The Mask Man In The Woods

21.

CHAPTER | TWENTY-ONE

I rubbed my fingertips with Drakon's, smiling at how small his fingers were compared to mine. They weren't going to stay that small forever. Pretty soon, his hands would be much bigger than mine and he'll smile at my small hands.

I sighed through my nose and kissed his palm. I climbed out of his bed and gently tucked his favorite teddy bear under his arm. He snored lightly and smacked his lips as he hugged his teddy bear closer to his chest.

I gave him one last kiss on the forehead and snuck out of his room, leaving the door ajar. I turned off the hallway light and switched on the nightlight I kept plugged in the middle of the hallway. Looking around, I noticed how dark the stairway and the end of the hall looked, so I changed my mind and turned off the nightlight and left the hallway light on.

I sighed again and went towards my bedroom. I took out a pair of sweatpants and an old long sleeve shirt. I quickly changed and tied my hair up in a ponytail as I walked into the bathroom.

I stared at my reflection and titled my head. I grabbed the end of my ponytail and combed my fingers through my hair.

"I need a haircut." I said to myself as I examined my split ends.

I threw my hair over my shoulder and started brushing my teeth. I kept my eyes glued to the sink and didn't hear the door creaking open.

I glanced up for a second and rinsed out my mouth. I splashed water on my face and shook my wet hands. I grabbed the hand towel from the hook and dried my face. I looked in the mirror once more and noticed the door was wide open.

I frowned and turned to look at the door. Did I leave that open? Didn't I close it more than halfway?

"Drakon?" I called, taking small steps forward.

There was no reply and my hand gripped the hand towel. I felt a cold shiver run down my spine. It wasn't midnight yet. Tristian wouldn't appear beforehand knowing Drakon could see him.

I swallowed hard and stood by the door. I looked at the hallway both ways and almost sighed in relief when I heard the curtain shift. I didn't waste any time to investigate and turned off the lights and closed the door. I ran to Drakon's room and locked the door.

I crawled behind Drakon and hugged him close to my chest. He mumbled something under his breath and threw his arm over his head, dropping the teddy bear to the floor.

I stared at the door for a few minutes when suddenly a shadow zoomed past on the other side of the door. I gasped and my heart leaped out of my chest.

"Tristian, is that you?" I called out, sitting up for a bit to stare under the door.

The light from the hallway outlined the door and I quickly turned on the lamp from Drakon's nightstand. The right side of the room lit up and I reached over to turn on the other lamp. The lamps didn't shed light to every dark corner and I held Drakon closer to me.

I looked at the door and noticed the hallway light has been turned off. My eyes darted to the wall clock and it had already been midnight for twenty minutes. I looked at the door and the light had been on.

I nibbled on my lower lip and slowly climbed off the bed. I slowly unlocked the door and pulled it open. A slit of light came through and I looked through. There was nothing on that side of the hallway. I took a deep breath and pulled the door open wide enough to poke my head through. I glanced at the other end of the hallway and tripled check to see if the coast was clear.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in. I run my hands down my face and chuckled. I was seeing things again. I groaned and shook my head. I walked towards my old bedroom and spotted Tristian by the window.