LYING AWAKE

by Breeanna Greska

I pulled the soft, heavy comforter tighter around me and covered my face.  My hand groped around the shadowy, eerie room to hug the furry, comfy Snoopy toy to my chest.  The abrupt, boisterous creaks sent shivers spiraling down my spine, one vertebra at a time.  I nervously began cracking my knuckles, the noise bouncing off the walls awkwardly. 

My trembling body gave the blankets a vibrating appearance.  Sweat trickled down my forehead, yet I was covered in goosebumps.  I held the fluffy, familiar stuffed animals close, as if they were shields, my protectors who guarded me as I slept.

“It’s not your fault”, I reluctantly mumbled to myself.

Carefully resting the stuffed animals on my bed, I bit my lip so hard I thought I pierced it. Pacing the room and biting my nails, I waited for the worst.  Apprehensive and filled with anxiety, I blindly felt around for some leftover Halloween candy in the left drawer.  Its rich, sweet flavor melted velvety in my mouth, occupying me for a short while. 

It was so sedate at that moment; I could hear my teeth grinding against the salty, crunchy nuts, like a cement mixer.  Another creak and I dropped the candy, it fell from my hand like a skydiver jumping out of a plane.  My heart raced like a NASCAR driver as I slid carefully under my bed, my body reacting in shock at the glacial, uncomfortable wood. Struggling to stay calm, gasping for air, I could no longer hold my breath.

Featherweight footsteps shuffled past my door, then silence.  I sighed in relief.  Suddenly, I felt clammy hands cover my mouth, muffling the shrill shriek I was letting out. I struggled to get out of the grasp, wanting badly to get away.  I turned around, my eyes a mix of tears and fear.  I felt extreme mollification and let my breath out slowly as I realized it was just my brother coming in to comfort me. 

We sat there, more content in each others silence then we had been all night. The ear-splitting sound of grasshoppers singing in unison filled my ears, and I lay awake, wishing I didn’t have to go through this every night.