Short Stories
It was Wednesday afternoon when Sarah came home for the first time in two months. She had been so busy at college she was hardly able to find the time to come visit. But tomorrow was her 21st birthday and her parents were throwing a big party for her with family members. She was so excited. For the first time in her life she wont have to keep her drinking a secret from her parents.
When she got home and walked up to the door, she was greeted by her mom and dad. “Hi mom, hi Dad!” she said as she carried her suitcase in through the door into the hallway. After she set it on the floor she gave both her parents a kiss and a hug and walked into the kitchen. Her dad went into his study to finish some work on his computer. Her mom followed her into the kitchen.
“So from that I hear,” Sarah said, “a lot of people are coming over tomorrow, most of them family?”
“Just family,” her mom replied, “But there will be a lot. It’s not every day you turn 21 you know.”
“I know I finally get to drink!”
“That’s not all there is to being 21 sweetie. You’re officially an adult now, so you’ll have more responsibility.”
“I know, I know. So who all is coming tomorrow?” As Sarah’s mom went over the list of people who were coming over tomorrow, she opened the fridge and poured herself a glass of milk. It wasn’t until her mom mentioned Uncle Ted that she caught her attention again. “ Wait, what? He’s coming!?” Sarah asked abruptly.
“Well…yes,” her mom timidly replied.
“Why is he coming!?”
“Well…he just really wants to see you and…make for…for what happened.”
“FOR WHAT HAPPENED!? No! NO! That’s bullshit! You know what he did to me! Why would you even think about inviting him!?”
“Sweetie, that was over 10 years ago. He’s been out of rehab for a year. He’s a much better person now, and he wants to make amends.”
“Well woopdy-fucking-doo! That doesn’t change what he did to me! That doesn’t make it all better!” Sarah’s voice elevated. Tears began to protrude form her eyes. “I’m sorry mom, but I won’t forgive him!”
Sarah ran out of the kitchen and into the basement. If her playstation was still there, she was going to play Metal Gear Solid and pretend for a moment she was somewhere else. But when she got downstairs she started to hear a very soft voice. It almost sounded like whimpering. “Hello?” She asked. “Is somebody down here?” There was no answer. She walked around the basement trying to pinpoint the location of the voice. The closer she got the louder it became. The found the source of the voice behind a stack of boxes up against the wall. She started taking the down the boxes. When she removed them all she saw a door there she had never seen before. It was small, almost like a hatch; just big enough for her to crawl through. It was from here she could heat the voice. She put her ear up against the door so she could get a better sense of what she was hearing. She could hear it very distinctly now. It was a girl crying.
“Hello?” she asked again. “Are you alright, do you need help?” There was no answer. So Sarah opened up the door and crawled right inside to see whom it was. It was dark inside but the voice was so much louder now she was sure she could follow it to the source. Without thinking about getting a flashlight or her parents, Sarah proceeded to crawl into the dark space trying to find this girl. She continuously shouted, “Hello?” and “Are you alright?” but got no answer.
She was getting closer now. The louder the voice became, the more frightened Sarah was. She didn’t know who or what she would find. And the strange thing was that the more she listened to the voice, the more familiar it was to her. The voice was getting louder now. She was very close.
All of a sudden Sarah’s hand grabbed on to something very warm. It felt like skin. Sarah looked below her and was able to make out a small figure concealed in the darkness. She pulled out her cell phone and activated the flash on the camera so she could shed some light on what ever it was that was in front of her. When she shined the light on the figure her expectations were met. It was a small girl, maybe 9 or 10 years old, wearing a worn out yellow dress. She lay there in a fetal position sobbing. “Shh Shhh…” Sarah said trying to comfort the girl. “It’s okay, it’s okay. You’re gonna be alright now. I gotcha. What’s your name? How did you get down here?” She got no answer. She asked her again. Still no response. As Sarah moved the light up and down the girl’s body she noticed an abundant amount of cuts and bruises along the girl’s arms. Sarah’s heart sank, and her mind was bombarded by flashbacks of what happened to her 10 years ago. “No, no this can’t be,” she whispered softly.
Sarah reached out her hand and pulled the girls head so she was facing her. She shined a light on the girl’s face. When she did her body froze. In a moment of shock, Sarah’s eyes opened wide, her jaw slightly ajar. She knew the voice sounded familiar and this was why. It was her as a little girl, beaten savagely, her face all bruised up, blood dripping from her nose and mouth. Her eyes were bloodshot. All the memories from that terrible night began to come back to her in full force. Her mind could not ward them off; the images were too great. Fear took over Sarah’s body. She no longer had control. The little girl stared deep into Sarah’s eyes. Her bright blue eyes turned black. Darkness overtook them. And when this happened she muttered three words and three words only. “I have you.”
Just then the door shut behind Sarah and her cell phone battery died. Darkness overtook her, drowning out her screams.
-Joseph Buehrer