Short Stories 1
By: Dr.Jai Chatha
Tags: Horror, Storytelling, Fight, Fear, Lessons Learned

The Burglar

What was that? That query travelled through my brain as I quickly sat up in my bed, wondering what kind of noise that was. As I gradually came back to my senses, it struck again, this time taking longer to subside. My eyes widened as I racked my head, but no memory of such a sound came. I had to investigate, otherwise I’d never know. It sounded like a combination of long sharp fingernails being dragged across a chalkboard violently and a monkey’s screams as if it was being boiled alive in a vat. All in all, dreadful and frightening.

I gingerly got off the bed, and placed my feet slowly onto the plush carpeted floor, feeling the warmth through the dense ruggedness of fur. I fumbled around for a few minutes in the dark looking for the lamp switch. After turning it on, I slowly tiptoed towards the door. The sound was still blaring as I walked out of the bedroom and looked at a dark hallway , trying to make out the surroundings. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I slowly walked towards the direction of the sound.It seemed to be coming from downstairs.

As I peered over the balconied bannister of the brogue railing installed just a little while ago, I could make out the light was on in the room directly below the bedroom. This could only be the kitchen. My best guess was that the sound was coming from here. Now as the only living soul in the house, my heart was racing, I started breathing deeply and wondered whether it could be a burglar. As I rapidly starting making loose assumptions about what or who it could be, the sound abruptly stopped. Then, as if connected to the stoppage, the light turned off, and I was left looking at a dark abyss, heart racing and palpitations abound.

I hurried back towards the room, banging my shoulder into the frame while bustling in, and quickly turned around to shut and lock the door. As I fumbled around the handle and lock, it finally clicked and I had a momentary feeling of relaxation. But, I know had to find my phone and call the police. That was the only way I would feel safe. I turned around and crept towards the bed, scrambling to remember where I had last seen it before drifting off. Luckily, with the help of the lamp’s dim light, I could make out that my phone was on it’s charging pad, giving me the slightest semblance of hope I needed. I quickly grabbed it, almost making it fly off my hand while doing so, and held it around a foot in front of my face, waiting for the ever reliable Face Identification to recognize its owner. It didn’t work. I brought it down and then up again in front of my face with a burst of impatience. The phone didn’t unlock once again. Frustrated, I tried to go to the passcode but unbelievably, I couldn’t remember what it was. Frantically, I started pressing the numbers, hoping one of the combinations would work.

Right then, I heard the noise of the door handle being opened from the other side and I froze. A disgruntled voice rang out, muffled by the barrier in between. “Why’d you lock the door? Open up!” It was a shrill voice, resembling the cackling from before in a way. I was frozen on the spot, unable to think what to do next. I guess the burglar outside was frustrated as well, and footsteps leading away from the door were heard. I quickly turned around, and started looking for a weapon, something to defend myself with. I would not let some lowly burglar take my house. As if on cue, I began to recollect some memories of my past, images of beating men to a pulp in the ring, hoisting a belt over my head as a Champion. I was a fighter! A resurgence of energy crept into my body as I turned around and faced the door, not feeling the need for a weapon anymore. The fear I had was also dissipating rapidly as I felt powerful once again, as I did in the ring.

The footsteps were heard again and the sound of an object entering the keyhole and being fumbled around was heard. The burglar was trying to pick the lock! I quickly went to the side of the door and put my back to the wall, waiting for the right moment to strike. The fumbling stopped right after a click was heard, and I was on full tilt and on my toes. The door slowly opened and the burglar walked in nonchalantly, without any hesitance. I could just make out the figure in the semi-darkness of the room, and I quickly bounded over and grabbed the person from behind. As soon as I did, I was grabbed by the upper arm, the person bent down and I was thrown off their back and onto the floor. This person was a fighter too! As I lay on my back, I looked up and peered at the burglar’s face. It looked like a woman, but she had a look of worry on her face, instead of what I expected.

“Honey, what’s wrong with you?Are you okay? This is the second time this week, I think we need to see the doctor!” Perplexed and confused, I said “Why are you calling me honey? Who are you?”

“I’m your wife!”