Today I heard something strange, I work from home so I am used to the reserved atmosphere other than the paced clacking of my fingers at my keyboard. As I clacked away, I heard something strange above my head in the attic. It was muffled, but it sounded like something being dragged across the floor.

I stomped over to the key rack and threw my arm to grab the attic key, barely catching myself as each step upwards boomed throughout the house. In a flurry of testosterone and skin tightening fear I swung open the door, finding myself staring down at the friendly shape of my childhood teddy bear, Beary. I have had him ever since I struggled to say “Cat” so I did feel a strange welcoming presence when I saw him. I laughed and put him back to his dusty corner and chuckled as I hung the attic key back up. “So much action and for what?” I laughed, I returned to work, Not thinking how strange it was that he was waiting in front of the door like that.

That night I was stirred out of my sleep with that steady dragging sound from earlier. However, this time it dragged consistently and quickly, like a newborn scooching across the ground. Again I climbed the attic stairs, finding myself frozen before the door, finding any courage I had to finally swing the door open.

There, in the dark blackness was a shape moving to match the sounds I could still hear. It didn’t take long for me to fully process what I was seeing, it was Beary. His small stuffed legs were dragging along the attic floor, lurching his upper torso forward in each movement resulting in a relaxed hunchback appearance. In my astonishing horror, I failed to realize that the dragging sound had stopped, Beary had fixed his beady eyes on me. I shuddered and yelped, slamming the door shut to end the horrific imagery that lay before me. I dug at my pockets to grab- My pockets! I looked to the darkness that was the downstairs, remembering earlier how the attic keys had been properly hung up for once. In the absence of all sound my heart beat began to beat my eardrums in a dizzying effect of cold fear.

The dragging continued, I hurled myself into the darkness and down the stairs panicked. As I picked myself up I was again fearstricken, with the night being pierced by the sound of the attic door clicking open. I swatted at the attic key as I ran, managing to clumsily snatch it.

With my full momentum fueling me I slammed into the door, shutting it once again with a satisfying THUD. With a final twist the door had been locked, just as I collapsed to the ground in a shake.

After that things were the same, no dragging sound. But sometimes, I’m not so sure…