept her make-up. The light cast eerie shadows on the walls and in the mirror, but Joey tried to ignore them. Able to see his wrist for the first time, he turned the faucet on and let the blood run off of his fingers and through the drain. He watched as the thick crimson liquid mixed with the water.
Wanting to see if he had hit his head when he had fallen, he looked into the mirror. He was messing with his hair when his reflection faded away. He was staring into a blank mirror. Well, almost blank. In the very depths of the mirror, there was… something. He leaned closer to get a better look. A girl who appeared to be his age was walking towards the mirror. Her pink nightgown swirled around her ankles and her golden hair was being blown off of her shoulders. With every step she grew in size until she and Joey were face to face.
Very faintly, the girl smiled. Joey felt like he was dreaming. He knew he was moving but felt as though he had no conscious say in the matter. He felt compelled to touch the beautiful girl that was standing before him. Her smile grew wider as she realized he wanted to touch her porcelain skin. He became lost in her sapphire blue eyes. As soon as his hand touch the cold, smooth surface, the girl’s smile took on an evil quality. She laughed and the flashlight went out as the mirror shattered. The falling shards of glass sliced open Joey’s good arm. Being plummeted into darkness, Joey dropped to the floor and began to feel his way around. He needed to get out. Now.
Whispers began to torment his ears. “Joey. Joey. Joey. Joey. Joey,” over and over again like a broken record. The chorus of voices wouldn’t leave him alone. He felt like the house was closing in on him; maybe it was, but he couldn’t see a thing. He started to hyperventilate as he reached the kitchen. Standing up, he tried to run towards the door but ended up limping, dragging his ankle behind him. God, where had he put those keys?
He searched for them frantically when the lights suddenly came back on. He sighed heavily in relief and gingerly leaned his weight against the counter. He felt like eyes were trained on him though, and he slowly turned around. The girl from the mirror stood there crying but he couldn’t hear her sobs. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she shook from the tears. Feeling like he needed to comfort this poor weeping girl, he took a step forward.
The room sprung up in flames that licked his face, singeing him. The room became unbearably hot and Joey struggled to breath clean air. The girl mouthed a single word. Help. Her unheard voice seemingly fed the flames as they sprung up higher. Everything was on fire but nothing burned. Joey and the girl were the only things affected by the fire. The girl seemed as though she was glowing, her blonde hair and white skin replaced with greedy flames. Joey raised his arm to shield his eyes from the growing light radiating off her skin.
A chilling breeze had swept through the room and Joey looked up. The room seemed frozen in time. The fire was gone without a trace save for the badly burned girl. She had stretched her arm out towards him, her hand sprawled open as if she was waiting for him to grab it. He felt the urge to touch her once again. As soon as their skin came in contact with each other, her body started to slowly disintegrating. Piece by piece fell of slowly, turning into ash as it fell off her body. It happened as quickly as the wind scattering ashes across the sea but it felt like an eternity.
When her form collapsed, the lights flickered back out. Maniacal laughter surged throughout the house like someone was running while the were laughing. He jumped as a voice whispered in his ear, “Did you really think I was going to allow you to escape?” The laughter rang out again and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end.
The click of a key in the door drew Joey out of his petrified stance. He limped to the door as quickly as he could and stared into Emma’s bemused face. He could hear objects crashing around. The zing of a knife pierced the air and it thudded into the doorframe, inches from his face. “What the hell is going on?” Emma demanded, “And what happened to you?”
Joey just grabbed her arm and hobbled into the cool October air. “We’re leaving! Now!” he yelled to be heard over the screeching wind.
“But everything we own is in that house!” she argued. “Why do we have to leave?” She must not have seen the knife.
Joey crashed against the passenger door as he struggled to open it. “Just get in the car and drive!” he snarled.
The house erupted into flames again, this time burning everything with it. A gut wrenching scream of agony and hopelessness filled the chilly night air. Terror swam in Emma’s eyes as she jumped into the car. Without asking anymore questions, she sped away into the night.