Thread: My Imaginary Friend (Russian Vodka & A Gilt Clochard)

Ellie was a grown woman. She didn't have time for silly, childish things. She was self-confident, and was able to handle any problem that came her way, she was certain. She worked long hours at the publishing house, working to become editor, like she had always dreamed, and had little social life anymore. Now and again, she would think back on her childhood, and how in some ways it was different, and in others just the same. She had always been a goal-driven child, with strong will and surprising direction. But she had also been a lonely child. Other kids didn't like how she always did so well in class, and how she would spend part of recess doing that night's homework. She didn't have many friends. So, she created one for herself in her head, imagining a little boy with strong blue eyes. He was someone who understood everything about her, who supported her in ways that other kids wouldn't, and her parents rarely did. She would turn to this friend whenever times got hard, like when her parents finally split when she was nine, and whenever she was scared of storms or the dark. After about thirteen, though, she began to let go of him, turning more and more to her abilities and ambitions than to her sweet, caring friend. She filled her time with distractions and work. So, tonight, when she reached her apartment, she planned to ignore the storm outside her windows by delving into her editing work. Sitting at the desktop, she hooked up her portable hard drive, and settled into work. The storm was raging outside. Lightning flashed, and the thunderclaps rattled her windows. She sipped her coffee, focusing intently on her work and the tik-tak-tak of her keyboard. All at once, a flash lit up the apartment like daylight, then everything went dark with a crash of thunder. Ellie let out a shriek as the room-- and the computer screen-- went dark. Her heart jumped into her throat as she began to feel a pang of panic. She shuffled around, finding her briefcase and opening it in search of her laptop. It wasn't there. She dug around and found her phone, opening it to light the space a little, searching for the laptop. She needed to get back to work! She needed the distraction, something other than the storm to focus on. She couldn't find it anywhere. Memory struck her as she realized that she had left it locked in her desk drawer at work at lunch and had never taken it back out. Ellie fumbled her way to her couch, opening the phone to try to find mobile internet, but the battery bar was flashing and she had no signal. Closing it and flinging it at the other end of the couch in frustration, she let out an angry cry. The room was pitch black, except for the lightning now and again. She could see out the window that there was a total blackout in her neighborhood, and all the street lamps and other apartments were dark. She wrapped her arms around herself, her heart thudding. It had been a long time since she had felt so frightened, and even now she hardly wanted to admit it to herself. But as her heart continued to pound, she thought back on the last storm she had weathered... remembering how she had called out her dearest friend's name. Remembering how she imagined him coming from the corner of the room, and suddenly he was there, almost real in her memories. She heard a noise, like a footstep, from the other end of the apartment. She jolted upright, her eyes flying wide in an attempt to see... Who's there?!