Our backyard has been swallowed by the darkness. I wonder what monsters are out there, hiding in the woods. The boogeyman, Mom says the boogeyman is out there. Peering out our large living room window, I can only see the moon and the stars. I find Orion's Belt in a heartbeat -- one, two, three sparkles in the sky -- and feel a child's pride at being able to see something that others cannot in cities with pollution and skylines.
There's a storm (I can tell by the heavy sounds of rain hitting the grass), which means we will lose power. I wonder how tall the creek will be tomorrow, if it will flood our road again. The little house on Brook Road never puts up a fight against the weather. She just gives in, says, all right, fine, you win! and then we spend hours in darkness. This is a child's nightmare; but not mine. I love when the power goes out because it means we will play The Thunder Game.
My sisters and I run to my parent's room and sit on the bed. We're giggling with excitement, jumping on the bed, kicking our legs, our smiles sewn permanently into place. The first BOOM of the thunder shakes the house. I wonder who made the sky so angry.
You know the rules. Count to ten and come find me. My mom snakes out of the room and shuts the door. We shush each other to try and hear where she's running off to, but our floorboards don't creak like they're supposed to in an old house. Traitors.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eightnineTEN.
Alli opens the door first. Although I'm the oldest, she is the bravest. My eyes are trying to adjust to the dark, but they can't. BOOM. There is nothing in front of me, nothing behind me, just the sounds of my sisters breathing. This isn't a problem because my feet have memorized every inch of this tiny house.
But I don't know where my mom is, and I don't want to lose the game.
WE'RE COMING! Alli's squeal streaks through the house and my blood turns to ice. BOOM! I hear her footsteps sprint down the hallway toward the kitchen. Jessi giggles, following after her like young sisters do. I take a different route, one, two, three, four steps, and I'm in the living room. I press my hand against the wall. The faint bumps in the paint guide me to the couch. My breath is caught in my lungs. She's hiding behind the couch, wait she could be behind the curtains, I can't hear anything over the sound of Alli and Jessi laughing, what if she's behind me right NOW I spin around and pin my back against the couch, so I know she can't come up from behind me. My heart is racing.
AHHHHHH!!
Alli and Jessi are screaming, but why?! Is she in the kitchen?!
BOOM!
A monster wraps its fingers around my arm. It's pulling me, it has me. I hear a shriek escape my lips without my permission. And then I'm running, finding the paint on the walls, desperately trying to get back to home base. She's behind me, I can feel her grabbing at my clothes, BOOM, I hear her right behind me, I'll never make it, no no no!!!
I launch myself onto the bed, accidentally landing on top of my sisters. I'm safe I'm safe!! My mom is laughing, and I imagine the corners of her eyes crinkled the way they do when she's smiling. I start laughing too, fear replaced with happiness. boom. Game over.
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