Evelyn's room was swallowed by the darkness, the moonlight casting those unsettling, elongated shadows on the walls. But her sleep, usually a refuge from the world, was anything but peaceful that night. There was something sinister, something off, like a lingering coldness in the air that went beyond a mere chill.
In her dreams, it felt as though her safe haven had been breached. The window by her bedside seemed open, letting in a ghostly wind that whispered with an eerie, mournful tune. The room, usually warm and comforting, felt like it had turned into a freezer, and the air was dense, heavy with an unexplainable dread.
Asleep but not at rest, Evelyn began to sense a presence. It was as if someone or something was right there, beside her bed, staring at her. Panic crept up, her heart raced, but she couldn't move an inch. It was like her body was held captive, trapped in some twisted paralysis.
Suddenly, a weight pressed down on her mattress, a thump that made her pulse skyrocket. Fear surged as she felt it, the sensation of a knee on her bed, sinking it just slightly. Her whole body shivered, and the urge to scream clawed at her throat, yet her voice refused to emerge, her body refusing to obey.
Then, she felt it—her night clothes being tugged at, thread by thread, like an invisible hand was stripping her bare. Dread sunk its claws in deeper, fueled by the fiery sting of the blisters that now covered her skin. She was exposed, vulnerable, and her mind was racing through a dark maze of fear and confusion.
A freezing hand, like ice against her skin, touched one of the blisters, sending shockwaves of terror throughout her. She wanted to flee, to fight, but her limbs were cemented in place. The touch was invasive, unwanted, like a trespass that ignited a sickening feeling of violation, a gut-churning sense of wrongness.
Closer the presence drew, pressing down on her, casting shadows that danced mockingly on the walls. Fingers skated over her skin, inching up her ankle, crawling toward her knee. She couldn't stop the involuntary shudder that surged through her, the touch creeping up her spine. It was as though the intruder reveled in her vulnerability, like a predator playing with its prey.
The figure loomed, a dark silhouette, oozing malevolence that suffocated her. Its fingers brushed her thighs, igniting a visceral reaction—part disgust, part fear. She felt like she was being swallowed by a darkness that was as much a part of her as it was foreign.
Those fingers ventured closer to the blister on her inner thigh, and her body twitched in response, the pain intensifying. It was invasive, an intrusion into her very being, and she struggled to close her thighs as if that might shield her from this unwelcome touch.
But the figure persisted, moving with a deliberate slowness that clawed at her sanity. Its knee pressed against her, moving ever closer, and her internal battle became a tempest, her mind a battlefield of terror and confusion. She wished to break free, to escape this nightmare, but it was as if invisible chains were holding her down.
A solitary tear slipped from her eye, a silent testament to her powerlessness. "Stop," she pleaded in her mind, a silent scream echoing through the abyss of her vulnerability.
Her throat constricted, a choking sensation building as the presence bore down on her. The hooded figure seemed to leer, its very essence an embodiment of her deepest fears. It was as though it fed on her terror, growing stronger with every tremble of her being.
With a surge of determination, Evelyn finally broke free, jerking upright in her bed with a sharp gasp. "GAAH!!" Her chest heaved with frantic breaths, her body drenched in sweat, a stark contrast against her icy skin. The window remained closed, her night clothes clung to her in disarray, and the blisters felt like they were burning with an infernal fire.
The blisters on her skin seemed to have worsened, the burning sensation more pronounced than ever. She clutched the blanket to her chest, her breathing ragged as she tried to comprehend the nightmarish experience she had just endured.
"What was that?" Her voice trembled as she whispered the words into the darkness. The room remained still, devoid of any answer, the shadows playing tricks on her mind. She was left with the haunting feeling that she had brushed against something beyond the realm of the ordinary, something that would continue to linger in the corners of her consciousness.
The rest of the night crawled by as Evelyn remained perched on the edge of her bed, her eyes wide open and unblinking. She clutched her shoulders, her body shivering as if trying to shake off the lingering dread that had taken root within her. Back and forth, she rocked herself in an attempt to find some semblance of comfort.
As the first hints of dawn painted the room in a faint glow, her gaze remained fixed on the window, almost as if she expected the dark figure to materialize once again. The sun's gentle rays slowly crept across the room, casting a pale light on her face that had turned ashen.
Evelyn looked worn-out, her eyes sunken with fear and exhaustion. She hadn't slept a wink, haunted by the night's eerie encounter. Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, trying to make sense of the inexplicable and unsettling experience.
When the morning light finally streamed in through the window, she seemed to rouse herself from her trance. Her trembling hands reached up to push back a strand of disheveled hair, revealing the paleness of her face in the growing daylight. With a deep breath, she pushed herself off the bed and made her way to the washroom.
The blisters on her body, which had previously caused her immense discomfort, seemed to have taken a backseat to the overwhelming fear that had consumed her. Her thoughts were consumed by the figure that had invaded her room, and she found it hard to focus on anything else.