Fear

• Harriet Masters-jones, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2016

Fear

Fear… Everyone has little fears for example, fear of the
dark, spiders and heights, but have you ever experienced
deep fear?

Imagine this, you’re sitting in your lounge room
on a regular Sunday night, you’re finishing an essay that’s
due tomorrow. The smell of a vanilla scented candle is lingering
in the air, the sound of the local news is droning on in the
background it’s all the usual, missing people, politics,
oil and gas prices. You go back to finishing your essay.

About half an hour later, the news is finished and the
newest episode of the Big Bang Theory is on. You’re almost
finished your essay. All of a sudden an emergency news break
cuts in. The news makes your heart jump. The reporter says
that a maximum security jail nearby has had a breakout of
aggressive behaviour, resulting in several dangerous criminals
roaming the streets. You find yourself standing in front of the
screen. You drop to your knees as you realise that the jail
is less than two streets away from your house. You jump up
swiftly and turn off all your lights and your TV and go back to
your couch to finish your essay.

A while later I noticed movement out of the corner of my
eye, shadows creeping along the wall. I jumped up
and lurched towards the sliding glass door and peeked
out the window. I saw three figures slinking up my driveway,
the first was tall, slender, the second was
average height and broad shouldered, the third was short
plump and highly-strung. I could hear
the drag of their heavy prison boots on the rough concrete.
I felt my self go white and my stomach dropped to the floor.
I silently slid across the carpet and grabbed the telephone and my
laptop and tiptoed up the stairs, I tripped over a loose piece
of carpet. Thump! I gritted my teeth, got back and scurried up to
my bedroom. My door creaked as I pushed it open.
I looked around frantically for a place to hide, my eyes set
on my closet. I ran to it and jumped inside, the smell of months of dirty
washing made my eyes water, but that was the least of my worries.
I picked up the phone and dialled triple zero,
it rung once, twice, three times, then it went silent. “Hello” I said.
I heard a low raspy giggle and the line went dead. I opened my laptop
to try to contact anyone who could help me but some one had shut off
my internet network.

I pulled clothes off the coat hangers and buried myself in them
and squeezed my eyes shut, I gagged on the smell
of sweaty gym socks. My eyes stung with
tears, everything was pitch black, I sat there telling myself that
everything was going to be ok.
That’s when I remembered it, something so terrifying that
I wished I was dead.

I’d forgotten to lock the front door…