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Story #2 Gary unlocked his front door. He sighed as he pushed the door open, his body eager to put his briefcase down by the front closet. He walked in and dropped the burden onto the hall floor. He shrugged off his suit jacket and then stopped; his hands frozen, the jacket hanging onto the floor. He didn�t hear anything. On any given night he�d hear the sounds of cartoons from the family room as his daughter, Sam, laughed at their antics or the dull thumping of heavy bass from upstairs; his teenage son, Matthew. He would even smell the pleasant aromas of whatever his wife Jane had cooked, bought, or ordered for dinner. Tonight though� Tonight was different. He heard nothing. He smelled nothing. �What is going on?� he thought to himself. He searched his mind for answers as he walked into the kitchen, tossing his jacket onto the briefcase as he went. Gary called out his wife�s name as he turned the corner and glanced around the kitchen. It was empty. Everything looked normal. The kitchen was clean, except for two empty glasses sitting next to the sink. His brow furrowed as he again called out, �Jane? Matt? Sam? Where is everyone?� He walked through the kitchen glancing onto the counters, looking for a note. As he got nearer the sink, his eyes spotted something. He walked closer and then doubled over, his stomach retching. �Oh my god� What has happened?� Gary groaned as he looked back into the sink, his eyes glued to the large splatters of blood contained in the basin. He stood back up and quickly left the kitchen, yelling out his family�s names. His heart raced in his chest as fear for his family�s safety began to take hold of his mind. He strode into the living room and was struck dumb. There was a large pool of blood on the carpet, almost in the center of the room. His eyes rolled around in his head taking in the splatters near the stain, and a large smear, tracked across the carpet and towards the stairs. �Jane!! Matt!! Sam!! Where are you?! Oh my god, are you hurt?! Where are you?!� he screamed out to the house, his voice thick with fear as tears started streaming down his cheeks. His hands began shaking uncontrollably as he ran towards the stairs following the blood, still shouting, hoping to hear someone yell back. He clamored up the stairs, his eyes glued to the blood, his heart beat pulsing in his ears. He reached the landing and let out a sob as he followed the trail with his eyes. It led to his bedroom door. �Jane! Oh dear god let her be alright!� He stumbled to the door and grabbed the doorknob; turning it and pushing the door open with his weight. His sobs caught in his throat as the door opened to blackness and he felt himself falling into it. He was falling into the blackness. Falling into the nothing. He bolted upright, a cold sweat dripping down his face. He was in bed. It was just a dream. |