The Enemy Inside Johnny- Horror Short Story

Copyright © 2020 by Selena Palacios. All rights reserved. No part of this text may be reproduced or used in any manner without the written permission of the author.

I ran past the local fruit stand which emitted delicious smells of mixed fresh goods. I sped through Sally's Smell and Taste café where Mr. Carson's black Labrador was hiding away from the sun and heat under the group of tables placed outside. His pink tongue was hanging out and his heavy breathing made his body shake.

I ran past all the people who were in my way. I ran as fast as I could to get away from Him. Away from his lunatic stare, away from his killer hands, away from his sick twisted mind. He murdered my parents and now he was after me. My best friend had turned into my mortal enemy.

"Johnny, stop running boy, it's no use." His dark tainted voice filled my head, my body, and my soul. That voice gave me goosebumps the size of small M&M's and the vicious heat that was going on at the moment didn't calm them down.

I stopped running for a moment and looked around looking for a place to hide. The only available place was an eight-story towering building. I squinted up to look at the windows and saw a woman looking down at me. Her expression seemed to penetrate through me, creating a hole through my being. She smirked and opened and closed her mouth as if she was speaking. Then she pointed up at the sky. I was about to look up when I heard His footsteps getting closer and closer.

Thump, thump, thump, thump...

I began to move again, squeezing through sweaty bodies. I was sweaty myself, He was sweaty too, and I could feel it. It made me want to rip my skin off. I kept running until I reached the end of the street and then I saw Him behind the police officer that was directing traffic on the road. His hand grabbed that one of the officer's and waved the cars forward, then, he thrust his other hand through the officer's back and enclosed his heart in his fist. The Officer clutched at his chest before he collapsed to the ground. Dead. People stepped out of their cars and rushed towards the body, other people stayed inside oblivious to what had just happened, and others stayed inside just to be away from the heat.

"Johnny, don't be afraid. I won't hurt you. I just want to play a game." He whispered in my ear. He was behind me and in one quick motion, his heavy arms were engulfing me in an enormous black hole. He stank of tar on the sidewalk, burnt and rotten. Startled, I began to scream out loud. I kicked and shoved his hands away, I pulled at his clumped greasy hair, and I scratched his face and any exposed skin of his until I was free. But then other hands came at me, seizing my shirt, my hair, anything they could find purchase on.

The hands spoke too, they asked me questions all at once confusing and scaring me even more than Him.

Everywhere I tried to run a new wave of talking hands would come at me until it was all a blur. Everything blended together in a tunnel of crazy colors and at the end of the tunnel, he was there grinning at me with his evil eyes.

"Johnny, if you play the game with me I'll tell you how you can get rid of them." I nodded out of desperation and he smiled widely in return. "Yell at them to leave you alone as loud as you can and then run to the Americana United Bank building and go up to the rooftop. I'll join you there," he instructed and then disappeared. I did as I was told and broke free from the chattering hands. Some chased after me but I ran faster.

When I finally reached the building, I paced around it until I noticed the ladder that reaches up to the roof. I placed my foot on the first rung and my two hands on the sides of the ladder and climbed up. My sweaty hands kept slipping down the sides of the ladder until I eventually made it to the top of the roof.

I peered down to the ground and saw that a crowd of people had gathered around the base of the building and were gaping up at me. I gasped and backed up until I crashed into something hard and cold that smelled like tar.

"This is your end, Johnny." He murmured. I turned around and came face to face with his blood-covered chest. There was no escape now and I knew it. This was my end, but I wouldn't go down without a fight.

"No, stay away from me! You killed my parents but I won't let you kill me that easily!" I warned. He laughed in my head and inched forward making me step back.

"But Johnny, I didn't kill your parents, it was you who did." He kept moving forward and I continued to step back until the heels of my feet met the end of the roof.

"You're lying! You killed them with the knife! That's why your hands are stained and your clothes and face too!" I yelled. One more step and I would fall to my death.

"Johnny, my hands, clothes, and face are clean, but oh my, yours aren't! You killed them with the knife, it was you all along. I'm just a reflection of who you became, a killer. And now you must pay for what you've done."

"No, no, no!" I shouted but it was too late. I felt his hands shove my chest with force and my body fell back into the open air.