When I was a young kid, there was nothing bigger than Bingo’s Circus Extravaganza. I grew up in the Cleveland area during the ‘80s. While some of the larger television markets were featuring national children’s programming in the afternoons, we didn’t have more than one or two of those types …
As anyone who is or has been the “nerdy kid” growing up can attest to, you can’t help but assume the worst when the biggest bloke in class suddenly walks up to you. It took him calling me by name several times for me to stop pretending like I was …
I never believed in magic until I met Tommy Naughton. The first time I saw him was in my eleventh-grade English class at Ridley High in 2001. He looked odd, with his gapped-up haircut and baggy clothing. He always smelled like sour sweat—ugh! He rarely made eye contact, never spoke …
With trembling hands, Liam gingerly lifted his father’s reading glasses off the surface of the small upstairs office desk. He knew that he couldn’t keep his father, Gordon, waiting for very long, lest he fly into another fit of rage. Gordon’s request was simple: retrieve the glasses within ten seconds, …
Ever since I was a small child, we were never allowed in a certain section of my grandparents’ home. My sister and I were told that it was just a large library full of books we would find too boring or long to find interesting and that the shelves were …
“’sup?” They looked at each other, neither really sure what to say or how to say it. It had been a long time. The whole house felt strange, certainly stranger than it should. It had been maybe five years since he’d set foot inside. Not the longest time but considering …
It’s my oldest memory. I’m standing in dad’s office, books are raining from the shelves as the ground shakes under my feet. It’s an earthquake, my first one so to me it’s pretty scary. Cap is still in diapers. He won’t remember any of it. Dad’s bookcase slides over and …
Deep in the state of sleep, I arose from my bed without any hesitation. With no reason whatsoever, I was covered in a cold sweat that felt that it would forever stick to my pale skin. It was as if I was in the lightest sleep because of the way …
No one had ever lived there. At least, not as long as I could remember. But I was 12, so that didn’t mean much. I asked dad once, but we’d moved in only a year before I was born. And no one was there then. Mom passed away when I …
Billy slowly facilitated his way in, careful to avoid cutting himself on the broken window. He had gained entry to places similarly and tried his best to clear the shards from the frame using his thick jacket. It was difficult to wipe it all away clean. That was the thing …
My buddy Gavin had always tried to be a superhero. Yes. You read that right. Not he always loved superheroes – not even that he always wanted to be a superhero. He made a costume and mask when we were in middle school and had been crusading around the neighborhood …
When I was a young girl, a creepy thing happened to me. Even today I don’t understand. My parents still live in the house where it happened, this means I will never forget, though I wish I did. My old bedroom faces the road that runs in front of our …
I killed my best friend when I was thirteen. It wasn’t what I wanted, or what the others involved wanted, but that doesn’t matter now, he’s gone. Most people look back at their childhood and realize that there was a day they went out to play with their friends for …
“Holy shit! Is that what I think it is?” Brandon’s eyes widened into saucers and, despite being filled with an unabated rage towards his older brother just a few hours ago, Michael couldn’t help but smile and nod at the expected reaction. Even with everything that had happened earlier in …
Everyone has heard of the boogeyman. A creature, tall and dark who comes out at night and prays on fearful children. The story is a classic tale, one that every kid and their neighbor like to scare each other with during sleepovers. People have come up with several different versions …
This story happened when I was about 13 years old. It was a hot summer afternoon and my buddy and I were bored and looking for something to do. For the purposes of this story, I will refer to my friend as Hank. Hank’s older brother heard us talking about …
Watching TV has always been one of our favorite things to do. In the early years, this proved difficult. Remus, being the stronger of our halves, would pull me until the remote was always within reach of his arm and out of that of mine. I didn’t usually mind, though, …
We were having another lockdown drill when I found out about Holly Reyes. I was in Social Studies, third period, when Principal Weston’s muffled voice spat at us from the ceiling. We all sighed and ducked under the long tables, limbs shoving aside plastic chairs as we army-crawled into tucked …
My name isn’t really important, but for now, I’ll go by Monty. A little backstory, I grew up in a small town just outside of Hartford, Connecticut. Real nice place where everyone knew everyone, you never locked your doors, had a real charm to it. Nicest bunch of folks you …
He hoped the tape recorder would still work. It was one of those small portable ones often used in schools or libraries. Teddy didn’t even realize the irony of his action. Angie was, in fact, the one who had bought it for him.
Here is the journal I kept during my time at The Ash House. At times I was unable to write, so some entries are recorded by memory. At the time of this journal, I had just been dropped off to the Ash House by my old parents. This journal spans …
Growing up, or at least since the mid-two thousands, my house always had an Elf on the Shelf during the Christmas season. If you don’t know, Elves on the Shelf are these little elf dolls that are supposed to be scouts for Santa Claus. I named mine Humble. I think …
I’ve been blind since birth. As I grew up, everything was described to me in such vivid detail that I didn’t even realize why it was that important to see, especially having no reference point to compare it. We lived in a single-floor ranch house, that’s what Father told me. …
Part 1: A Diner Called Daisy’s This whole thing started on a road trip around four years ago. We left to go from Northern California to the East Coast, traveling through the Midwest. It was me, my wife Kimmy, our 7-year-old daughter Katie, and 5-year-old son Alex. Everything went fine …
