I Could Never Go Home

The bookshelf seemed to sigh in relief as it lost a little extra weight as I carefully slid my favorite book out from in between two others. I sneezed once as a cloud of dust floated into the air, caused by the disturbance of the bookshelf, which smelled of old pages, with a hint of mildew. That's what happens when you keep a wooden bookshelf for as long as I had. The books themselves smelled fine, although some of the corners were torn, and the pages were curled from years of use. With the book tucked under my arm, I walked into my living room. The couch sunk a few inches under my weight, and I leaned back into the familiar cushions. Suddenly, I felt the couch sink a little more, then bounce back. I turned, and next to me was a cat. Its midnight black fur was ruffled, and visibly damp. That's strange, I thought. It hadn't rained in months. The water must have come from somewhere else. I shrugged and run my hand down its back once. I could feel little bits of what felt like dirt hidden in long layers of fur, but it still felt like what I would imagine silk to feel like. Not that I would ever know for sure. I'd never owned silk in my life. The cat instantly released a soft rumble, harsh, but with an air of warmth. It looked up at me with wide green eyes and brushed its head against my waist. I'd never seen this one before, although cats often climbed into my house through a hole in the basement wall. I pulled my earbuds out of my ears, which stopped the music I had been listening to abruptly, creating deafening silence aside from the continued purring of the cat. I flipped open the all too familiar book, with pages that called to me, welcoming me back to the familiar story. The pages were slightly wavy and yellowed at the edges. There were crease marks on every corner, remaining from dog ear after dog ear. I had just gotten settled when suddenly, I heard a very loud crash outside, followed by the loudest and shrillest shriek I had ever heard. I stood up abruptly and almost subconsciously. The cat meowed loudly and bolted away. I frowned. This could not have been a good thing. I stood there, still and silent, for a moment. I put a hand to my ear and listened. Silence. I could not hear a single sound, as if nothing had happened at all. That's weird. I shrugged and sat back down with my book. I felt a ripple underneath me as if the couch was moving. Startled, I looked down, and there was the black cat, slinking out from under the couch as if nothing had happened at all. I felt the weight of the couch shift again as the cat hopped back atop the couch and nestled itself back against my waist, purring contentedly. I ran my hand through its midnight black fur and then tried to go back to reading my book. I couldn't concentrate on it though, as I kept thinking about what I had heard. I was just about to get up to investigate further when I heard yet another crash, much louder than the one before. The cat meowed in distress and bolted away again. Startled, I dropped the book in my lap and stood up abruptly. As my eyes swept around the room, there was nothing out of the ordinary that I could see. Now this is getting really weird. One of my hands found itself in the pocket of my jeans, and I fidgeted with a loose thread. I could have sworn there was something out there. I heard it. I knew I did. How about I call Catherine. She'll know what to do, I thought. I walked skittishly over to the phone and picked it up. My hands were trembling, despite my best efforts to keep them steady. What if this is some kind of omen? Is it karma of some kind? I dialed Catherine's number and held my phone to my ear. She answered immediately, and I sighed with relief.

"Hey, Danielle, what's going on?" she asked. I considered lying - why would she believe me? But I decided to tell her the truth.

"I've been hearing these loud crashing and screaming noises, but there's nothing there. It's probably nothing, but I'm still nervous." I could hear my voice shake as I got the words out. I must have sounded like an idiot.

"Hmm... Come over to my house. We'll figure it out. Be careful, Danielle. There's more to the world than meets the eye."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Her words had put me more on edge for some reason, but she was my best friend, and I trusted her, so I didn't think too much of it.

"Just come over to my place. Trust me." I heard the beep of the call ending, Catherine had hung up on me. I walked over to the coat hanger and slid on my favorite scarlet coat. The faux fur fabric was soft and silky on my skin, almost like real fur. I welcomed its familiar warmth. I stepped into my chestnut brown boots and opened the door. It let out a soft creak as I stepped outside into the foggy afternoon air. My eyes darted back and forth across the street, but one was outside that I could see, and it was eerily quiet. A cracker crumb could have fallen onto the pavement, and it would have sounded like it had been a boulder. Catherine lived two houses down from me, but at that moment it seemed as if she had lived on the other side of the world. I slunk through the shadows in between my house and my neighbor, Anna's. She was a nice woman, but I didn't wish to be seen that day. I wasn't in the mood for coffee and a chat. I made it to Catherine's house, and let myself in through her back door with the spare key hidden under the old welcome mat, which had been torn and covered in mildew for years.

"Danielle! I'm so glad you made it!" Catherine had her arms around me before I could blink twice. "Now tell me again, what exactly happened"

"Well, I was sitting on my couch reading my favorite book when I heard this really high-pitched scream and a loud crash. But no one was there. So I went back to reading. But then I heard it again. That's when I called you."

"Hmmm... I was afraid of that. It's happening again." Catherine sighed and rubbed her temples with her left hand. "Alright, come with me."

"Catherine? What's going on?" I looked at her quizically, with concern. I put my hand on her shoulder, and she paused.

"Just do what I say. I'll explain later." Catherine grabbed my hand, and her grip was strong, like iron. She led me into a room I had never been in before. As I looked around in confusion, I could see what looked like over a thousand glass bottles containing liquids of various different colors, on metal shelf after metal shelf. There was a fireplace in the corner, but there wasn't a fire on at the moment. Each bottle emitted multicolored smoke that smelled like a very unpleasant mixture of cotton candy and sulfur. There was a giant bookshelf on the back wall with books that looked like they could be over a thousand years old.

"Now, Danielle, the Zombs, which are a mutation form of zombie, come after someone if they had done something they consider morally wrong. No one can see them, and only their target can hear them. What did you do?"

"Hmmm..." I racked my brain for something I could have recently done, but nothing came to the surface that I thought might bring about a monster.

"Remember that party we went to a few weeks ago? The one for Rebecca's birthday?" Catherine asked.

"Of course I remember! We went together, had a few drinks, and swam in the lake. We had a great time!"

"But you left early," Catherine added, "You left me." I frowned and ran my fingers through my hair.

"You looked like you were having fun, and I was tired. I figured you could catch a ride with Allan."

"I got tired too. I was alone. You left me alone." I wasn't sure where Catherine was going with that, but something about what she was saying put me on edge.

"But you made it home alright on your own. We went out to lunch together the next day, and you were fine. We ordered sandwiches, and we had a good time!" I replied earnestly.

"No, I never made it home. My body didn't go home. You left me alone, and now, I can never go home." Catherine's words sent a sharp chill down my spine.

"Then how are you -" before I could finish my sentence I heard an ear-splitting shriek. I felt a sharp pain in my back as the back wall collapsed and I was flung to the ground by an invisible force. I could have sworn Catherine's form flickered. That was the last thing I saw before my vision forever went black.