Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark

It Was An Accident

Credit goes to @Dark_Girl_Shadows , this is her story.

The digital clock blinked 12:00 A.M.
That was the last thing I saw before flailing my arms and legs wildly to get the freezing, slimy hand to release it's squeezing hold from around my throat.
This only caused the creature to tighten it's sickly, moist fingers to the point were it's nails dug into my flesh. I dreaded with so much fear when feeling blood-my blood dribble down my neck and soak into the bed sheets.
The smell of decaying flesh invaded my nostrils as it leaned in, I felt cold drops of some sort of liquid patter my face and knew it must be from the thing's hair.
I tried to scream, but the creature-her hand that gripped my throat only made it to a muffled wheeze.
Still struggling, I grasp tightly on something wet and pulled on it until a loud, rip made a bone chilling silence that followed after. I instantly let go of what I'm sure of is rotting clothing.
Silence.
My will to keep fighting diminished like the air from my lungs. I could faintly hear myself gasp for the needed oxygen. Tears were streaming down my face as my limbs slowed until altogether, just stop and lay numbly at my sides.
She leans in even more until I could feel her cold, foul breath on my face while uttering the words in a deranged, gurgling whisper.
"I'm back."
•••
I sat straight up, coughing and gagging. Putting a hand to my chest to desperately breathe again, my other hand frantically felt around until a small object was safety secured in my grip. I put the inhaler in between my lips and sucked in the medicated air, filling my lungs greedily as it entered my body.
Wiping the beads of sweat that gathered around my forehead, I reached hastily and turned on the lamp next to me to scanned for anything out of the ordinary in the dimly lit room.
"It's just a nightmare, it's just a nightmare. Yeah, no need to be afraid." I whispered while turning to every dark corner to make sure of myself there was indeed, nothing there.
My gaze flickered down to my nightstand, were a nicely, decorated card found it's place there about two weeks ago. Picking up the delicate paper like countless times before, I read the lines carefully, the information still new to me, still trying to settle in my brain which I refused greatly to allow so.
In memory of Alice Wight.
4/11/2000 -to- 4/11/2010
A wonderful daughter, and caring younger sister.
May God be with her.
She died on her birthday.
My stomach twisted with nerve and guilt. I gulped big to keep down a taste of vile, but it's no use. Scurrying out of my bed, I make it to the bathroom were I heaved and gagged. Hunched over the toilet, the contents of my dinner were emptied out until my sides hurt and feeling of sickness took over.
After a few uneasy moments, my hand found the silver handle and pushing it down, the flushing of what remains of the food I've hardly eaten all disappear in a swift motion. All gone, any evidence is all invalid.
Still crouched down in case the nausea desired to ever come back agian, I focused of what was all around me besides the bright, fluorescent light that became too unbearable. Closing my eyes instead, I intently listened on the beating of my heart.
Ba-thump, ba-thump, ba-thump....
Drip. Drip. Drip.
"No, no, no.." I pressed my eyes tighter together while silently shaking my head. Anything, anything but that noise.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Sweat began to form as my breathing quickened. I looked all around the bathroom, trying to figure out were it was coming from.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
"Make it stop. Oh, please make it stop." I pleaded, lightly pulling at my hair and bolting up to my feet, trying to constrain on that awful memory.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Just when I felt another attack coming along, it stopped; so did I. Frozen to the ground, no words came, my mind went blank, the whole world seem to freeze with deifying silence. I stared at it, it stared at me.
I blinked with a shocked expression, so did she. Her dark brown hair, neatly settled on her bony, pale shoulders, boring, almost dead, brown eyes stared back at me. I swallowed, she swallowed.
"You two could be twins!"
My mother compared before the 'click' announced she taken the picture.
I scrunched up my nose before looking down at my younger sister who gave me the same expression.
"Oh please, Im better looking." I muttered before putting in a pair of ear buds. I scowl when one of them get's ripped out. I look to the side of me to see my sister-Alice, holding it up with a smile plastered on her face.
I scan the room to see our mom already left before whipping my head back and narrowing my eyes at her. "What do you want now?" I growl out while snatching it back from out of her hands.
Alice gazes around the birthday-decorated house, as if seeing it for the first time, than down at her frilly-white dress and mumbles.
"I wanna go to the park."
I turned away from the mirror and slide down the wall behind me until sitting on the plain, tiled floor.
"Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Just don't think about it." I repeated for reassurance, the feeling of a snake wrapping around my lungs causes me to gasp and panic.
My hands digs around the pockets of my fuzzy pajama pants until a circler object found itself in the warmth of my palm. Pulling out my inhaler, I stared at it for a second before putting it to my mouth and pressing down. The familiar swooshing sound telling me to breathe in, and on command, I do.
"Why do you have asthma?"
Alice asked while combing my hair. We were trying to pick out what style I should wear for April eleventh, of next week. Or what Alice attends to call it, her birthday.
"I don't know, I just do for some reason." I shrugged, than hopped up from my bed and over to the closet. "You need to stop hanging out in there, don't you ever get tired of being in the dark?" I ask before closing it.
"Nope, it's the only place I can be alone." She giggles, than fiddles with the two-dollar bracelet I happen to give her earlier that day.
"Stop thinking about her! Just stop!" I cried out, rocking back and forth in fetal position. Which really, I had know idea how I ended up in, or even aware of my own emotional state. A mixture of wanting to laugh and cry formed inside of me.
People have no idea. None at all. Im just the grieving, older sister. It's normal to break down after a unfortunate event that took place a couple weeks ago. Yep, that's it. Just a really, really, unfortunate accident. Nothing to do with me, nothing at all.
"She's in heaven n-now... I-I it's going to be ok." I stuttered as a tear ran across my face, I licked my chapped lips and continued to rock, staring at the bathroom floor.
"It was an accident. It was just a-a terrible accident." I whispered again, the guilt eating me alive from the memory implanted into my mind, bouncing around in the inside of my very skull, over and over no matter how many times I try to convince myself different.
I started banging my head against the wall, the pain doesn't bother me at all, in fact, I invited it like a open door. Anything, I was desperate, so much that I would do anything to prevent me from thinking anymore.
"Why do you want to go to the park?"
I asked, lifting a dark eyebrow questionably at her.
Alice looks up, giving me a smile. "Because it's fun! I like the park!"
I roll my eyes at this lame answer before waving a hand to the doorway."Than go ask mom or dad, leave me be."
"But they won't take me. Come on, please? After all, it is my birthday today." She begged and pulled out her bottom lip, pouting.
I was about to protest, but than it hit me; why not have a little fun with this? A perfect idea. I looked at her, a smile slowly curved up at my perfect, wondrous, thing of a idea.
"You know what? Fine, I'll take you." I declared.
Alice jumped up in down with excitement. "Really?"
"Yep! Come on, let's go!" I cheered than grabbed her hand and pulled her out the door with me.
"Hey, I think we're going the wrong way." She says, pointing the other direction of the road.
I smirk at her and continue walking. "Nope, we're going the right way. I got a birthday present for you when we get there."
"What is wrong with me?" I screamed, not caring anymore if I wake my parents up.
"It w-was a God damn accident! It was a prank! A prank! That's all! I mean, it's not l-like I meant to hurt her!" I didn't even realize the words I was saying, were being revealed for the second time. Lifting a trembling hand, I pressed down on the inhaler. Nothing. I did it again. Same result.
Out of frustration, I threw it against the mirror. A crack echoed off the bathroom walls and I dropped to the floor, slumped against the colorless wall once again.
"I didn't mean to hurt her..." I mumbled faintly, tiredness washed over and unwillingly, my eyes drifted shut.
"This is it?"
She asked and turned to me with a puzzled look.
The corners of my mouth quirked up as I stared ahead at the lake. The surface sparking like diamonds from the sun reflecting off it.
"Nope." I pointed to the little, lonely, wooden pier, my excitement bubbling. "It's over there."
Alice showed her teeth which might of been a to-happy smile, than ran to the pier, with me close behind as I secretly laughed for my own reasons.
I mean, all she's been doing today was talking about that dress, so let's just give it a wash...
She searches all around the pier before looking up at me, squinting her eyes from the glaring sun. "I don't see it!"
I gleefully skipped over to where she's standing and nod in the direction farther up the wooden-beamed thing that was holding us up two or three feet above the water. "Silly, it's right in front of you."
Just as I expected, Alice walks to the edge of the pier and bends down to get a better view. "I still don't see anyth-"
I give her a ruff shove before she could even finish, a short-lived shriek leaves her lips before falling into the water with a loud splash. Going to the edge, I peer down, laughing from the sight of her horrified expression.
"Wow! I can't believe you fell for that one!"
Alice ignored me, and continued to hit at the water frantically.
I squinted my eyes at her. She's faking, dad taught her how to swim two years ago, I'm not stupid from her act to try and scare me. "Alice, stop playing around."
Splash, Splash.
"I said to stop playing around!"
"Help me! Please, I can't swim!" She yells just before her head goes underwater. Than silence, just a dead quiet, a nothingness of all sorts at that moment. No birds chirped, the bugs seemed to have vanished, not even the wind breezed through the trees, not a rustle of leaves to be heard.
My eyes go wide with fear at the sudden realization that this is no joke. My own baby sister, what have I done?
"Alice!" I scream, breaking the void of the eery silence, but the only answer I get is little bubbles coming up from where she disappeared.
I quickly look for anybody nearby. "Dammit! Somebody help! My sister! S-shes drowning! Somebody! I need help!" The feeling of hopelessness starts to sink in when nobody comes from my pleas for help.
After all, it just happened be deserted. Just a small, dirt path that led to a forgotten lake, surrounded by trees and terrain. A place where rebellious teens go to hang out or swimming, which was rarely so often anymore.
No one is coming.
Whipping my head back at the greenish lake, terror seized me to find she hasn't come back up yet.
"A-Alice?" I asked meekly, hoping she'll respond.
Nothing.
"Oh my god.." I whisper, taking a couple steps back before turning completely around and start running.
I didn't stop, not for the burning ache in my legs, or for the breathlessness in my lungs. I didn't stop until I collapsed, dropped to my hands and knees in a coughing fit in front of my mother who was setting up the birthday presents on the dining table.
She turned around, completely shocked at my entry. I heaved, despatched from needed air that would not come.
"What happened?" My mother asked while rubbing my back. Sweat rolled down my face and I hastily brought out my inhaler.
"Mom! I-it's Alice! S-she she-" I stumbled after gathering my breath while standing up to my feet.
She held up a hand, making me pause. "Calm down sweety, I can't understand you. What about Alice?" My mom stood also, crossing her arms over her chest as she eyed me suspiciously.
I swallowed hard, thinking of how to explain this. But what if she thinks I did it on purpose? My mom knows I wouldn't do that though, does she? What if the cops get involved? Could I go to jail? But it was an accident!
Taking a few, unsteady breaths, I stared hard at my shoes, cloaked in mud. "Mom! Alice wanted to go to the park and she asked me. So I said yeah, b-but then, but then she started going the other direction!" I looked up at my mother to see consern flash through her brown eyes before continuing on.
"I told her not to Mom! I really did! B-but she went to that old lake a-and, and..." A hiccuped popped up as tears started to stream down my face as the accident flashed through my mind, the real one of course.
"I ran after her, and she ran to the peir. B-before I even knew what was going on, she slipped, and fell, I tried to save her but-"
"Mike! Hurry up! Call the cops- call the ambulance! It's Alice!" My mom screamed cutting me off, and ran to the living room to where my dad was. I could hear her sobs, the words 'lake', and 'drowned' being said, than the front door opening, being slammed shut after.
Leaving me all alone with what I told, and with amlost zombie-like movements, I walk over to the curtains and pull them back to see the plain, cemented street placed in front of our house, leading to a place I should've never have gone too in the beginning.
My eyes never waver to leave the window when seeing cop cars rushing past, almost in a blur. All the while a hush, cracked whisper, not even the tone of my voice, leaves my dry lips.
"I didn't mean to hurt her."
My eyes snapped open, a scream bubbling which quickly died when seeing I was still in the bathroom. Calming down to not have another attack, I got up, rubbing my stiff neck from laying on the hard floor.
That was the second nightmare this night. I thought while splashing cold water on my face from the sink, avoiding the shards of broken glass that was scattered. A chill erupted, causing goosebumps to form across my skin, but not from the cold water.
I gretted my teeth when remembering when two police officers with sad faces, showing up at our doorstep just two days after Alice disappeared, and telling my famliy- including me, the news.
They never found her body.
Shaking off the memory to not freak out agian, I turn off the faucet and hurriedly step out the bathroom, shutting it's bright light without a second thought as sleep was all on my mind now.
"It's just all in the past." I mumbled, entering my room. Satisfaction came when seeing it was just how I left it, nothing moved and the lamp still on.
I will learn to let it go, I loved my sister with all my heart and she knew that. Alice in a better place now.
With that, and a warm smile on my face, I get into my bed, reaching for the lamp switch to get a restful slumber.
Funny as that is, my hope is completely shattered. Just mid-way, something catches the corner of my eye. I turn and squint my at it. The smile I had, turning into a frowning quiver as my eyes widen like flying UFO's. Fear woven back into me, my breath quickened while silently shaking my head at it.