Feeding Hour

The forest is dark. The creatures are roaming, and curiosity really is deadly.

The little boy stumbled back. His thin chest heaving as he fell straight to his bottom, his body trembling. Fear had a distinctive smell, it was strong and sour. It could overpower many things and trampled the senses of various creatures within this forest. Pulled them from the holes, and caves they hid within. They would always crawl out eventually. When others came to play.

Haden did not want to play. Not now, not when he too could smell their intentions. It was not hard to decipher what they craved. All you really had to do was look them in the eye and really see what’s inside. To look past the bloodshot whites, past the blown pupils, and really look. He didn’t want to do that either, but he forced himself nonetheless.

He could hear his father’s voice. It was so distant now, muffled by his racing thoughts, but present all the same. You were always too curious, it chided. Always too trusting, it spoke again. Deep and scolding, he choked back a cry. Trying so desperately not to anger the thing in front of him further.

“Oh child,” the creature spoke. It’s tongue lolling out as each word cut through the air like serrated steel. Could that be a tongue? Long and fleshy it was; human it was not. Not that he expected a human to appear. Far from it actually. Still he couldn’t stop the way his stomach heaved in disgust at the very sight of it.

An awful chuckle came forth, a low echo that could only best be described as hallow. “Oh child, you really did it this time.”

Haden finally cried, his emotions had bubbled up and spilled over. The tears streaked his pallid face, left hot wet trails in their wake. He was a blubbering mess by the time that terrible thing neared. It’s form hunched and disfigured as it came close. A crooked hand touched his cheek, earning the smallest whimper.

“You’re weak.” It cooed, corking a finger into the skin of his cheek. It would no doubt leave a bruise. The boy could only sniffle in response. “You sit here and weep, but where is your spirit?”

The boy thought of his mother and father. He thought of their worried eyes, and suddenly he thought of an awful image. He saw his mother curled on his bed, crying. His father laying close by and offering what comfort he could. Even if own his eyes had lost their own life, dull and lifeless as they grieved within his bed. Still neat from the morning he left. 

The scene had wrapped a cold hand around his heart.

The monster’s laughter was shrill and pierced through the night. Dragging that boy back to reality by the ankles. His mouth unhinged and revealed a sight that had Haden moaning in fright. The inside was hellish, all teeth with no space. They were neat rows that stood close together, but that’s not what had him so distraught. It was the teeth themselves.

They were large and sharp, long needle like things that looked so nightmarish that if the thing's hands weren’t already on him he probably would’ve pinched himself. Just begging to wake up in his warm bed, and forget about this by lunch. Only he wasn’t dreaming and those teeth were closing in. The moonlight danced over them such a haunting fashion, he prayed.

Prayed for his mother who would be tortured by this loss, who would fall to her knees at the sight of his shoes alone. He prayed for his father who would never sleep quite right again. A man who would wake up to too many nightmares of his own. He prayed they would crawl up from the hell he placed them in, he pleaded with God. 

Just before his screams blanketed the night in one final sweep, Haden even prayed for himself.