What if you knew that horrific events were coming and you figured out a way to protect your home and the ones you love, would you do it?
Yes? Then come along and read When Worlds Collide.
“Alexa, start boom one oh one nine.”
Wrapped in an oversized towel, Aimee stood in front of her bedroom closet as the song Eye of the Tiger filled the room. With thoughts of her scary, early morning experience playing in her mind, she stared at the door, lightly chewing on her bottom lip.
"Maybe it was nothing," she tried to convince herself, then quickly added, "or maybe it was a ghost." Clenching her teeth, she slowly reached for the handle, hesitating to open the door. But with a heavy sigh, she dropped her hand.
"C'mon Aimee, you need to grab some clothes to go out, so get it together," she scolded herself.
So raising her slightly shaking hand once more, she gripped the doorknob this time. With a firm hold, she paused and swallowed, trying to work her courage up. Then with a mental countdown from three, she opened her closet door in a fast whoosh to try to catch whatever might be inside.
But nothing was there. It was just an ordinary closet.
"See? Just junk and clothes," she reassured herself. "It probably wasn't closed properly, and a draft coming through the attic sucked the door shut. Yep, that's all."
She shrugged at the plausible explanation, but then glanced over at the lilac sprig laying on her dresser. "Okay smarty-pants, so how do you explain that?" she argued with herself. "Where did that come from, huh? And in October?" Nibbling her lip again, she shook her head and replied to herself, "yeah, that I have no idea."
Feeling suddenly self-conscious, she gave an awkward chuckle and adjusted her slipping towel. "Ah, if anyone heard me right now, they'd think I was nuts."
As Courage by The Tragically Hip began to play, Aimee resolved to take a brave step forward and flicked the light on in her small walk-in closet. Something about it still kept niggling at her though. So she stared at the back wall.
Compelled by her intuition, she moved to the back of the closet. Pushing the hanging clothing aside like parted curtains, she inspected the wall, and then gave it a little knock.
The wall rapped back.
Aimee gasped in surprise. But before she could try to rationalize that it was just the house making its regular settling noises from everyday heating and cooling, a different noise startled her.
Bzzz! Ding!
Aimee jumped while sucking in a sharp breath. "Holy. Freaking. CRAP!" she exclaimed with her hand over her racing heart. It was her smartphone; she had stuffed it under the rim of the towel against her chest. Shaking her head, she let out a small embarrassed laugh and checked her notifications.
There was a text from Stacey asking if they were still on for lunch.
Yep, she typed.
And then, Is it ok if I bring my cousin? Stacey asked.
Absolutely, see you then! Aimee replied.
Grabbing a folded pair of jeans off the shelf and a shirt from a hanger, she turned off the light and closed the closet. But before going to finish getting ready, Aimee paused. Turning back to the door, she gave the doorknob a few tugs, just to make sure it was shut all the way.
© 2021 by Linda Casselman
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