Afraid of the Dark

Katie woke up to find the world had gone dark. The inky blackness hugged the floors, the walls and smothered the windows. The room was filled with a thick and oily darkness that clung to everything like motor oil. The darkness oozed and rolled slick and slimy to where Katie huddled at the head of her bed. It was as if all the light had been sucked down a hole forever. Katie didn’t dare move. She was afraid she would fall into that hole too. Little Jimmy Smith had told her all about the hole that sucked in all the light.

“Of, course,” she said, “the light by my bed. All I have to do is turn it on.”

Katie smiled to herself glad she was able to find an answer to her problem. Now all she had to do was find the lamp’s switch. Katie inched and wiggled here way to the edge of the bed.

“Not too close,” she commanded herself, “the hole was real close.”

She dared to lean a little father over the edge of the bed and listened for the hole. At first nothing came to her then a whirring, whirling, sucking, roaring sound came crashing against Katie’s ears and she jumped away.
Katie sat against her headboard and trembled.

“Oh, that was close,” she whispered, “gotta be more careful.”

Katie once again began to inch and wiggled and crawl her way to the edge of the bed. Once again the whirring, whirling, sucking, roaring sound came crashing against Katie’s ears and she panicked.

“No,” she commanded, “I’m not afraid. Just a little farther.”

Katie edged closer to the side of her bed wiggling like a snake. Reaching out she searched for her night table. She screamed out when she felt the cool, smooth surface of her night table. She giggled as she snatched her hand back. She was being silly. Afraid of the night table? She edged just a little closer to the table and reached out for the lamp.
She grasped the lamp in her hand and began to press the switch when she started falling. Using both hands to search for the lamp she had no way to catch herself. Just a she closed her eyes she heard the **snick** of the lamp. She fell whirling, spinning, diving, rolling, onto the floor.
Katie hit the floor with an **ummpff** and lay there dazed. She opened her eyes and looked around. She couldn’t hear the whirring, whirling, sucking, roaring sound anymore. She felt around and found her pillow that helped break her fall. She looked around a bit and saw nothing but the oily, slimy, oozing, inky darkness all around her. Then, she heard it. The whirring, whirling, sucking, roaring sound came crashing into her ears. Then she knew where she was. She had fallen into the light-sucking hole.
Katie began to cry. She had turned on the light. But she had fallen into the hole now no one would ever find her. She picked up her head at a new sound a low growl coming from under her bed. Katie stared wide-eyed in the direction of the newest sound.
“Oh, no,” she thought, not this.” It was probably one of those slimy, green faced, smelly, drooling, six armed, darkness monsters Little Jimmy Smith told her lived in the hole. Now she wished she had just listened.
She decided it was better if she stood up to face the monster. When Katie stood up lightning flashed in through her window.

“Hey,” she said, “you can get out of the hole.”

Just as she said that another flash of lightning streaked past her window. She now saw the object of her fears. It was standing right in front of her. She grabbed her pillow and flung it at the monster. The monster didn’t move and Katie couldn’t see her pillow anymore.
Katie stood there trembling. “It ate my pillow.” she gulped. Another flash of lightning streaked across the window. She saw her shoes and began a bombardment of Nike, Reebok, Keds, sandals, slippers, and dress shoes that hadn’t been seen in years. Suddenly, she hears a voice calling out to her.

“Katie,” the voice calls, “stop that.”

“Mommy?” Katie calls out.

“Yes, baby, it’s Mommy. Stop throwing shoes.”

Katie began telling her mother how she defeated the monster in the black hole that stole all the light by throwing her shoes at him.

“That’s good Katie. I’m real proud of you for being so brave. Let’s go to bed. It’s going to be awhile before the lights come back on.”

“That’s okay Mommy I’m not afraid of the dark anymore. I beat the monster. Even though he did eat my pillow. Where’s Daddy?”

“I’m right here, baby.” her father groans.

“What’s wrong with Daddy, Mommy?”

“He kicked your bed, honey. Let’s go to sleep.”

Katie’s father lay on the floor until his wife and daughter left the room. Then, he slowly picked himself up from the pile of shoes he was lying in. Reaching for the wall he limped his way back to bed making a mental note to buy Katie a flashlight of her own.