The sun was setting on a hot summer day, and three kids were still out on the town. They watched the sun slowly sinking over the horizon, setting the sky ablaze with reds, pinks, and orange. The town looked different in the warm light, picturesque. People were retreating to their houses, abandoning the streets and locking their doors. All but the three.
Hannah, Molly, and Ted sat on a curb outside the laundromat, enjoying snacks from the old vending machines; soda that had gone flat, and chocolates bars that had come out already melted. They shrieked and laughed against the approaching darkness. Unmovable.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ted asked. Molly looked up and down at the greenish purple bruises on him, and there was only one answer.
"Yeah, I'm sure." She said, "You're not going home."
Hannah nodded in agreement and put an arm around his shoulder, pulling him in close, "We're not letting your dad near you again."
"But what about when the sun's all the way down?" He asked anxiously.
The girls looked at each other. Neither had thought that far ahead. They hadn't thought passed, telling Ted to pack a bag and helping him climb out his bedroom window. Everyone in Springview knew that things got strange after dark, and they were going to need a plan fast.
"We'll go to the park." Hannah declared. "I know a spot."
With no other options they picked up their trash, grabbed their backpacks and jumped on their bikes, riding out into the darkening night. In no time at all they had left the business street behind to the large park only a few blocks away. The street lamps flickering to life one by one behind them and the air shifted. In the night, the old pastel houses started to look dim, eerie, and too similar. The sky was clouded over and no stars showed through. How had they rolled in so fast? Only a single sliver of moonlight showed through a small gap in the cloud ceiling, lighting up the park in silver-blue.
Their bikes skid to a startling stop as they realized a single man was seated on a bench near the playground. He seemed to be dressed in all black and they couldn't make out his face. All they could tell was that he must have been deadly pale. The three friends were frozen, watching the strange man.
"Follow me." Hannah broke eye contact with the back of the man's head first. She marched her bike across the grass, away from the man and deeper into the park.
"Where are we going?" Molly whispered a little louder than what felt safe.
"There." Hannah pointed as soon as she saw it.
Tucked into an alcove of large oak trees, was an old dusty greenhouse. It had once been a community garden but now stood abandoned and forgotten.
"We can sleep here and figure things out in the morning." she said.
They hunkered down on the dirty brick floor, unrolling their sleeping bags hoping they would defend against the cold. Hannah used a thick stick to wedge in the door handles as an improvised lock, Molly had a large flashlight she placed on one of the worn out shelves that lined the room, while Ted shuffled a deck of cards.
Anxieties and childish abandon kept them awake late into the night. They played games and told stories, giggling quietly. It was strange how easy it was to pretend they were having a sleepover and not runaways. Occasionally they would hear footsteps and they would duck low and cover the flashlight, shushing each other.
The footsteps would pass quickly and they went back to playing their games before sleep took them, lights still on and cards scattered.
*****
Hannah awoke to the sound of name. Molly was calling her and she jolted up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"What's going on?" She mumbled.
"Hannah." Molly's voice was distant.
She looked all around her, but Molly was gone, her sleeping bag empty.
"Hannah." Molly sounded so monotone it sent chills down her spine all the way to her toes.
She stood up and looked outside the glass walls.
"Hannah." She didn't sound far, but the darkness enveloping them was too intense to make out more than a foot away.
"Hannah." Her hands were starting to shake, but she didn't realize how bad it was until she grabbed the flashlight. She searched the trees with her eyes and the quivering light, another haunting book of her name floated across the air and she tried to follow the noise. Her light stopped on a figure.
The man in the black suit.
He had a bag over his head, painted with an upside-down smiley face, but she was certain it was the same man. He stood amongst the trees and though she couldn't see his eyes, she felt him staring.
"Hannah." It was the same monotone voice that sounded like Molly, but it was coming from him and his pale hand beckoned to her, as if to say "come closer". Her heart dropped into her stomach and she felt like she was going to vomit. The blood drained from her face and hands and she felt numb.
"Ted." She said quietly at first then shouted. "Ted!"
"She jumped onto his sleeping bag and shook him violently shouting, "Ted get up, there's something out there!"
He shot up, running his face all over, looking confused.
"What is it, an animal?" He slurred his words.
"Ted." The voice that wasn't Molly's called out.
"They both looked to see the man standing at the door. There was a long pause as they stared at the man frozen, realized the stick holding the door was gone, and him reaching for the handle. The two darted forward in pure panic, blocking the door with their bodies, leaning there full weight against it. The man jiggled the handle at first.
"Ted." The Jiggling turned to hard jerks.
"Where's Molly?" Ted cried.
"I don't know!" Hannah was near hysterical.
"TED!" The monotone voice had turned to a scream, and the man slammed his body against the door.
The two children shrieked and braced themselves, pushing back against him. Ted had a spark In his eyes and kneeled down to unlace his boot. Hannah could barely hold the door by herself as the man slammed against it again and again.
"I got it!" Ted said, and leaned back against the door. He reached over his head and wrapped his lace around the handles tight, tying in huge knots.
The two jumped back for the door, but the man had stopped. He stood there, staring down at the handle.
"HANNAH, YOU'RE KILLING ME!" He screamed in Molly's voice.
Ted and Hannah held each other in the dark, sobbing, while the man -no, the creature- casually walked away.
