Stanley (standard:Ghost stories, 717 words)
Author: Jimmy Mason	Added: Aug 23 2007	Views/Reads: 3579/0	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
A story of a young man and a woman caught in a horrific cycle of life and death

Nora awoke to a spring fog staring grey and emotionless through the
window. She brought the covers back over her head and scrunched down as 
far as her pillows would let her. She hated days like this. The air so 
thick with moisture that every breath was like drowning. Days like this 
make the day last year tolerable. Last year, Nora woke on a morning 
much like this one. However that morning ended with red emergency 
lights pulsing through the mists. Nora knew today could meet the very 
same end. She peaked out from under her heavy comforter, Yep still 
there. That same flat grey she remembered from last year. The very same 
slate grey that haunted her daily since. The eyes of the little boy 
staring at her through it all. His eyes matching the grey all around 
them, his eyes at her window when she looked again. 

She froze, praying she would awaken from this night mare she seemed to
be in. The boy's prowling eyes roamed her bedroom, Nora moved to the 
foot of her bed turning her blankets off. “ Stanley ?” She asked. The 
boy's brow furrowed and creased with sudden anger. He brought his fists 
above his head and then smashed the window in. Nora brought her arms up 
to guard her face and heard the boy screaming. “ It wasn't my time! It 
wasn't my turn! Can't you understand It wasn't for me!” Nora uncovered 
her face. The fog had begun to seep through the newly broken window, 
the boy nowhere to be seen. Nora knew better, Stanley was still there. 
Nora jumped out of bed, ran to her bathroom door got inside and locked 
it tight. A bout of weeping took full authority over her she lid down 
the wall and sat there hugging her knees. She felt a light touch on her 
head, and then it came again. Her hair was being stroked. She looked up 
into the grey orbs of Stanley. Nora opened her mouth to scream but all 
that came out was a choked squeak, Stanley continued to stroke her 
hair. “ It's ok “ He said softly, “ I know your scared, but you have no 
need to be.” Nora couldn't speak, She could hardly breathe chilled to 
the core and quivering. Stanley tightened his grip attempting to 
comfort her. “ All you need to realize Nora is that it wasn't my turn, 
It wasn't for me. You must understand, It was for you.” Nora looked up 
into his face with tear stung eyes. “ It was an accident Stanley.” He 
embraced her hard this time and held her fast like a padded vice. “ I 
know. I know it was an accident Nora, but you can't trade. Don't you 
see that? Look what it's done to us and our lives.” Nora thought she 
finally could understand. 

Driving down the curves of white oak lane in her small blue hatchback,
on a slate grey foggy spring morning . A boy on a dirt bike with a 
newspaper satchel slung over his shoulder. Nora sees the boy's 
reflectors stuck on the back of his jacket an instant before his foot 
slipped his pedal. The boy's foot struck the ground and swerved him 
directly in front of on coming car. Nora slammed on the brakes 
screaming and jerked her steering wheel to the right. She saw the boy's 
eyes looking at her in surprising recognition as he blurred by her 
window, The back bumper caught the boy's back tire and she went 
smashing into the forest that lines the road. 

“ Hey kid! Kid wake up! Come on you got it.” Stanley looked up into the
paramedic's face, His ankle hurt like hell. “ You took a nasty fall, we 
have your ankle in a splint and we got to take a ride to the hospital. 
You'll be fine though kid, your a tough one.” With that the paramedic 
smiled at him and another came over. They lifted him and his stretcher 
up and loaded him into the back of an ambulance. Stanley saw that there 
were three cop cars and another ambulance, being loaded into this one 
was another stretcher with a blanket over it. The last thing he saw 
before the two doors were shut  was red emergency lights pulsing 
through the mists. 

THE  END 


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