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“Mom.”
Deep in the throes of slumber, I barely recognized Zane’s voice calling out to me from across the room. Tugging the pillow over my head, I mumbled something that sounded like, “go back to sleep.”
“Mom!”
Jolting awake, I rolled over, blinking my eyes as awareness sank in. The room was almost entirely dark, but I could see enough to notice his shadow on the bed, and he wasn’t awake. Light snores tumbled from his nose as I yawned and then collapsed against the mattress. My eyes fluttered and then closed, unable to resist the allure of slumber.
“This one,”a garbled voice whispered next to my ear.
My entire body froze, and then my eyes snapped open, searching the room for intruders. There was no way I imagined that gravelly voice or the words that sent chills along my spine. Nothing seemed out of place as I reached for my phone, and the screen flashed that I had a few new messages and social media notifications that I promptly ignored.
The time displayed a few minutes after two in the morning. Greenish white light heightened the shadows in the room as I scanned the entire area, positive I didn’t imagine the creepy sensation that I wasn’t alone. Goosebumps popped up on my arms as I swallowed hard, ignoring the clowns that focused their attention on my son and me. Each pair of eyes had followed every movement we made since we walked in the door. If one of those clowns said anything, I was taking Zane and running from the room.
My gaze landed on his black t-shirt, and the blanket twisted around his legs. Kid always got hot when he slept at night. He tossed and turned and kicked off the covers just like he did when he was little. Zane mumbled a few words that I couldn’t understand and rolled over, facing my direction.
“Zane? Are you awake?”
Silence.
“Zane?” I called out, nervously pushing my hair back behind my ears as I bit my bottom lip.
“Shhh.”
The sound seemed to originate from over my head, and I leaped from the bed, screeching as I flipped on the light.
“Mom?” Zane asked groggily at the exact moment the lights switched off. And it wasn’t me.
I let out a gasp and joined Zane on his bed, scrambling onto the mattress and close to hyperventilating. The lights flicked on and then off again as I tapped the flashlight feature on my phone. My hand shook as Zane’s eyes widened.
“Are you messing with the lights?”
“No,” I whispered, scanning the room with my phone. Only shadows greeted us, playfully dancing along the walls as if there wasn’t some poltergeist in the room.
Zane reached for his phone and followed my lead, using the flashlight to illuminate the floor and underneath the beds as he slid out from under the blanket and untangled his legs.
“Don’t leave my side,” I begged, not too proud to admit that I was spooked.
“Mom, this is too cool.”
Uh, no. No, it was not cool at all. “I disagree.”
Zane laughed, searching the room as the lights flickered but didn’t come back on. “Did a ghost speak to you?” He joined me on the bed, patting my shoulder. “You look a little pale.”
“I’m terrified, and I think I’m gonna pee my pants,” I admitted, blowing out a breath.
Zane let out a loud guffaw. “That’s hilarious.”
“You’re supposed to be sympathetic and frightened like me,” I deadpanned.
“Well, is it okay if I’m just fascinated instead?”
Groaning, I flopped back against the pillows. “No.”
“You want me to be scared?” he asked, laughing when I shook my head. “Then I guess it’s good I’m not.”
The lights flicked on, and we both jumped.
“See? My heart is beating way too fast. This is creepy.”
