Halloween Ghost Story Contest -- 2015
High School Winners

First Place

A Face in the Dark

by
Jessica Bryza

I jerked awake but lied as still as possible. Maybe it was just a dream or maybe my imagination had gotten the best of me. I opened my eyes but it didn't matter, I couldn't see anything in the pitch-black darkness. I think I must've just had a bad dream. Really, there's nothing the matter here, it's all my imagination. Then I heard it again...Thud, Thud-nd. Maybe it wasn't my imagination; maybe there is someone in the room with me ...my brain racing to conclusions, the worst possible ones. I lie as still as I can, paralyzed with fear, slowly pulling the covers up over my face. My heart pounding so loud I'm certain that whoever is there can surely hear its beating. I lie like that for what seemed an eternity, failing to hear another sound. I was finally convinced that my mind was playing tricks on me. I must've calmed down or gotten tired of waiting for nothing because one minute I was starring into the darkness and the next I couldn't tell if my eyes were opened or closed.

The next day I didn't hear any strange noises, not even the day after that. I almost forgot about the incident, I dismissed it as my imagination playing tricks on me. But as I turned off the lights and climbed into bed the next night, I heard a loud thud-thund. I quickly turned my light back on hoping to catch a glimpse of what I'd heard. As I bolted upright in my bed I felt a breeze and shivered, utterly spooked. I got up and checked the windows...the one in the corner was open, ah that must be where the sound came from, outside. As I got up to shut the window, I suddenly realized I couldn't recall opening it...not today or even anytime this past month.
Only somewhat reassured now that the windows were closed, I climbed back into bed, only to hear the same sounds coming from the end of the room by the previously open window. Turning my light back on I looked over but didn't see anything there that could've made the strange noise. Paranoid that something was in my room I grabbed my blankets and decided to sleep downstairs on the couch, at least then I could turn on the TV and not be in the dark.

Over the passing days my sleep is restless. As the noises seemed to become more frequent in my room my sleeping arrangements became more frequent with the couch. Then, as hard as this is to believe, things got weirder. There were more noises now, huffing and wheezing along with the continual thumping. I'm convinced it's a supernatural being, I can't think of any other explanation for the events that are happening in my house. I lay on the couch as I reflect on this, attempting to sleep with the TV on but the sound turned off. I must have dozed off because I was awakened by a sudden noise, the TV no longer on, I was in total darkness. In the pitch dark I suddenly hear it. I become paralyzed with fear, almost unable to breathe. There...I hear it a moan my heart pounds as I listen to "it" thump slowly down the steps, breathing loudly. I hear it stop; and hope it too can't see in this darkness. It seems to go silent for a second, like it's searching for me, then it continues "thump", "thud", growing nearer and nearer to me. I sense that It's only a few feet away from me now, and I'm frozen with terror, all I can do is lie here and hope it doesn't see me or smell my fear. I'm trying hard to keep it together, it helps that the creature, this thing, has stopped moving toward me but I can sense that it's only about a foot away from my face and that most certainly does not help keep me calm. It sounds as if it's whispering something but it could just be breathing softer now. My imagination is going crazy with theories, none of them good ones. I have to find my head before I lose it. My only relatively safe option seems to be to wait it out. Would that be possible? Could I make it till morning? It has to be getting light out soon... maybe this time it will stick around so I can establish whatever it is that's haunting my house. Meet the beast as it were. I slowly start to calm down. I can hear that the "thing" hasn't moved and has seemed to settle; hopefully it will leave me alone...at least for now. After a while, I subconsciously forget the thing is there and take a deep breath, disrupting the silence. As soon as I make my mistake I feared what I have caused. I heard the dragging of footsteps as it moved and thudded even closer to me. I, on the other hand, couldn't move and to think before this I never believed in ghosts, how incredibly stupid of me. I closed my eyes tighter than ever trying desperately not to shake the couch in fear. I could feel its presence hovering over me. Then, I felt something wet, almost slimy, rub against my face. I think I might've screamed, I don't quite remember though because I'm pretty sure I passed out and as I let myself fade into the darkness a surprising calm came over me...like I was being watched over, protected from the evil that I thought was in my house.

The next morning I woke to the sound of my phone. "Brring, brring! Bzzz. Brring, brring! Bzzz." I scrambled to get the phone before it stopped ringing, not quite sure where I was. "Hello, hello! Hello?" I waited for an answer to see if I picked up the phone in time. "Good morning, sweetie." A familiar, cheerful voice said on the other end. "Hey, mom how's it going?" I sat up on the couch and rubbed my eyes, last night's events slowly coming back into focus. "Well, I'm doing just fine sweetie how are you doing?" "I'm-" I was interrupted by an oncoming yawn, "Good I guess," I wasn't going to tell her about the ghost, she doesn't believe in them, probably because she's never had one living in her house. "Although I really have been missing Steve lately." I bet if he were here right now with me he would protect me from this supernatural bully, I thought. "I understand," she said, "he was a big part of your life, you should miss him. You know, I bet there are still a couple of his old shoes hidden around your house." I laughed a little, "Yeah, probably." I responded, my eyes becoming moist, "He probably has more stuff he loved hidden around here than we think." "Well, try not to be too sad." She said, "He's in a better place now anyway. All right, well I was just checking up on you. Listen, I have to go but you have a nice day okay?" she says. "Sure, love you mom." I reply. "Love you kiddo, bye-bye now." the phone clicked as I ended the call.

When I got off the phone with my mom I look around but I don't immediately see any signs of a ghost or anything else supernatural for that matter. I turn the TV back on and cranked up the volume hoping the background noise will keep my mind off things a bit. Nothing is on so I leave it on the weather channel, even though I know watching the weather won't make me any less jumpy. Maybe breakfast will distract me; food is good at taking your mind off things. As I walk into my normally clean kitchen, with the exception of a few dirty dishes left occasionally on the counters, I gasp in disbelief. My kitchen looked as though someone or something had been searching for lost treasure. Food, dishes, broken glasses, and cups seemed as though they had been exiled from their usual spots on the counters. Looking over this scene I notice the faucet trickled with a small stream of water. Shaking my head, I grabbed some shoes and tiptoed around the mess to shut off the water. I can't believe I slept through all this; I defiantly must've passed out. I shake my head again, this is crazy, why am I being terrorized by a ghost? I leave the kitchen and walk over to the bathroom lulling this thought over in my mind, not paying attention to where I step, I slip and fall on my butt. I get up, a little confused as to why I'm wet, and almost slip again. I get my balance and realize I'm standing in a puddle of water that seems to have come from the toilet. It doesn't look as though the toilet has plumbing issues; it looks more like someone was splashing the water out of the toilet; someone or something that is. I have to clear my head, my paranoia is getting the better of me; I need to get out of the house for a bit. I quickly run up the stairs to get dry clothes on.

I'm not going to lie; I was a bit disappointed to see my room looking similarly to the disarray of my kitchen. The kitchen was by far worse but, my room was still messier than what I'm used to. Scattered clothes coated the floor, books on the shelves had been knocked down, and my lamp on my bedside table had been pushed from its usual spot as well... I rushed over to where I saw the little picture frame lying face down on the floor next to my lamp. I knelt down beside it, fearing the supernatural being had broken it, it was my favorite picture of Steve and I could feel the tears welling in my eyes... "Please don't be ruined." I whispered. I flipped it right-side up and traced the crack in the glass with my finger. I sat down on my unmade bed not caring that I was still wet, and starred at the cracked picture I held in my hands. It wouldn't have even mattered that much if it wasn't a picture of my best friend who had recently passed. I tried to think of it just as another picture but the more I looked at it the more I knew he deserved a frame without a huge crack in the glass. It was hard to not feel sad at the many reminders and it's still hard to believe that he's really gone. He had always been there for me, he was my companion in everything, and was my only true best friend. I sighed and got up to change my clothes and got to work on cleaning up the mess this supernatural annoyance had made.

By the end of the day my small town house was clean and orderly again. Exhausted from my lack of sleep and a full day of work around the house, I climbed the stairs to my bedroom so I could sleep in my nice, clean bed. Too tired to care about the ghosts or the supernatural...I was just exhausted. I had thought ahead though. I had put one of those nightlights in my room, so that this time I could see the ghost for myself. I expected the haunting again tonight and I was prepared. I got into bed, turned off the lights, and waited for it to come. I didn't have to wait long, ten minutes at the maximum. I heard it at first, the unique noise of its footsteps. I shivered, even when I didn't really believe in ghosts the thought of them always tended to scare me a bit. I could hear it breathing; it was at my door now and coming closer. There was a new sound as well. It was a constant thump, a kind of steady beat. As it walked around my room I could hear it knocking objects over at random. Whatever it was that was making the constant thumping noise had to be what knocked over all of the objects in my room yesterday. The ghost wasn't headed toward the light so I still couldn't see what it was. It walked around the other side of my bed and stopped. It stood there for a long time and I was beginning to panic. I stayed still so it wouldn't be alarmed; although I'm sure it knew I was here. The entity didn't sound human, but it did sound big and heavy, maybe a super natural creature of some sort.

I don't think it intended to hurt me, but then again I don't even know what it is. All of a sudden I felt a weight on my bed. It's here, right next to me, I can feel it. Even though I thought I was prepared deep down inside I knew I wasn't. I was facing away from it so I would have to turn all the way around to see it, and there was no way I was doing that. Especially with it standing right above me. It was very close to me and I felt myself sink where its heavy feet rested. My eyes were closed tight and I was struggling trying not to shudder in fear. It snorted startling me and causing me to flinch. The creature made a noise but otherwise didn't move. I wouldn't be able to sleep if this ghost was planning on standing over me all night. It stayed that way for a long time- me lying there, it standing over me. But I made sure not to forget about it this time, no matter how quiet it got. It was a struggle to stay awake; I was so tired maybe if I just shut my eyes for a minute... then I felt it on my face. The thing touched me; it felt smooth and slimy moving across my face gently but in one swift motion. It left a wet slime across my cheek, over my forehead, and on my nose...disgusting. I go to wipe off my face instinctively and it makes an unmistakable low rumbling noise...one that I've heard a thousand times before. That was the piece of the puzzle that finally brought the picture into focus. Calm washes over me...could it be?! Steve...it was Steve, my 150 pound Great Dane puppy that I've had since I was a little girl. How is this possible? He died over a month ago of old age. This was him alright...but healthy, happy, standing over me with an old tennis shoe in his mouth waging his tail uncontrollably, waiting for me to try and take the shoe like always. I sat straight up while joyously shouting his name..."STEVE"! I grab his giant neck and squeezed so hard he let out a little whine. He rolled over on top of me and started to lick my face...I couldn't believe it, was it really him? But how? Was he real? Was he a ghost? I didn't care; it was so good to see him I didn't even notice the tears streaming down my face until Steve was carefully removing them with his giant tongue. It was as if he was telling me that it was okay, that he was here by my side and would always be there. He laid his big body right across my side of the bed and I refused to let go of the hug I had on him, my face on his soft ears, and the comforting sound of his breathing. I held him as if I hadn't seen him in a thousand years and I was so content, peaceful, calm, so happy that I slowly drifted off to the most restful sleep I believe I've ever had.

The next morning I woke and looked at the clock on my night stand....it was 10:00 am. I slept through my 6:00 am alarm but I didn't care. I then recalled what took place last night and quickly sat up in bed. Steve...where was Steve. He wasn't there...did I dream the whole thing? Was I so exhausted that I was seeing things? I looked down to where he had been laying and I saw it...the faint outline of a giant form, his form. I reach over and felt the spot where I thought he had been and it felt warm to the touch. I put my head on the blanket where he had slept beside me and I swear I could smell his fur...so memorable, so familiar. Had I been dreaming?

I didn't care; I wanted to believe he was here, that he'd been watching over me and that he would be back. I pulled back the covers to start the day and I heard a "thump". I look down on the floor at the foot of the bed and that's when I saw it. I saw the old tennis shoe that he had brought me last night...he was there...it had happened. I picked up the shoe and carried it with me as I walked down the hall. I opened a closet that I used for storage and rummaged in the back till I found the large box marked "Steve". I opened the box and took out an old basket filled with his toys and carried it back to my bedroom. I put the basket in the corner where it had resided for over 13 years and gently placed the shoe in with the rest of his things. I knew he'd be back and I wanted him to know that he was still my best friend. "Welcome back Big Man... I sure did miss you" I said. "I'll save a spot for you on the bed... see you tonight."