"Goodnight sweetie," my mom says as she turns out my bedroom light and shuts the door.
Instantly, my heart starts to race and I whisper "no, not the dark.
Please don't leave me alone with the monster."
I lay in bed clutching my little dolly with the blanket over my head as my vision blurs.
Even though my blanket is warm, I feel my body go pale and cold.

He's coming to get me, this is my final night
And no one will ever know how I died

I somehow hear the window unlatch over my hearbeat drumming in my ears.
I pull the blanket further over my head and try not to panic.
Keep it together, maybe he won't see you.
I hear the footsteps approach my bed.
My face is wet from tears and my whole body starts to shake.
There's a tug at the blanket and I know its all over.

"Goodbye mommy."

Standing here at the pier,
I take in my surroundings,
trying to keep my heart steady and my mind clear.

A crowd envelopes me as we all wait for that one person.
Men are holding flowers,
Women holding children,
Children holding signs.

Standing here at the pier,
I hold nothing but my heart in my hands,
Waiting until we may embrace again.

My mouth waters while my stomach twists into knots.
The air tastes of candy scented perfume.
Trying to get rid of the taste,
I take a swig of cold, refreshing water that also helps ease my stomach

Standing here at the pier,
My stomach ties in knots,
Waiting to see your face again.

Figures start to head my way.
I gasp.
Frantically, my eyes search the crowd,
Searching for just a glimpse of you.

Standing here at the pier,
My heart will not steady,
My mind hectic with just wanting to see you.

The crowd starts to disappear,
They've found they're family
They're heading home
With their family, and I'm

Standing here at the pier,
Longing to find you,
Wishing to find you soon.

A tall figure starts heading in my direction.
I squint to see
Is that you?
My lungs fill with air and I run.

My vision blurs, but its okay.
I know where I'm going.
I'm running.
Running home to my family.

Our bodies collide in a warm embrace,
I'm lifted up off the ground and swung around,
"I've missed you so much, Dad."
I tell him through sobs.

"I've missed you too baby girl.
Lets go home."
Linking our pinkies together, we walk

Together again.
We're headed home.

Tick tock, tick tock
the clock clicks.
Seconds, minutes, hours pass
as I sit here thinking of you.

"Drew," his voice fills my thoughts
"Are you okay?
Do we need to go talk?"
My heart starts to ache.

The familiar red truck comes into view.
We were inside,
driving around as I complained about life.
He listened to my every word.

Tick tock, tick tock
the clock continues to click
tick tock, tick tock
the clock grows louder with every tick

Louder, louder, and louder.
The clock's clicking fills my ears
until I can't hear my own thoughts.
My heart beat quickens

Tick tock, tick tock
I grab my hair in clumps
and my vision blurs
Tick tock, tick tock

I let out a scream,
running to the clock on the wall.
Clutching it in my hands,
my knuckles turn white.

Ripping the clock off the wall,
I let out a cry and throw it.
Hitting the ground,
the clock smashes into a thousand pieces.

Falling to my knees,
tears stream down my face.
Thoughts of you fill my mind,
Your voice rushes through my ears.

"I love you,
I miss you,
I will see you soon,
Love always and forever."

I sit down and lean my back against the wall.
Running my hands through my hair,
I whisper,
"Please come back soon."