Jayden woke up with a start. It was like someone had woken him up. But there was no one in his room. He checked his phone. He had probably snoozed his alarm. He walked in the bathroom, brushed his teeth, took a shower, changed into clothes, walked down for the breakfast and to his surprise, no one was up yet. He dashed back and peeped in Braylan's room. He was not in his room. He entered the room and checked the bathroom. It was locked. He ran in his parents room and they were still sleeping. He shook them up. They woke up and hurriedly dressed. None of them realized that the boys were late and they didn't ask them to go to school. It was like a miracle. The boys didn't come into their way, they said goodbye and left them.
"Should we got to school? " Braylan asked uncertainly.
"One day won't hurt. " He replied uncertainly and they boys ate toast with whipped cream and sprinkles for breakfast.
"Mom would freak out if she saw us eating this and not going to school. " Braylan said smiling.
"What she doesn't know won't hurt her you know. " He replied, grinning. They were talking and discussing about random stuff when they heard footsteps on the first floor. They exchanged nervous glance.
"Who could it be? " Braylan asked and he shrugged in reply. He really didn't know who it was and wasn't keen in knowing it. The steps were getting crowded and the boys didn't dare to move. Soon it was a havoc upstairs. It was like someone was dragging bed, chairs or sofas. Still they didn't go and check it.
Half an hour passed with all the noises and boys sat in the living room, with blood drained from their faces, hearts trying to beat their way out of the chests, clutching the handles of couches as though it's their life. The havoc ended but the boys didn't move. They were barely breathing, afraid that any movement, any noise or any sign of life might be the trigger and something would leap out on them. After a long time, Jayden finally found his voice, and courage to speak.
"We should go and check . " He said quietly. Braylan nodded and didn't speak. The started climbing stairs courageously. They reached the landing and took small, cautious steps towards the rooms. To their surprise, nothing was out of place. They walked in all four rooms but there was nothing wrong in them. All the things were on the spot.
"Should we check the attic? " Braylan asked uncertainly. Jayden didn't like the sound if it, but still he led the way. The entered the attic, searched it and came out. Jayden noticed that Braylan was paler than before.
"Are you alright? " He asked, his voice full of concern.
"I am fine. Let's go downstairs. " Braylan replied, trying to sound and look normal. Jayden didn't find it appropriate to grill him for what happened, but deep down, he was really worried about him. They sat in the living room, without speaking or doing anything. Jayden was thinking about the latest incident.
Was it that something is coming for him once again? Should he trust the amulet or should he chuck it out? He was really confused. He decided to keep the amulet. He hid his face with his palms and closed his eyes. He was trying not to think. Because each thought was horrible than the last one. The old memories were coming back to him, one by one, like a movie. He thought about the dream, the graveyard and the spinning man. He was so scared back then. He was glad that he had a normal month after a long time and then these things started happening once again. Then his mind traveled to the time when his cereal bowl was across from where he left and the schoolbag that was under the bed. He was scared. He remembered the footsteps last night. Were they haunted or just someone walking? He had no answer to that question. The more he tried not to think about supernatural, paranormal things, they mire his mind wandered deep in those thoughts. His brain showed him an image of a possessed Braylan writhing in pain that nothing could soothe. Then it was replaced by Jane whose eyes we're red as blood, hair tangled and messy lying on her shoulders, shouting her head off. Now he imagined Marco with gashes and cuts all over his body, laughing the evil-maniac laugh that is shown in the movies.
'What if you are the one? ' A small voice said in his head. 'What if you are the target? ' The voice spoke once again and he tried to shut it down. He pushed it out of his mind and opened his eyes. Braylan was not there. Someone else was sitting on the armchair. Jayden shook his head and opened his eyes only to find Braylan sitting on the same spot he sat. He tried not to think what it meant and asked Braylan if he wanted to eat something for lunch. Braylan refused to eat but Jayden, being the elder brother, walked up to the refrigerator yo see if they have food or not. There were no leftovers so he decided to buy some noodles. He asked Braylan if he wanted to accompany him but Braylan said he had asked Marco to buy some ready to eat Mac n cheese. So Jayden boiled the macaroni and added the cheese sauce that came with it. He forced Braylan to eat it.
"You need to have some enrgy. I know it's not healthy and stuff. But at least you won't have a growling stomach! " He said and Braylan obeyed him like a good boy. Maybe it was the creepy experience that had hinged him off. Jayden thought, but he realized that something had happened in the attic which he missed. Because Braylan had been like this after their visit to the attic. He glanced at his little brother worriedly. He wasn't sure if it was the right time to ask him about what happened. So instead he didn't speak at all. After eating, Braylan offered to do the dishes and asked Jayden to be with him in the kitchen. Jayden was glad that Braylan had asked him to be with him. He didn't know if he wanted to be alone in any room. He was barely fourteen. He could bet any dourteen year old would be scared and Braylan was only eleven, yet he had proved to be braver in many instances. After doing the dishes, they didn't go upstairs to their respective rooms. Instead they stayed in the living room, together as both if them were scared to go up. Even if they didn't see anything out of its place, it still didn't change the fact that they heard it coming from upstairs.
'Unless there is something between the floor and roof. ' He thought gingerly. His throat was patched up so he fetched some water in a bottle so that they won't have to leave the room until Jane is back. Braylan did look grateful at this small act.