It was late, I knew I was going to be in trouble for coming home so late so I was taking my time. After a night of telling scary stories with my friends I thought it best to ride my bike uNader the safe, luminous street lights. The air was still, the neighborhood quiet. The streets seemed more empty than normal, less cars parked on the street. There was even no smell, not the scent of the trees or the salty water from the nearby beach.
I stop my bike and feel the chilly air on my skin. Strangly cold since this was August in southern Florida. I check my surroundings as I feel uneasy about my current level of exposure.
“It’s just the stories making me nervous.” I tell myself.
In the distance behind me I hear a faint pop. I turn to notice the street lights at the end of the block has gone dark. I watch for a moment before another pop, andon’t the next light goes out. Still about twelve lights until the onext I’m under now. I continue watching, wondering if maybe it was a coincidence. The next one pops and goes dark, sooner than the last one. I squint as I thought I had seen someone. The next light goes out as a shadowy figure steps.. no, floats into the light. Whatever that is it’s picked up speed and is coming straight for me.
I quickly jump back on my bike and peddle as fast as I can towards home. I’m four blocks away and the darkness is getting closer. Now only five lights between me and whatever that was. I ride straight into my yard, drop my bike and rushed inside as the last light, the one at the end of my driveway, pops ands goes dark. I rush to my room and look out the window into the street. The full moon lightly illuminates outside where I see it.
It floats there, in the middle of the cul-de-sac. Long raggedy robes sway beneath it as it stares at my house. A faint red glow where it’s eyes would be. It feels like it’s looking right at me, even though there are no lights in my room and I barely have the drapes pulled open. It shoots, like a rocket, straight up into the night sky. With a sigh of relief I let the drapes close and sit on the floor, right under my window. I can’t even begin to understand what that was and I hope I never see it again.
I turn around and slowly stand back up and open the drapes to look back outside. My gaze is met by those glowing red eyes, inches from my window. It catches my sights, I can’t look away. It’s as if I’m stuck in trance.
In a slow, deep, raspy voice it speaks into my mind. To this day I still don’t know what it was or what it said but I will never forget those eyes or the way it moved. I never stayed out late after that again either.