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I climbed out of bed, feeling a little unsteady on my feet. I tried to shake it off, but I was quite dizzy. Suddenly, thunder like a gunshot made me jump. I began to feel uneasy in the dark, so I made my way over to the light switch and flicked it on. Nothing. I figured the power was out. I fumbled through the darkness for the flashlight on my dresser. I don�t know why my nerves were acting up so much, but my hands were shaking violently. As I grasped for the flashlight, various knickknacks clattered to the floor. Finally, I managed to pick up the flashlight and turn it on. At least the batteries weren�t dead.
As I stood in the center of my room, I let the thin beam of light fall over every corner. When the light landed on the window, I stopped looking around and walked over to it. I peered out into the flooded yard, then up at the forked bolts of lightning in the sky. I sighed tensely. My heart was pounding and my mouth felt dry. I needed to calm down.
I decided I would make an attempt to leave my room. I crept shakily to the door and found the knob with the help of the flashlight. I turned the knob slowly and pushed open the door. Just as I did so, the loudest boom of thunder yet almost made me fall over. Calm down, I told myself sternly. It�s just a thunderstorm. I�m not afraid of thunderstorms.
When I had regained some sense of stability, I took a deep breath and stepped out into the hall. I had the flashlight�s beam aimed at the floor so I could see where I was going. I walked along slowly in the path of the light. I stopped short as the light caught something glinting on the floor. It looked like a puddle. I walked over to it and crouched down for a closer look. To my horror, it looked like blood. I stared at it. My pulse raced. Slowly, my eyes trailed upward to a bright red line leading down the wall to the puddle. I followed the line up the wall with the flashlight until it ended in what appeared to be a symbol of sorts. After a second, I realized it was the letter �R�. It was scrawled roughly on the wall in the red liquid. I stood up and began to back up slowly. The flashlight shone on the wall. Gradually, other symbols- more letters- became clear. I gasped loudly and stumbled backward into my bedroom door. My eyes became aware of the bloody message on the wall-�The way is clear�.
I wanted to scream, but my mind couldn�t process that quickly.
�What is this?� I whispered shakily. I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I needed to sit down. I didn�t want to go downstairs. Yet, somehow-I could feel my curiosity growing through my fear. I pried myself off of the door upon which I was still leaning. I tripped over my feet as I stumbled over to the staircase.
I couldn�t remember a time in my life that I had been more thankful for handrails. I leaned with practically all of my weight on it as I walked down the stairs. One step, two steps, three steps�I counted as I slowly moved downward. I placed my foot down on the fourth step. My foot slid out from under me. I let out a yelp as I clutched at the railing desperately. After a few seconds, I was able to regain my balance and stand up straight. My fear turned into frustration and I released the rail. I tried to step down again, this time with my left foot. Before I could think, I felt it slide off the stair- I was only half aware of my body hitting the steps as I tumbled down- for a second, I wondered what I had slipped in- then, thud! I slammed into the floor at the foot of the stairs.
I lay sprawled out on the floor for about a minute, feeling intense pain all over. I listened to the rain, still falling without relent. When I was finally able to stand up again, I noticed the flashlight lying on the floor beside the staircase. When I picked it up, it felt wet. Looking at it, I saw more blood. Then, I became aware of the blood all over my body. Initially, I thought I had cracked my head open on the stairs and I was slowly bleeding to death. But, no, I had barely hit my head; I was hardly in any pain there. The beam of the flashlight on the stairs told the story. They, like the upstairs landing, were puddled with blood.
�I�m seeing things!� I told myself. �I�m dreaming!�
There was a simultaneous flash of lightning and crash of thunder. No, I was awake- it was all too real. But these sorts of things- puddles of blood, strange messages on the wall- they didn�t happen in real life�right?
I wasn�t even thinking as I wandered across the floor. My mind was blank. All sounds, all sights were blurred. I could still hear the thunderstorm outside. The wind was blowing fiercely, so much so that I could almost feel it. Yes, I could feel the wind on my face, slamming the raindrops against it�I brought my hand to my face to clear the rain from my eyes. I felt the water between my fingers. I turned slowly to my left to face the bay window. Hmm�the window�s�open? I walked toward it. I felt the shards of glass under my sticky feet, but it meant nothing to my waterlogged brain. When I reached the large window I peered out of the gaping hole where the glass had once been. All that remained of it were a few jagged pieces along the sides of the frame. I pulled my head back in. I was soaked.
It was pitch black outside, too. None of the streetlights seemed to be working. I shined my flashlight out the window and along the sidewalk for a closer look. So many puddles, I thought. The streets were flooded and the sidewalks were collecting rain. As I passed the light back and forth over the sidewalk, I felt a twinge of pain in my head.
