The Phoenix...A short tale of Rebirth

She felt the fire on her skin when she heard the news for the first time..

Burning through  her very core every belief every smile every laugh every touch every memory wiped out..in fraction of a second

The searing pain the unbearable agony as her soul howled and wept

is this the end is this all there is...is this why I came to love came to laugh came to live to die in the end..like this

until she was just ashes on the floor. She lay silently...breathless. Awaiting her ill fate. Awaiting with bated breath. What's to come next and she closed her eyes..

Fall summer spring winter there was a dark shadow cast over her like a blanket of the night..

And then slowly ever so slowly a sudden spark..an undying ember came to life. A fighter. With every loving word every healing touch every caring text every loving prayer..

the spark roared into a fire. Burning bright and brighter. Till she came back to life. She slowly opened her eyes. It felt like the first time in a long time..

her body shone like the sun. Blinding aura. Pure divine light. She spread her wings wide. Powerful in her stride. She rose up to fly..

look at the bird in the sky the boy cried in awe. Its wings are on fire. Its a Phoenix cried another. A Dragon cried another..

She never looked back for she was a woman of power, faith as her armor, she knew nothing can stop her.. not now..not ever. For she is a Cancer survivor..

More Love & Power to you my darling woman<3

The Killer Pot Hole

Bala was in a deep slumber..a wave of cold wind washed over him through the window so he pulled the sheets over his head and snuggled back to bed..2 seconds later the sheets were yanked out of his hands.. A shrill voice screamed far away.."Baala..wake up..Bala..it is getting late for school...God this boy is just so lazy !!"

Bala pried open his eyes warily..His mother stood there with a roller pin in one hand and a little bit of wheat flour smeared on her forehead.."Get up you Lazy bones..you have school today..Appa is finishing his bath..Go bathe now..I am getting your lunch box packed!!"

"But Amma..I dont have school today..it is Saturday..and Diwali..pleeeease let me sleep for 5 more mins..??" murmured Bala.

His mother rolled her eyes and looked down at him with a deep sigh..Diwali is over.."look at the toys strewn all over the floor..so disorganized"..."Suniye ji Bala utt nahi raha hai..dekhiye zara..isne School bag bhi pack nahi kiya hai..ab tak" mom called out to her husband who was now burning camphor in front of the Lord's photo in the Puja room and reciting mantras like a pious Brahmin"

Bala jumped out of bed now..His dad was a strict man and a teacher at his own school which made things worse for him..he had to be punctual and pay attention to his teachers in classes at any cost..else he would get reprimanded.."You are Sekhar Krishnan's son aren't you?? Your father is a highly intelligent and well respected tutor..You should look up to him and try to emulate him..be a grade A Student..Do you hear me..Pay attention now!!"

Unfortunately for Bala his father was M.S.C in Mathematics and a Math teacher for high school students at his school. To add insult to injury his elder sister Laxmi had topped the ICSE 10th Board examinations with a State rank of #2

Bala had big shoes to fill..a Lover of cricket he rather spend the whole day outside playing cricket or chasing a football around at the playground behind his school with his best friends Laxman and Karthik. He had little interest in being cooped up in the hot stuffy classrooms while one teacher after another came in like endless waves of the ocean and droned on and on for hours about theorems and fractions..Hydrogen Peroxide and Nitrous oxide..How our brave ancestors fought off the British and Mughals alike with fervor and Courage.

Bala quickly showered and dressed..hastily stumbled across to his bagpack and shoved in all the books he could find on the Study table..his pencil case and his cricket ball followed suit.

Bala walked into the dining hall sheepishly..he knew he was late..His father was now dressed in white shirt and black pants.. with a vibhuti on his forehead and spectacles sliding down his nose.. he looked up from his newspapers with a stern look and without a word went back to his reading. His sister laxmi was already eating her breakfast and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Bala sat at the table in front of his plate and tried to take one idli from the serving bowl..His dad spoke his face still covered by the newspapers.."Bala did you wash your hands and finish your prayers??" His sister Laxmi smirked as Bala ran to the washroom and hastily washed his hands, wiped them with a towel and sprinted to the Puja room bent his head down for a second and ran back to the table..he barely started eating his idli when his father put down the news papers and said.."We are getting late..lets go to school..Pushpa..did you pack their lunch boxes??"

Pushpa came running to the dining table .."Do not forget to get the lunch box back from school" she said as she thrusted the lunch box into Bala's hands and another into Laxmi's.."I won't Amma..Bye" said Bala distractedly.

As Bala's father kick started his age old Vespa scooter in the driveway..laxmi started her cycle and rode out of the driveway.."Bye Appa Bye Amma..Bye Chotu".. she turned to wink at him as she cycled out the gate.

Bala stood demurely as his father started the scooter and put on his helmet ..Sekhar signaled him to get on the scooter..As Bala sat on the scooter.. he held on to his bag tightly and drifted away.. To the lush green fields of Naalangal Patti village, Tamil Nadu. Where he woke up with the Sun..jumped out of bed ..chased the hens out of the coop and fed them grains..fed grass to the cows in the cow shed and watched with amazement as the workers milked the cows and brushed their hide..his grandmother lovingly brushing his hair and handing him a tall glass of fresh milk...Climbing thick mango trees and chasing butterflies..jumping into the cool streams and trying to catch an unsuspecting frog or ride in the tractor with his uncle and steal bites of roti from his Grandfather's plate. The endless hours of kabaddi and cricket with his village pals till his uncle dragged him home by the ear and his grandmother oiling his hair and feeding him rice balls made  of cow ghee and pepper..and falling asleep on her lap listening to stories of great leaders like Gandhi, Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose and verses from Thiruvalluvar as his Grandfather recited with utmost patriotism and pride making him laugh out aloud and his eyes moist with tears.

"Bala??"...Bala was jerked out of his reverie.."Bala..did you start your preparation for your 7th Board exams?? Do not wait till the last minute like you usually do..make a study plan and start studying now. I will quiz you everyday after dinner!!"... "Yes App.." the words were barely out of his mouth when the scooter shook violently and Bala felt himself tossed up in the air falling head-on to the cemented street and watched helplessly as his bag flew from his hand..he expected his head to touch the hard ground any moment...but all he felt was hitting a puddle of water with a  "SPLASH" and falling deep down into a tunnel..deeper and deeper..swirling like a whirlpool..he let out a scream but no sound came out..he closed his eyes expecting the worst!!!

The sun rays danced on his face as he opened his eyes.. he was in a meadow with tall grass as far as the eyes could see surrounded by wild flowers of exotic colors..a beautiful rainbow adorned the bright blue sky and as he squinted his eyes and surveyed his surroundings bewildered as to how he got here..he heard distant laughter..

As he turned around he could see stalls like a farmer's market down a winding path made of gravel and stone with tall grass on either side and crickets chirping..he walked down the path unsure towards the market below.. slowly picking up the pace then ran as fast as his legs could carry..When he reached the end of the pathway he stopped and looked around amazed with his eyes wide open and as he scanned his surroundings...children of all ages.. girls and boys were happily walking around dressed in bright clothes..eating cotton candy and chocolates..laughing and playing..they were all walking towards an Amusement park with sparkling lights and  rides like the  Giant wheel, Merry go around, Roller coaster, Puppet show, Corn maze and a hall of mirrors. Clowns in costumes juggled and tickled themselves like monkeys making the children laugh...where as beautiful ballerinas danced around twirling pink satin ribbons at the tips of their fingers..smiling and bowing every time a child stood to admire them in awe and wonder.

The stalls had colorful Fruit Jellies, Cheese Pop Corn, varieties of Cupcakes, delicious Candies with gooey nutty filling and Caramel Apples..the kids were handed out life size teddy bears and giraffe soft toys for shooting the balloons or getting the ring across the traffic like cones..Bala got a cotton candy for himself and headed towards the Jumbo Circus and sat down in the dark. He did not know what to expect his skin was tingling with excitement..when a bunch of clowns came on to the stage in a small red car honking loudly, jumped out and started making balloon animals and pulled out endless knotted handkerchiefs from their pockets while brightly painted Elephants paraded and trumpeted loudly till his ears hurt..the Circus performers then jumped on to the Trampoline and into a tub of water with a splash making the kids giggle...Acrobats swinged across the Trapeze with ease and Bala clapped in delight as  the world's fattest twins ball danced with conjoined Siamese twins round and round till they fell down dizzy..bears in helmets rode motorcycles and chimpanzees walked the line with sticks in their hands...Bala couldn't believe what he was watching but he did not want it to end..he sat there in utter Amazement..

He decided to be a tad bit brave so he went on out and got onto the Roller Coaster and as it slowly started moving he closed his eyes and held onto the railing tightly..whoosh...children screamed and off he went into a frenzy up the tracks..stopped for a moment to catch his breath and plummeted down..down and down..Bala screamed but never opened his eyes for fear of losing balance and falling down..crashing into the ground...as he was shook awake he slowly opened his eyes..his mother stood looking down at him teary eyed.." Bala??..he is awake...Doctor he is awake..Thank God..Sekhar Sekhar..Bala is awake".. Sekhar and laxmi ran up to his bed and looked down at him with utmost concern.. "Appa lost balance at a pothole Bala..You fell from the scooter and hurt your head pretty badly..We were all so worried...We thought we had lost you...welcome back Chotu...never scare us like that.. ever again" choked laxmi..and as Bala closed his eyes ever so slowly ...desperately wanting to be back at the Amusement park...he wished the rides would never stop...the music would not fade and the laughter would not end.

Riding the hallyu wave hard...

I burnt my toast n spilt coffee on my tee

one look at Lee joon ki

n all is well in my world !!

I bumped my elbow n scraped my knee

keep rocking lee min ki

n all is well in my world !!

my heel broke n i missed the bus

keep sweating So ji sub

n all is well in my world !!

I'm late again n boss looks mad

Jo in sung u look so sexy when bad

n all is well in my world !!

I lost my wallet my life is a pain

don’t stop dancing Bi rain

n all is well in my world !!

my bf dumped me is there no end to my woe

who is hotter Gong Yoo or Lee min ho

n all is well in my world !!

my assignment got tossed in the trash tin

dont stop that smolder won bin

n all is well in my world !!

my salary is peanuts n hike's a joke

when is your next drama comin up Jang geun suk

n all is well in my world !!

It's end of the month n I'm pinching pennies

Lose that shirt Daniel henney

n all is well in my world !!

Just missed my landlord n rent is due

Oh please marry me Go Soo

n all is well in my world !!

Do I need to migrate to Korea maybe

Have Top oppa’s babies :p

n all is well in my world !!

The unexpected Visitor

                                                      [First attempt at a Short story]

SAT MORNING 7:00 AM CST:

The sun shone brightly on the woods…Birds chirped on the trees and few ducks swam on the lake nudging their young who wandered away by quacking a  warning at them…Susan Greenwood swung open the door of her house… She was a 13 year old Teen aged girl with strawberry blonde hair, heart shaped face and bright blue twinkling eyes…she was wearing white jeans and navy blue tee shirt tucked into her pants, olive green jacket and knee length brown boots…she swiftly ran carrying a brown travel bag to her mom’s car a Hybrid Toyota Prius.. Switched the button on to open the boot and put the suitcase in…

“Moommmm…Mommm…You have any more bags or just the one??” she hollered.

Jane an attractive woman in  her late 30’s walked out with a travel bag in one hand and Gucci purse in the other…sunglasses folded at the front of her mustard yellow blouse and light blue jeans ...Susan ran to her and pried the travel bag from her hand…”I will put this in the boot too”. ”Susan…Honey…Please be careful there is jewelry and the crystal set which is a gift for your cousin Ginny!!”

Susan rolled her eyes “Gawd...I know mom. I will be careful. I just want to help”

“I saw that” said Jane scowling and soon a look of concern washed over her face as she stared at her daughter locking the boot and running back towards her.

“Take care of your little brother” Jane hugged Susan tight… “I will be back Monday first thing in the morning. I wish your dad was here… He and his business trips... He is never back on time” she sighed.

“Ok a quick run on the things I want you to remember”…Some emergency money is in the kitchen cookie jar. My number, aunt Sharon’s numbers are on the fridge... I have told our neighbor Mrs Crabapple that your home alone and she will check on u during the night before you guys go to bed...

“There is lasagna in the fridge and some blueberry pie…make sandwiches for your brother and cut the crust off…you know how he doesn’t like them” said Susan cutting off  Jane in mid-sentence…”I know I know you’ve told me a 100 times already… Gosh”

Jane paid no heed to her daughter’s mimicry of her voice and continued “Lock all the doors, turn off the stove and call me if you need anything…”

A five year old boy walked out the house…”Mommmm…Can I play my xbox after dinner when you’re gone??? You said I could…” He had dark brown hair and blue eyes…his shirt hung loose on one side and his shoe laces skipped some holes. His hair was unkempt as he looked up at his mother.

Jane knelt down and tucked in his shirt... Brushed his hair to one side and started fixing the shoe lace...

“Mommm...” whined Leroy…” Can I eat ice cream for breakfast?? Pleeeeeeease…can I”??

Jane gave an audible sigh...”No sweetheart...you can have toast. Susan is gonna make you some eggs..You need to drink milk not eat ice cream”

She looked at Leroy’s pouting face and side glanced at Susan “Of course you can eat ice cream once you eat your veggies and finish your homework” and kissed his forehead...Leroy managed an half smile for his mom’s sake.

 “Phew look at the time” Jane looked down at her watch “I gotta start now else I will miss the rehearsal dinner for your cousin Ginny’s wedding. Sorry you guys can’t make it...You have your midterms next week…anyways we will go to the Reception party next weekend else Aunt Sharon will be furious with me and your dad will be back by then…hopefully “

Jane got up and walked to her car... Her black boots clicking on the stone gravel of their pathway ...She got in and shut the car door...Checked the mirror and yanked the seat forward...Put the key in the lock and revved up the engine…the radio turned on “Winds of change…” by the Bee gees…”Oh I love this song” exclaimed Jane and reversed her car on to the curb…She paused for a min and looked at the kids…”Bye kids. Love you. Go inside and Lock the door…Call me if you need anything”

Susan and Leroy ran towards the car and stood waving “Bye mommy. Love you…Will miss you. Drive safe” until the car was just a tinge of green at the end of the road and then it disappeared as it took a turn.

Susan held Leroy and walked back to the house…”Don’t worry little brother. I will take good care of you…I promise.”

SUN EVENING 20:00 HOURS CST:

A blanket of darkness hung over the woods and the full moon shone in the sky playing hide and seek in between the trees.

“Alright kids… The chili is in the microwave and the apple pie is in the fridge in case you get hungry late at night said the old woman. She was in her 70’s and had silver hair, she wore a flower printed beige dress and a green sweater. She bent over the gas to make sure it was turned off and turned to look at Susan in the kitchen. “Susan, did you lock the front door??” “Yes Mrs. Crabapple, I did, don’t worry”.

“Ok then I will leave you kids and get back home…Missy must be hungry…she left through the cat door at noon and hasn’t returned home”

“Ok then Leroy. Good night. Susan will tuck you in...Susan, Lock the kitchen door please. Call me if you need anything.”

“Good night Mrs. Crabapple” the kids chorused together half glad to see her go…

Susan locked the kitchen door and turned towards Leroy...Ok mr...Off to bed for you. Mom is back tomorrow. I don’t want you to be all groggy and a sleepy head in the morning”

“Okkayyyy...Can I take some pie to bed with me??” Leroy smiled…

“Fiiine” Susan rolled her eyes. I’ll get you some up to your bedroom. Go up and change into your pajamas please”

Leroy stomped up the wooden stairs…and Susan started walking towards the Fridge.

“TRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINGGGGGGG” rang the Kitchen Phone…Susan jumped!!

She picked up the receiver…Her ears ringing…” Hello??””

Jane’s voice answered...”Hi Susan…its mommy!!”

Susan could hear voices in the background and could hear her Aunt Sharon’s shrill laughter…”Yes mommy...I am here”

“Is everything fine out there baby? Did you & Leroy have dinner?? Did Mrs. Crabapple come visit you?? Did you lock the doors??” blurted out Jane.

“Mom...Mom…Mom hang on…Take a deep breath. Everything is fine. Are you driving back tonight?? How was the rehearsal dinner??” interrupted Susan.

“Yes honey. I called to tell you …I am driving back tomorrow early morning...Will reach home before noon...Tomorrow is a holiday so stay in...Have cereals for breakfast and I will get you leftovers from tonight …ok?? Aunt Sharon doesn’t want me to drive at night…You know how protective she can be” Jane sighed…

Susan chuckled “Tit for tat mom...We will be fine. Don’t worry about us...Did you talk to dad?”

“Dad called me…He doesn’t like the idea of you kids being on your own...So he will be flying back early tomorrow evening” Jane shouted covering her ears over the loud chatter in her sister’s kitchen.

“That’s great then Mom…Love you…Say hi to Aunt Sharon, Uncle Paul & Ginny. I miss her. ”

“Will do baby…Good night hon…Love you”

“Good night…Love you too”

Susan looked at the kitchen watch over the sink. It was half past 8pm... She peered through the kitchen window looking into the woods. It was a dark & foggy night…a cold wind howled over the lake making the wind chimes sway on the porch and causing the tiny bells to ring all at once”

“TRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINGGGGGGG” rang the Kitchen Phone…Susan jumped again!!

She picked up the Phone receiver…Her heart pounding in her chest…

“Hello??...Mom??”…”Dad is that you??” …. Dead Silence

….”Mrs Crabapple??”…Long Pause…

”Danny if it’s you. I am gonna kill you!! This is not funny”…The wind howled louder and the wind chimes swayed back & forth wildly now…

It started drizzling ...“Who is this???…I am hanging up!!!”

Creeeeeeeeeeaaaaaakkkkkkkk……Creeaaaaaaaakkkkkkkkkk she could hear a slow and deliberate squeaking sound like nails scratching on a glass window…and a heavy breathing sound...Susan nervously whispered into the phone...”Who…who… is this??” 

A raspy voice croaked “OPEN THE DOOR…OPEN THE DOOOOOOORRR…I AM HERE…OPENNNN…”

Susan hung up the phone and nervously looked around the kitchen…She slowly moved towards the kitchen window. Her heart pounding in her chest…who could it be at this hour?

Rain drops were swiftly falling now beating at the kitchen windows. The white curtains flapping…

Susan looked out the window…the swings in the backyard were swinging back & forth...the metal rungs clanging loudly…

She peered at the porch...her mom’s rocking chair was rocking wildly…”She forgot to put it in!!!”

But that’s not what was important now…There was no one at kitchen door…

Susan ran to the front door and looked through the peep hole…No one there…The gate had come undone and was flapping wildly in the strong winds…

“Susannnnnnnnnnnn……..Suuuuusaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnn” screamed Leroy as the lights went out!!!

Susan stumbled back from the front door tripped on the coat stand and fell…”Leroy…Leroy…wait there…I will get the candles and matches…Don’t come down!!”

Susan stumbled across to the dining room and yanked the desk drawer open. Her fingers fumbling for matches”

She found it…finally...and grabbed the candle...her hands were shaking…she started lighting the match... ”ouch” it fizzled out and she dropped it…another one…another one…”dang it”

“Susannnnnnnnnnnn……..Suuuuusaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnn…where are youuu??? I am scared. I want mommyyyyy…”

“Coming Leroy...Just hold on…These dang matches…”

Light…Susan finally lit a match and lighted the candles…she put the matches down and went up the stairs two at a time…”Comminnnnng Leroy….”

She ran into Leroy’s room…her brother was under the sheets shaking...weeping…”I want mommmmmmyyyy””…

She placed the candles on the table and removed the sheets…”Its fine…Ssshhh…its fine..Leroy..I am here now…everything is going to be Ok…Mommy & Daddy are coming back tomorrow…Sshh”

She gently rocked her brother…”Mommy spoke to me…she said she misses u and will be back as soon as possible…Don’t worry” 

MONDAY MORNING 3:00 AM CST:

Susan woke up with a start…It took a min to sink in where she was…Leroy was fast asleep next to her...

The candles had died out completely. She left the matches in the dining room below…”Shucks!!!”

She pulled the covers up till Leroy’s neck…and he mumbled something under his breath...

She got out of bed slowly…”There must be torch in mum’s bedroom”… she walked baby steps…ever so slowly to Leroy’s bedroom door...

“Ouch!!!” she gasped…A Lego was wedged into her feet…the sharp edge causing her so much pain that she wanted to scream loudly…She covered her mouth with her hands and kicked the lego under the bed..

“Aaaarghhh Leroy!! Leaving his toys all over the place!!!”

She limped slowly to the door and opened it…she went out and closed it slowly watching her brother sleeping soundly unaware of her pain…

Susan limped slowly to her mom’s room…the Grandfather clock in the Drawing room Ticked loudly “TICK TICK TICK…”

The Cat figurine on the table stand looked at her with jeweled green eyes…its eyes gleaming in the dark…staring at her…

She averted her eyes and limped on to her parents’ bedroom…she turned the door knob and walked in...

Moon light streamed in through the window…A lone owl hooted somewhere far way…woooo…hooooo…

Susan tried to make the outline of the bed…and the chest of drawers next to it where her mom keeps the emergency torch light…

She let her hands feel for the drawer handle…then slowly yanked it open…she fumbled in the drawer…trying to feel the outline of a torch… Found it!!!

Phew…tears of relief…she grabbed the torch and flipped for the red switch… Nothing!!

“Noooooo…Come on…” She banged on the torch…She opened the batteries panel… nothing…”No…Noooooooo...This can’t be happening…batteries...where are the batteries???”

“Batteries are in daddy’s home office…he usually has a stock of them in his drawer... I have to go back down…God!!”

Susan slowly turned around…her legs felt heavy like they were made of lead and dragged her feet…She went to the stairs and held on tightly to the railing…And started climbing down…one step after another…slowly…

She reached the bottom of the stairs... The rain had now stopped but it was lightly drizzling… In the Drawing room the clock was Ticking…slowly now…“TICK …TICK…TICK…”

She started walking slowly towards her dad’s home office…Torch in one hand…The other hand stretched out in front of her...

CREAAAAAAKKKKKK…Creeeeeeeeeeaaaaaakkkkkkkk….Susan stopped dead in her tracks…frozen…her eyes staring widely in front of her…her hands stretched out… She did not move…She broke into a sweat…her heart pounding wildly now…she couldn’t move an inch…

The familiar raspy voice croaked “OPEN THE DOOR…OPEN THE DOOOOOOORRR…I AM HERE…OPENNNN…SUSANNNNNNN….OPEN THE DOOR”

Susan ran to the study…opened the door and shut it behind her and locked it… she stumbled to her father’s work desk and hid under it…breathing heavily…holding the torch…her hands shaking!!!

“Who could it be??Who would do this to her…Mrs Crabapple??...No…why would she…did she come to check up on them…so late in the night??? Noooooo…she wouldn’t… she would have called first…Should I dial 911…what do I do??? Leroy…Oh God…Leroy”

She slowly crawled out and sat on the chair…She yanked one drawer after another… fumbling in the dark…”batteries…batteries...where are they??”

Finally she found them…she almost leapt for joy and grabbed them!! She opened the torch battery panel and shoved the batteries in…”Will call mom…If I hear the voice again…Be Brave Susan…she told herself”...She flipped the red switch on the torch. ..LIGHT!!

She heaved a sigh of relief and knelt on all 4 fours…she slowly started crawling towards the door…torch in one hand…she turned the key and slowly turned the door knob…Opened the door for a bit and listened…Silence… only the clock was Ticking…maliciously now…“TICK….…TICK……TICK……”

She pulled the door open farther and crawled out slowly…need to reach the cordless phone in the drawing room...she would grab the phone and make a run for it up the stairs…Lock herself in her room and not come out till daylight tomorrow…

She crawled slowly towards the couch… She could here herself breathing…”few more steps...grab the phone...” Time seemed to stop…she pushed herself one crawl at a time…her legs felt heavy…her eyes were drowsy...they almost shut closed…”No…stay awake…you need to call momm…need to call….momm”

She finally made it to the coffee table…And reached out to the phone…She grabbed it and turned it on…no lights…she switched it off & on again…”it’s not turning on…lights are out…maybe phones won’t work too”…she desperately started dialing her mom’s no on the hand phone..No beep..No nothing !!!

CRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAACKKKKKKKKKKKKK….A loud thunder hit the skies and the tree branch outside the window snapped…fell to the ground with a loud thud…THUDD !!!!

There was a flash of light at the window…. Susan looked up her heart in her mouth …A woman in red dress was standing there…staring at her…her eyes soulless…dead white skin…dark circles around her eyes…she lifted her bony fingers and scraped her long red painted nails on the glass window pane… 

“SUSANNNNNNN…OPEN THE DOOR…OPEN THE DOOOOOOORRR…I AM HERE…OPENNNN…NOWWWWWWW”

Susan just sat there…not flinching…her mouth wide open…her eyes staring in horror…

The eeeerie voice continued “OPEN THE DOOR…OPEN THE DOOOOOOORRR…I AM HERE…OPENNNN”…

Susan came to her senses...got up and ran…up the stairs….to her room…locked the door…sat on the bed shaking…she started sobbing…”Mom…dad…Mom...Please help me…I am scared…help me…please…”

She looked up…tears streaming down her face…her Anna marie doll lay propped on the chair…staring at her…with her red locks & freckles in her white frock and blue bow tie…smiling at her…sinister gleam in her blue eyes…

The moon light streamed in through her glass window…the owl hooted...woooooh…ooooooh…

Susan slowly got out of her bed and walked to her window…slowly…not making a sound…she stood at the corner…drew the curtains to one side and looked out... rain had stopped now…the winds were silent…the branches looked like stretched out bony fingers of an old woman…while the moon came out in between the trees when the fog cleared…”no sign of the woman in the red dress”….Susan looked around her eyes darting to every corner...”nobody…”

She turned to go back to her bed…”KNOCK…KNOCK…KNOCK…KNOCK”

Susan froze...she wanted to run but her legs were not moving…She wanted to scream…but there was no sound coming out of her mouth!!

She slowly turned around…shaking like a leaf...

The woman in red dress was standing there…staring at her… she lifted her bony fingers and scraped her long red painted nails on the glass window pane… CREAAAAAAKKKKKK…Creeeeeeeeeeaaaaaakkkkkkkk…“SUSANNNNNNN…“OPEN THE DOOR…OPEN THE DOOOOOOORRR…I AM HERE…OPENNNN…LET ME IN…”

As Susan stood in complete shock & disbelief…The woman put her bony fingers under the window sill and started lifting it up…SQUEEEAAAAAAAKKKK… SQUEEEAAAAAAAKKKK

Susan screamed “Noooooooooo….Noooooooooooo…Who are yooooooou? What do you want from me……..? Stay away……..How did you get up here??????? Nooooooooo…”

The woman lifted the window up and slowly started climbing in…Susan just stood there…A voice in her head was screaming “Runnnnnnn...Susan…Runnnn away…” but she couldn’t move…her legs didn’t feel like hers…she felt wet and tired…a strange feeling took over…she felt her eyes were heavy and shutting down…She felt herself collapsing on the floor...tears blurring her vision as she saw the woman stand over her. Staring at her…”IT’S YOUR TIME….. IT’S YOUR TIME…..SUSANNNN….LET ME IN” 

MONDAY NOON 12:00 PM CST:

“Susan…Susan…Susan…honey…Wake up!!” Jane was slapping her daughter on the face gently…

Susan opened her eyes slowly…Jane was looking at her with concern…

“Mom???...Mom…is that you…Mom” Susan got up and hugged Jane sobbing uncontrollably now…”Oh Mom…it was horrible…it was a horrible nightmare…”

“Susan…sweetheart...your sweating…your dress is drenched in sweat. You’re running a fever…you slept through breakfast. What happened baby??....Leroy opened the front door for me…he said you locked yourself in your room and he called out to u many times but u didn’t open the door…He was very scared”

“The woman…the woman in the red dress…she came in last night…she..she..” Susan stuttered…

“Hush…hush...you had a bad dream...get up Susan…wash up soon…I will make you some hot soup” Jane comforted her…

Jane helped Susan get up….She looked at the white carpet and the back of Susan’s night gown……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

………………………………………… It was covered in Blood.