The coffee machine was dripping a little louder than usual. Sitting in my kitchen waiting for the blinking red light to stop was the last place I had wanted to be. All of my friends are out and my girlfriend is asleep. What else is there to do?
I hear the ding and pour myself a small amount of coffee. I still wanted to sleep tonight so a full mug wouldn't be wise. There was some lame horror movie about snakes on the tube when I made my way back to the living room. A woman was struggling with her leg thigh deep in the mouth of an oversized Anaconda. Pass.
I finish my coffee and take the cup back to the sink. I stare into the night that looks like it was smeared with mottled grey ink that had been sitting out for too long. The tree was waving it's weird branch-hand at me in the wind again. I don't like that tree. Never have.
I start to wander back to my bedroom. My bare feet cold against the old hickory floor. This old house squeaks, but it's what I can afford right now. If you didn't know me, you'd think I was squatting. But no matter. I started to walk up the stairs, careful to avoid the spot where water drips from the ceiling and runs down the banister.
Once reaching the top of the stairs I turn right to go to my bedroom. I turn the **** and get in bed when I shut it, thinking nothing of what I was doing. I reach over. Where's my girl at? She was just sleeping here not even an hour ago. Did she leave and I didn't notice?
I get out of bed again and put my house shoes on again, wondering exactly what the hell was going on. I shuffle out to the hall, just ready to sleep. I stick my head out the door and look both ways. "Babe? You there?" I say to the emptiness, hearing my echo.
The emptiness responded back.
I heard footsteps, and a small laugh.
Now I'm starting to get scared. I step out into the hall and call again. "Hello? Who's there?" Nothing. I wait about five seconds and there were three knocks coming from downstairs. Who could be at the door at this hour? Maybe it's Cheyenne coming home.
I make my way down the stairs, a little scared and slightly *******. I open the door- "Did you forget your... oh" There was no one there. Just the sounds of the wind. "Where the hell did she go?" She was nowhere to be found. I searched the whole house. But the car is still here. This is weird.
I shut the door and turn around. I'm so confused. I can't make up or down out of this entire situation. Maybe I'll wake up suddenly and this will all just be some crazy dream.
I move to my couch and turn the channel from the snake movie. Chick flick, chick flick, talk show, news, news, news, more news. I give up.
I turn on the tv and something in the reflection of the glass. It appears to be Cheyenne. I jump, almost out of my skin and turn around suddenly. Nothing. I feel the sweat beading up on my forehead and the back of my neck. My first instinct is to run. Far, far away. No. I can't do that, my girlfriend is mysteriously gone. If I don't find her soon, I'm calling the police. Bottom line.
I go to the kitchen and I'm utterly horrified. Dripping down the wall in blood, was a message. A message meant for me. "Find Me!" was slashed on the wallpaper in that sentence as if by a first grader. I scream. I run upstairs and into my bedroom as fast as I can. I cower under my bed, fearing for my life more than I ever have before. All is quiet for a few minutes, and then I hear it. The footsteps. Coming up the stairs slowly, but with purpose. They reach my bedroom door and stop. It creaks open. I see two bare feet. Hers. She says "Why are you hiding under there, silly? Come out and kiss me." I'm so relieved. I crawl out from under and go to tell her what's transpires, and then I see it. Her nightgown. Covered in blood from top to bottom. She holds up her arms and I see the slices. I'm in utter shock as I see this, unable to even scream. She holds her arms out, as if for a hug, and whispers "Didn't you miss me, darling?"
I run. I run past her as far and fast as I can. Down the stairs, out the door, crying out to the night. I flag down a car and they stop and I tell them what happened. The police and ambulance arrive, check me out, and clear the house. She wasn't there. The blood wasn't there. Nothing was there. The only blood found was what got on my shirt when I ran past her.
Months after this incident, I'm still in this asylum. I'm not crazy. I'm not delusional. This diary my only outlet. But I know she wasn't finished. I was supposed to die too. But she was never found. They just assumed she left me and I went insane from grief. But that's not even close to the case. There's something unholy out for me now. You can't cheat death.
As I was writing this entry, I heard her whisper in my ear.. "Miss me, darling?"