Tick Tock

My mom came upstairs,

“Lillie? Are you ready to go?”

She asked as she placed my inventors costume on the bed.

“Yeah!” I said excitedly as I snatched up the costume and raced to the bathroom to change.

Silver, my cat, meowed.

“Oh, I almost forgot” I said leaning down to pick her up.

“Here” I set her down and tied a cape to her back.

She meowed her approval and I smiled.

I ran downstairs,

“Mom, I am going!” I yelled as I opened the door and stepped onto the front porch.

I went from house to house with Silver filling my bag with candy, we stopped at one house that was said to be haunted.

“Hey, look who It is” My big brother Johnathan’s best friend Maxwell said with a smirk.

“You know this place is haunted?” he asked stepping forward and snatching my candy bag,

“Go ahead, try and get it” he teased.

“Come on Max” a started,

“No you come on Lil, Do you even remember the stuffed bear I gave you when you were little, because of those nightmares?” He asked holding the bag just out of reach.

“Of course I remember, you were my favorite one of Johnathan’s friends, but I am older now, I don’t believe your little tales” I responded snatching my candy back.

He held up his hands in defeat,

“Alright, but this house is haunted, I tell ya” he said as he flipped his skateboard and left me and Silver to ponder his words.

“He is lying” I said to Silver,

“Meow” Silver responded.

Silver was slowing down and we were almost done with the last street when I heard it,

“Tick Tock” It was slow, faint, and haunting.

We were walking home and it got louder,

“Tick Tock Tick Tock” It got more frequent.

I lay in bed with Silver at my feet,

“Tick Tock Tick Tock” I heard as I fell into a deep disturbing sleep,

My dreams were full of ticking clocks going,

“Tick Tock”

A voice came often disturbing me with whispers of,

“Time is running low Lillie, Run…”

I awoke finally,

“Tick Tock Tick Tock Tick Tock”

It was getting faster,

“Tick Tock Tick Tock”

I stepped backwards slipping on my old stuffed bear, Chocolate, waking Silver.

“Meow” she complained,

but I barely heard,

“Tick Tock”

I walked downstairs and Silver followed,

I opened the door, hoping to get some fresh air,

“Tick Tock Tick Tock Tick Tock”

I stepped onto the porch only to find a man bleeding and limping down the street, I turned to go back inside when I saw Silver, covered in blood.

I gasped and turned again only to see the man was closer,

“Tick Tock Thump Wump”

I heard, I tried the door, but it was locked.

I heard the laugh again,

“Tick Tock”

I screamed.

People came out of their houses and lined up on the street, then the clock struck midnight,

“Tick Tock Tick Tock”

I heard and all of the people fell to the ground pools of blood welled up around them,

“Lillie” I heard a voice, it was the man.

“Don’t run from the truth” he said as he grabbed me,

“Tick Tock”

It slowed, maybe it was going to end?

“Lillie, you brought this on yourself” he said

“How?” I asked turning to face the man in the middle of the road,

“You, didn’t believe Max…” his voice trailed off in an echo,

I couldn’t help but laugh,

It was the same one I had been hearing earlier,

“You were warned” The man said.

“Who are you?” I asked a hint of fear in my voice,

“None of that matters, because you only have one chance, to save yourself” he said staring me in the eyes.

“What do I have to do?” I asked,

Then the world went black.

Pain hit me like a shock wave,

“Do you feel that?” he asked,

“Defiantly” I answered.

“Do you see anything?” he asked,

“No” I answered.

“You have 3 days” he said

“For what?” I asked eyes still blind to the world.

“To get a friend” he said

“Or you are next” he continued

“Why do I need a friend?” I asked

“Because, you have a lonely life” he replied turning away.

“But is that a reason to kill someone?” I asked,

“I do what the boss tells me” he answered as he faded away.

Then all sound stopped.

Then, everything stopped…

I awoke in my bed,

“Mom!” I yelled as the last

“Tick Tock’s” fled my mind.

I worked hard for the next couple of days, half expecting it to be this sick prank that Max set up, but over the next 2 days, nothing in Max’s behavior suggested that he was pulling something like this.

“Lillie?” the new girl in my school asked, my heart leaped.

“Yeah?” I asked as the

“Tick Tock”

started up again,

I felt a cold hand on my back,

“Time is running out” the man said,

“I know you are going through some things, and I want you to know that I am here for you” she said with a smile,

Was that enough? Would I live?

The next night, the man came back, his coat more ripped than before, his face was rotten, his eyes pale.

“I am…” he started

“Sorry” he continued after a long pause.

“But, I got a friend?” I asked my heart was beating fast,

“No, she said she was here for you, she was just being kind” he declared.

I felt a shock of pain, and I collapsed onto my knees,

“Why…” I started

“because…” I never heard the end

So you might be wondering,

How are you telling this?

I am telling you this because this is the ghost of Lillie,

What happened?

I don’t know…

Why are you telling this?

Because, there are more people like me, and I want them to know that they need a friend.

Happy Halloween!

~Lillie Stokes (Ghost of Woodstreet Rd.)