Without regard for anything else, Matt bolted and ran upstairs as fast as his feet would take him. It took less than a quarter of a minute for him to get to where his family were. Emmy’s and Jean’s screams was deafening. The question that was forming in his head was immediately answered when he reached the door.
Aside from Emmy and Jean being petrified, the image of Gina floating in midair, moving towards Emmy sent him to panic. For a split second, Matt thought about running away. He trembled, his breathing became rapid, his knees threatened to buckle, his hands shook, and cold sweat began to pour in torrents from every pore.
“Matt! Do something!” Emmy yelled.
The call was enough to rouse him from his trance. Terror remained. His ears picked up the creaking the bed gave off and his eyes instinctively followed. He squinted and had to wait a few moments but once he was able to make out what it was, all doubts left his mind. Something was on the bed.
Emmy started calling out to her daughter. She spoke endearingly, trying to coax her daughter out of her slumber. He slowly walked to the right side, switching his attention between the progress of the indentations on the bed, on Gina, and Emmy. His senses were so strained that Matt could hear Jean breathing. Then, he remembered something from his online searches.
Matt’s hand extracted his phone from his pocket and set to work. He opened the camera app and popped out the built in kickstand from the case. The configuration, however, would not capture anything usable if he placed it on the table. Matt scanned the entire room and found Gina’s cabinet to be a good enough vantage point.
“What the fuck are you doing? Your daughter needs your help!” Emmy exclaimed.
“I know, I know,” he answered, “but trust me, we need to capture this.”
Matt dragged a chair and placed the phone on top of the cabinet, estimating the angles optimal for capture. His neck strained as he tried to get a view of the screen. He could see something that looked like Gina’s head on the left side. He set it to record and quickly approached Emmy and Jean. Halfway there, he froze. It was his turn to scream.
The mirror opposite Gina’s bed showed everything clearly. He saw Emmy, Jean, and Gina floating in the air, except, Gina was not floating. She was being held up. A dark figure, hunched up on the bed, was propping his daughter up. Based on its size, Matt could tell just how tall it was. Its proportions appeared to be greatly exaggerated.
The figure he was seeing in the mirror was predominantly muscular but certain areas, like the chest and the stomach appeared fatty. The face was like a viscous mass, flowing, contorting, changing, and held together only by its hide. The only constant in the face was the sinister expression in its eyes and a smile that spoke of untold evil.
Panicked, he quickly backed away, keeping his eyes on the mirror. He picked up the chair he used in order to place the camera on top of the cabinet and flung it towards the spot where he estimated the creature would be. Thinking it was meant for Gina, Emmy screamed. The chair did not connect, it sailed past the bed and hit the wall on the other side with a loud bang.
“I’m scared. I’m scared.” Jean kept repeating, hands to her ears, eyes closed.
“What the fuck Matt?!” Emmy screamed at her husband.
Matt could not reply but managed to point at the mirror while aligning himself again to get a view. Desperate enough for an explanation, Emmy walked sideways, keeping her daughter in view, while trying to get a better angle at which to see the mirror.
Jean noticed her mother moved and let go of her ears to cling to her mother’s hand. The fear that was testing Emmy’s sanity intensified when she saw what Matt was meant. She could only gape and pick Jean up, holding her close. Gina’s clothes started to strain.
Matt looked in horror as the shirt started to slip, baring Gina’s stomach. Emmy’s tears flowed in buckets, unable to tear her gaze away from the mirror. When the shirt reached the lower rib, the couple shook their fear and raced towards Gina.
Susan was slower, with Jean in her arms. Arriving first, Matt let go of all survival instincts. He only had Gina in his thoughts, and he meant to get his daughter no matter what. Emmy reached the other side and together, they reached for Gina’s hand, intending to pull her away.
The couple got within an inch of their daughter’s hand. They were flying in the air, thrown back with such a force that they each almost reached the ceiling. Emmy was able to bring her other arm around and shield Jean’s head while slightly twisting to the side. Matt’s back hit the row of cabinets, head thrown back forcefully, that he almost lost consciousness when it bounced against the wood.
~0~
Jean cried. Shielded by her mother, the little girl was protected from both the impact at the wall and the fall to the floor. She only experienced an abrupt and bumpy sensation. She was confused for several moments. Jean wanted to stay with her mom, but she was not responding to her calls. Her mother was having difficulty keeping her eyes open.
She heard her father groaning in pain. She saw him trying to get on his knees but his hands buckled and he kept slipping back down. Every time he fell, it took him longer to try again.
Jean got up. She looked around with a confused and fearful expression on her face. Her parents were on the floor, trying to get up but couldn’t. Her mother tried to reach for her but could not even raise her hand up for more than a few inches.
She wailed. She did not understand what was happening. She walked to the center of the room to get her favorite rag doll that she dropped when they first went inside. She held it close to her chest while she helplessly looked to her dad, her mom, and her sister who was losing her clothes while floating in the air.
“Jean…” She heard her dad say.
“Baby…” She heard her mother whisper.
“Daddy get up! Get up daddy, get up! Mommy!” She pleaded.
“Baby… get out… run…” Jim managed to utter.
“Go baby… it’s okay… just run.” Said Emmy.
Her gaze switched between both parents while she stood immobilized with confusion, wailing.
“Do not… fear… just go… run.”
“It’s alr- do not be… afraid baby.”
Jean took a step towards the door.
“That’s right… keep going. Be… strong. It’s alri-”
Matt was not able to finish.
“Jean!” Emmy screamed.
“Baby!” Matt yelled.
The little girl flew backwards, hitting the mirror before falling, crumped on the floor. Susan appeared to be pinned, unable to move even the hand she was trying to raise just seconds ago. Matt was held up and in place against the cabinets then violently thrown down on the floor, his face hitting the floorboards.
The horrified little girl managed to stand up and run towards Matt.
“Daddy!” She called out.
Matt was dragged forcefully by the unseen force and thrown towards Emmy. The little girl watched horrified, as her father crumpled at her mother’s feet. Her attention was grabbed by her sister’s body in front of her as it started to spin, gaining speed with each turn.
She screamed, asking for Gina to stop. The more she screamed the faster her sister turned until following her sister’s turning started to make her feel dizzy. She approached, intending to hold her sister’s hand or foot to make her stop but she tripped and fell on her face for no reason.
“Go…” Emmy said in a whisper.
Jean saw blood on the wall behind her mother’s head. She saw blood dripping from her father’s forehead. She tried to get up, struggled to get up. The only thing that helped cushion her fall was the rag doll she held in her hand. She was hurt. She wailed even more.
“Be… strong… Jean.” Matt said, head bobbing, unable to keep his head up.
“Don’t be… afraid.” Emmy muttered, barely able to finish.
Jean heard a crash. When she looked up, her sister was no longer there. She looked back and saw her on the floor. The mirror broke when she hit it, now it shattered into tiny pieces. Her parents tried to help. Her father put one hand forward but was unable to pull himself completely. When he made a small progress, Jean watched terrified as both father and mother was pushed upwards against the wall then thrown towards the bed where they stayed, pinned in place and unable to move.
Jean got up and faced the bed. She dusted her rag doll without looking. Her parent’s moans faded into the background, replaced with a deafening ringing in her ears. The image she was seeing flickered. It switched between the scene of her parents pinned on the bed and a dark place where she saw a monster squatting on top of them, one giant foot on each.
The scenes flickered quicker until it appeared to her as one. The monster was huge. It mocked her. It leered at her with glee. Jean started to feel hot. The ringing in her ears rose in volume until she was no longer able to hear her parent’s moan. Her eyes were fixed on the dark creature that was making fun of her. She burned. Her eyes burned.
The ringing sound began to fade. She was no longer afraid. She was fearless.
All sounds ceased except one. She heard it as clearly as if it was spoken directly in front of her.
Let me in.