Shadows Of Deception

Kaylie's Perspective;
3rd November, 2006, 11:41pm

I was jolted awake with an intensity that felt like a thunderclap, pulling me abruptly from the depths of my dreams. The first thing I saw was my brother's tear-stained face hovering above me, his wide, frightened eyes reflecting a terror that sent a chill down my spine. Instantly, panic gripped my heart like a vice.

Silence enveloped the room, and I didn't dare utter a word, desperately hoping that he had just experienced a particularly vivid nightmare. Yet, the sight of his trembling frame—a combination of tears glistening on his cheeks and the rapid rise and fall of his shaky breaths—filled me with dread.

"What's wrong?" I finally managed to choke out, my voice trembling as much as my heart. The fear that clawed at my throat was palpable, and I suddenly became acutely aware of the biting cold that filled our room. Goosebumps surged across my arms as I rubbed my hands against my skin in a futile attempt to bring warmth to my body. Each shiver was a stark reminder of my growing anxiety, merging with the unsettling atmosphere that surrounded us.

He opened his mouth once, attempting to speak - Nothing came out, except a little squeak. He closes his mouth and looks around before opening it again.

"There was a banging sound on our window, I-it..I..it looked like someone was there" he croaked, choking on his tears now and then

"Stop lying, you're not going to scare me this time." I masked a brave face, but on the inside I was scared, what if there had been someone outside? Ryo, My brother is seven, he loved messing with me and scaring me a lot. So I sometimes found it hard to believe his tales, like tonight.

"We have school tomorrow. Go back to bed"

"But I'm not lying Kay, there was someone there"

"Im six years old, I'm not as easily scared as back when I was a kid, I'm a big girl now."

Ryo sighed, slightly defeated and huffed back to his bed, he settled in his bed and looked at me, I looked back before glancing at the window

"It was in your head." I'm the younger one of the two of us, but I always felt more mature than he was..

"No..it wasn't.."

We drift off to sleep, but it's quickly disrupted by the sound of someone screaming and a constant banging sound, Ryo and I jump up at the same time, and we both sit up, giving the same look Go find Mum and Dad. We made our way out of bed, assuming our parents would be downstairs, but we found only our dad

"Daddy?.." I whisper, I feel hot tears sting my eyes as my brother holds my hand. Our father quickly turned to us, shock and worry written all over his face, but I didn't care. I just wanted the comfort of my Dad

"Hey..Why are you two troublemakers up?" He gave us a small smile, opening his arms wide as the two of us came running into his arms, seeking relief

Ryo spoke first, I'd never seen my brother as scared as he was then, and I swore it would be the last.

"We heard a really loud noise" He peeked up at our dad as if wanting an explanation

"It was just Daddy being frustrated, sorry to wake you kids.." Our dad replied after a moment, he gave us a calming look, but his eyes told another story. Ryo believed him instantly, I mean why wouldn't he? He was our dad.

Dad tucked us back into our beds upstairs, we lay in bed both afraid of what that noise could have been. Because it wasn't our dad, I wasn't dumb, and I knew my brother wasn't either. But he believed him.