October Writing Prompts- Pinterest List by ZellyKatArt
October 26- Nightmares
Milton and Sylena sat outside Sylena’s house. They had just come back from the movies after watching a horror movie. Sylena had said she wanted to see it, but she held onto Milton the entire time, hiding her face. Milton smiled down at Sylena as she talked about the movie.
“And then there was all that blood. Why did the killer have to use that one tool to take out the teen’s eye? I just can’t believe we watched that movie,” she was saying, her hands still shaking. “I’m glad the dog wasn’t killed. But the cat got ran over in the end. Why would they kill the cat like that? And oh, the screaming and crunching bones.” She covered her ears. “The sounds.”
Milton laughed and squeezed her shoulders. “Sylena, are you sure you’re going to be okay tonight? Do you want me to spend the night?”
“No, Milton, I’ll be okay. I have to get up early tomorrow to get to work and you have to get to work. Plus, you have nothing clean to wear.” Sylena looked at him thoughtfully. “Why don’t you leave clothes over here? Or better yet, since we have been dating for a year, why don’t you move in with me?” She grew excited at the thought and bounced on the small patio sofa.
Milton raised his eyebrows. “I don’t know what to say. Yeah, why not? But why can’t we move into my place?” He teased her since he lived in a small two-room apartment with a roommate.
Sylena gave him a look that made him laugh. “No way. Your roommate would hate if I moved in.” She laughed. She liked Milton’s roommate, Fred, and he liked her, but it would definitely be a disaster if they were living in the same place.
“When do you want me to move in?” Milton stood up and stretched.
Sylena thought about it as she stood, too. “Let’s say next Friday. That way, I can go through my stuff and see what I want to get rid of so I can make room for your things.”
Milton kissed her and headed back to his car, walking backwards. “Next Friday it is. See you for our date night on Tuesday.” He blew her a kiss, and he climbed into his car, headed for his apartment. He couldn’t believe they were going to take their relationship to the next level and move in together. Milton thought about it as he drove home and he couldn’t wait.
Milton walked into the apartment and found Fred on the couch, watching a movie. “So, you’re going to have to find a new roommate soon.”
Fred grinned when he looked at Milton. “You’re moving in with her, aren’t you?”
Milton nodded and headed to his room for the night. He heard Fred celebrating out in the living room and he laughed. He got ready for bed and climbed in, ready to sleep. He hoped Sylena would be okay sleeping tonight after such a disturbing movie. He closed his eyes and let himself fall asleep.
Friday came and Milton, Fred, and Sylena moved Milton into Sylena’s home. She was so excited to have Milton moving in with her. She kept jabbering away as they put his clothes away, moved in some furniture, and placed his book on her bookcase in his own spot. After they were done, they had lunch and Fred left. Milton and Sylena sat on the couch, snuggled, and watched a few movies until dinner. They went out for dinner to their favorite place and went home, ready for their first night sleeping together.
“Night, Milton. I am so excited to wake up with you next to me,” Sylena said, and clapped. She gave him a kiss and slid under the covers.
Milton grinned and laid down next to her. He watched her sleep for a while before he could fall asleep. It was strange sleeping in another place, but he fell asleep after an hour of watching Sylena. He felt himself fall deeper and deeper into sleep when a thump pulled him back. He opened his eyes and looked around. Milton glanced at Sylena, who was sleeping peacefully next to him. Milton snuck out of the bed and walked around the house to see if he could find what had made the thumping sound. He couldn’t find anything, so he went back to bed.
Milton woke up the next morning, and Sylena wasn’t beside him. He got out of bed and headed into the bathroom to splash some water on his face. He heard some noises in the kitchen and headed that way to see if Sylena was there. He stuck his head inside and looked around, but she wasn’t there. A door opened behind him and he turned to see Sylena walk out of another door, one he hadn’t seen before. She pushed a large bookcase in front of it, then turned and jumped.
“Oh, Milton, you scared me. I thought you were still sleeping,” Sylena said with a chuckle with her hand against her heart. “Want me to make you something to eat?”
Milton pointed behind her. “What is that?”
“Oh, just a room I use for storage. I wanted to grab something, but when I went to look for it, it wasn’t there.” Sylena shrugged and walked away.
Milton kept an eye on the bookcase for a moment before he followed her into the kitchen. “I have to go to work, and I know today is your day off. Are you going to be okay by yourself?”
“Oh, yeah, I was thinking of just watching a movie or maybe go hang with Fred at the old place.” He hugged and gave her a quick kiss.
“Well, if you do see Fred, tell him to come over for dinner tomorrow night.” Sylena made coffee, eggs, and bacon with Milton’s help.
He did his best talking to her during breakfast, but his mind kept wandering to the mysterious room. Milton kept mentally telling her to hurry. He noticed her put a key on her dresser while she got ready. They chatted until she left. Once he made sure she was gone, Milton hurried into the room and looked at where the key had been. It was gone! He slammed his fist on the dresser and heard something fall on the ground underneath it. He bent down and there was the key. She hadn’t put it back in the hiding place too well. He grabbed it and hurried to the front window. Milton peeked outside to check, but Sylena was still gone. Milton ran to the bookcase and shoved it to the side. He unlocked the door and hurried into the darkness.
Milton felt along the wall until he touched the light switch. The lights flickered on and blinded him for a moment. He waited until the spots vanished from in front of his eyes and he could see where he was walking. He walked down some stairs and into the supposed storage room. There was a large cage set up, closed and locked. He walked over to it and peered inside at something covered by a blanket. Chains clanked under the blanket as whatever it was turned over to look at him. Milton could see eyes underneath, dark blue eyes, the same color as his.
“Help…me…”
Milton jumped back when the lump talked to him. He got a hold of himself and grabbed the cage door, trying to pull it open, but the lock held tight. He tried the key, but it wouldn’t unlock it. “Just hang in there. Let me find the key and then I’ll let you out.”
“Hurry…before she comes back…”
“Before she… you mean Sylena?”
“Sssssssyleeeeenaaaaa,” the lump moaned and cried.
“Okay, okay,” Milton glanced over his shoulder, afraid Sylena would walk in and find him there. “Keep it down. Let me find the key.” Milton rummaged around for a couple of hours, but he couldn’t find the key for the cage. “Do you know where she keeps the key?”
“No, she doesn’t let me see where she hides it.”
Milton sighed heavily and kept looking. Something wasn’t right about who was in the cage. Same eyes as him, and his voice almost sounded like his. He shook his head and kept trying to find the key when he heard something upstairs. Milton glanced at his watch and cursed under his breath. “She’s back.”
Milton turned to leave when the person in the cage grabbed his arm. Milton turned to face the man in the cage, only to see his own face. Milton screamed and backed away, pulling his arm free. He tripped over some boxes and fell. Everything went black.
Milton woke up and groaned. He looked around, but he couldn’t tell where he was. He heard someone walking around not too far from where he laid and wondered if he was back in the bed. “Was that a nightmare?” Milton rubbed the back of his head. It felt like he had hit it on something. He squinted in the dark and saw he was in a bed. It had been a nightmare. Milton sighed in relief and pushed the covers off of him and stopped. There around his ankle was a long chain locked to it.
“You’re awake, Milton. Good morning,” Sylena said as she walked closer to the cage. “I hope you slept well.” She laughed and shoved a plate of wet dog food. “Enjoy your breakfast. I’ll be at work today, so I put the TV on for you.” She pointed to where she had placed a TV on a chair just out of reach outside the cage he was in. She said goodbye and disappeared back upstairs.
Milton looked around the cage, breathing hard. He grabbed the bars and screamed.