January 28, 2021

Raine Jeff

The sky shakes with enough energy to fuel a car for weeks. Rain pours down in sheets, drenching the ground to the point that I can see my reflection on the street. I pull my raincoat over my hands and rush over to the awning above my parents’ shop. The open sign is flashing in the window, and finally, flickers off. It’s ominous, I can feel something bad is about to happen.

I pull open the door to my parents’ shop, freezing to let the warm air thaw my frozen bones. My mother looks up from the register where she’s counting money and waves at me to come over and help.

Suddenly, the lights go out, and a loud screeching sound fills the air. My mother gasps just as a shadowy figure emerges from the office in the back. It looks like my father, but somehow, it isn’t, his arm is twitching and his eyes are glowing red.

My mother screams, and he glances at her quickly, then goes back to staring at me. I slowly back away, pushing the door open and sending rain flying all over the freshly polished floors. I quickly bolt outside, running like never before. Checking behind me, to make sure he isn’t following.

THUD

The entire left side of my head is engulfed in searing pain. My vision blurs and I fall to the ground. The last thing I see before I blackout is the faint outline of a lamp post.

***

I wake up to the sound of clanging pots and pans downstairs. I am in a cold sweat and shivering. I look outside my window and see swaying trees and cracks of lightning shooting through the sky. My breath clams down until I hear a loud screeching…