I find myself panting. I sit up in my bed; the sheets are soaked with sweat. I get up and walk to my window throwing it open and breathing in the midnight air. The cool rushes through my lungs and I feel awake. But I’m still hot. I’m burning! I climb through my window onto the fire escape. I feel what’s left of the snow from the last storm. It turns to a puddle beneath my bare feet. I’m scantily dressed. Only a small pair of shorts and tank top keeps my body from the harsh winter air. But I can’t feel it. Oh what I would give to feel it. I hear a crash and look up. The window above mine flies open and another woman rushes onto the stairs of the fire escape. She lets out a pained scream and with that throws herself into the night. Her body lands with a thump on the alley below the building. She lies, crumpled and broken on the cold hard asphalt. Something swarms around her. It looks like a huge man clouded in black fog. I yell at the monster to stay away from her. He, no It, looks up at me. It cracks what I think is a smile; I see the glow of its yellowish teeth. It leaps into the air and flies up towards me. I shriek and the thing rushes at me. I brace myself for the impact, but instead experience the first cold I have felt all night. It races through my body, freezing my veins, stopping my blood. It’s over as soon as it began. The creature jumps the next window and slides through the glass. Minutes later another person, a man this time, races onto the balcony and screams as he kills himself.Person after person repeatedly rushes to kill themselves. Finally the monster, ghost, creature, demon, whatever it is, lands on my part of the escape. This time I can clearly see his smile. His teeth are a gruesome yellow color, all uneven and coming to a sharp point. I realize they aren’t teeth at all, they’re fangs. He leans forward and strokes my hair, then my face, then my arms, running his hands over me. I feel the fire freeze as it turns to ice. His hands are faded and cadaverous, long fingers ending in 3 inch long claws. His hands return to my face. He runs his nails along my skin and I feel them go through my flesh. “I saved you for last” he says in a wicked cruel voice. “You already know what’s coming so why deal with all the dramatics?” He takes his hand and plunges it into my chest. I feel it surround my heart as he crushes it. I let out the most enormous pained scream and fall to my knees. With a flash he disappears and I stand up. I walk calmly over to the railing and grasp it. I can feel the cold of it. I pull myself up on top of it. Standing there I scream into the cold, dark night and step off the rail. I land on the cold street; twisted and dying. The creature appears next to me. The last thing I see is his yellow teeth smiling down at me.
I climb through my window onto the fire escape. I feel what’s left of the snow from the last storm. It turns to a puddle beneath my bare feet. I’m scantily dressed. Only a small pair of shorts and tank top keeps my body from the harsh winter air. But I can’t feel it. Oh what I would give to feel it.
I hear a crash and look up. The window above mine flies open and another woman rushes onto the stairs of the fire escape. She lets out a pained scream and with that throws herself into the night.
Her body lands with a thump on the alley below the building. She lies, crumpled and broken on the cold hard asphalt. Something swarms around her. It looks like a huge man clouded in black fog.
I yell at the monster to stay away from her. He, no It, looks up at me. It cracks what I think is a smile; I see the glow of its yellowish teeth. It leaps into the air and flies up towards me. I shriek and the thing rushes at me. I brace myself for the impact, but instead experience the first cold I have felt all night. It races through my body, freezing my veins, stopping my blood.
It’s over as soon as it began. The creature jumps the next window and slides through the glass. Minutes later another person, a man this time, races onto the balcony and screams as he kills himself. Person after person repeatedly rushes to kill themselves. Finally the monster, ghost, creature, demon, whatever it is, lands on my part of the escape.
This time I can clearly see his smile. His teeth are a gruesome yellow color, all uneven and coming to a sharp point. I realize they aren’t teeth at all, they’re fangs. He leans forward and strokes my hair, then my face, then my arms, running his hands over me. I feel the fire freeze as it turns to ice. His hands are faded and cadaverous, long fingers ending in 3 inch long claws. His hands return to my face. He runs his nails along my skin and I feel them go through my flesh.
“I saved you for last” he says in a wicked cruel voice. “You already know what’s coming so why deal with all the dramatics?” He takes his hand and plunges it into my chest. I feel it surround my heart as he crushes it. I let out the most enormous pained scream and fall to my knees. With a flash he disappears and I stand up.
I walk calmly over to the railing and grasp it. I can feel the cold of it. I pull myself up on top of it. Standing there I scream into the cold, dark night and step off the rail. I land on the cold street; twisted and dying. The creature appears next to me.
The last thing I see is his yellow teeth smiling down at me.