short horror stories

breathing

The night was thick with an eerie silence as the little girl descended the creaky stairs, her small feet barely making a sound against the wooden steps. In the dim glow of the hallway light, her parents looked up from their conversation, startled by her sudden appearance.

"Can you hear it breathing? I can," the girl said, her voice barely above a whisper, her wide eyes gleaming with an otherworldly intensity.

Her parents exchanged uneasy glances, their hearts pounding in their chests as they strained their ears for any sign of the mysterious breathing their daughter spoke of. But all they heard was the stillness of the night, broken only by the faint hum of the air conditioner and the rustle of leaves outside.

Concern etched on their faces, the parents reassured their daughter that it was just her imagination playing tricks on her, that there was nothing to be afraid of. But as the girl retreated back upstairs to her room, a chill settled over the house, lingering in the air like a whispered secret.

Alone in the darkness of her room, the little girl lay awake, her senses alert to every sound and shadow that lurked in the corners. And as she listened with bated breath, she heard it—the soft, rhythmic sound of breathing, faint but unmistakable, coming from somewhere just beyond her bedroom door.

Fear seized her heart as she huddled under the covers, too afraid to move, too afraid to even blink. The breathing grew louder, closer, filling the room with a sense of dread that hung heavy in the air.

And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the breathing ceased, leaving behind only the echo of its presence in the stillness of the night.

In the morning, the little girl's parents found her curled up in bed, pale and trembling, her eyes wide with terror. When they asked her what was wrong, she could only whisper one word:

"Breathing."

And as they listened in horror, they heard it too—the soft, labored sound of someone—or something—breathing, coming from somewhere deep within the walls of their home. And as the realization dawned on them that they were not alone, they knew that they would never again feel safe in the place they had once called home.