The Red Monster

Yesterday I had a terrible nightmare. A monster covered in blood broke into my house and killed every single one of my family members in front of me, and finally killed me in the end.

I woke up sweating and crying from the intesity of the dream and the things the monster had done. When I went downstairs to have breakfast my mom greeted me with a kind "Happy birthday". I had completely forgotten that, the relief to see my mother was alright was more important than being one year older; however, I was a bit unnerved by the fact that she was wearing the same clothes I saw in my dream.

The afternoon arrived and I couldn't get this nightmare out of my head, it was driving me crazy. Suddenly, I started hearing heavy footsteps outside of my house, and as I walked towards a window to see what was causing them, the footsteps quickly moved in another direction as if they were trying to avoid me. Deeply disturbed by the unusual events of this day, I decided to follow the footsteps to end this torment and have some peace for myself, but it happened again, and again, and again as if the source of the sound was just trying to mock me.

By the time evening came I was already losing my mind, the footsteps kept harassing my sanity like a vulture picking on an already debilitated animal and I couldn't do anything about it, at least until I turned my eyes to the window behind me. It was there, a red beast concealed by the darkness of the night like a predator waiting for the opportunity to feast on a weak prey; but I wasn't about to become that prey, not without putting up a fight. With this new resolution to not give up I jumped towards the window, locked it, and immediately ran to every other window and door in my house (that connected with the outside) to do the same.

I felt a fleeting satisfaction when I finished locking everything, but I knew that this wasn't over, I had to look for my parents and my sister to warn them and think of a way to survive this, yet I hadn't seen them after scouring the house to lock the windows. It was at that moment when it clicked. The basement! They must've noticed the situation and went hiding. I entered the basement and went downstairs clumsily due to the lack of illumination. I thought that maybe the lightbulbs burned out, but that thought didn't last for long, right before reaching the last step of the stairs I saw them again. Those blood-injected eyes leering at me.

A million questions filled my mind in a fraction of a second. How? Why? When? Where's my family? Are they gone? What do I do? But my body knew better than to give in to the horror. Before noticing it I was running to the kitchen to grab the largest knife we had. Maybe this beast was going to kill me, but running wasn't an option for me anymore.

I returned to the basement, and it was still there. Always following me with the eyes, but never moving an inch. If that thing wasn't going to take the initiative, then I would, so I stabbed it. Once, twice, thrice, and again, and again. I poured all my rage into every cut, rage from losing my family and from the hell I experienced all day long; and after finishing, all that was left was a deep satisfaction for overcoming this. I felt powerful, as if I was able to do anything I wanted. Nevertheless, the celebration was interrupted by a loud growl coming from just a few steps away. There was more, two more of them to be specific. It was a chance. A chance to feel invincible again. So I killed them, stabbing them as much as I wanted, all covered in their blood as if that was a glorious splash of victory.

When the ecstasy of the moment faded, I noticed a faint source of light coming from the center of the room. It was a candle in the center of a birthday cake. That's true, it was my birthday, I wish I had celebrated it with everyone, but at that moment, the only reasonable thing to do was to leave the house and look for help.

As I walked towards the staircase to leave the basement I saw a body, it was my mother. I looked around the room and towards the back I found my father and sister. They were all dead after all. Everything lined up, except for the fact that the monsters' bodies weren't anywhere to be found. I leaned towards my mother to get a bit of closure when I noticed it. She had been stabbed multiple times with a sharp knife, and so were my father and sister. I looked at my hands and it all fell in place.

Yesterday I had a terrible nightmare... and I know how it ends.

-Murguía Ortiz Joaquín de Jesús