I pushed myself up from the bed, gasping for breath. Sweat rolled down my head as I tried to block my mind’s eye. Can’t I have one peaceful night of sleep, I thought. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to see something else. Blocking it out only seemed to make it worse, though. So, I kicked the blankets off and walked into the kitchen.
The red digits on the oven clock read 2:15 AM. I went over to the sink to wash my face. As I turned on the water, I looked outside to the backyard. It was pitch black, and it gave off a chilling vibe. I looked away from the window quickly. Then I finished washing my face and went back to my room.
This time, when I crawled into bed, I fell asleep quickly. But it didn’t last long. Creak. I jerked awake. There was a sound outside. It startled me, but I brushed it off. Closing my eyes, I was about to fall asleep when I heard it again. Creak. Creak. Something was swinging back and forth slowly. Curiously, I opened my eyes.
Nothing was in front of me. Then I realized it was coming from outside my window. Getting up, I carefully opened the curtains. I couldn’t see anything at first because it was too dark. Then my eyes adjusted and widened.
Gasping in fear, I closed the curtains swiftly. This can’t be real, I kept saying to myself, covering my ears to block out the noise outside. Then, a stream of moonlight came in through my window, and I saw it more clearly. It was a dark, outlined shadow of a man swinging by his neck.