Hide n’ Seek

It’s just 6 in the evening but the night is already as dark as it can be. You can clearly see the stars twinkling in the jet black sky. The moon is at its fullest and it shines down the sleepy city below, naturally illuminating the streets. My brother and I thought that it would be nice to play hide and seek in the garden at this time because it would be more challenging since it’s really dark outside and the only thing that makes things visible is the moonlight. I volunteered to be the ‘it’ to prevent my younger brother from babbling why he shouldn’t be ‘it’. I went to the tree, turned my back, and started to count. As I count, I could hear my brother running around to find a good hiding place.

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three.”

“Four.”

“Five.”

“Six.”

“Seven”

“Eight”

“Nine”

“Ten. Ready or not, here I come!”

I turned and looked around. I was trying to listen for any movements but all I heard were the crickets who were playing the song of their kind. I walked around the garden and went immediately behind the big apple tree to see if my brother’s there but only to be disappointed. Next, I looked around the bushes and checked if he’s there but still no sign of him. I even went to the playhouse but still I haven’t found him. 15 minutes already passed but I haven’t seen or heard my brother. I was getting annoyed already.

“Where are you?!”, I shouted.

Only the crickets answered back.

I looked around again and saw our tool shed. I immediately went over there, thinking it’s the place where he hid. I opened the shed and darkness covered the whole area. The only illuminated area was the cabinet in front of the window due to the moonlight. I flicked the light switch on then it dawned on me that the lights were still busted and dad wasn’t able to fix it yet.

“Just my luck.”, I whispered to myself.

I made my way through the shed, grasping the things in front me to prevent myself from stubbing my foot in any tools or equipment in there.

“Are you here?”, I asked even though I know I wouldn’t get an answer.

Suddenly, I heard a noise by the cabinet. Ha! I got him now!

I immediately went over the cabinet and saw my brother sitting by the floor.

“Found you!”

He didn’t answer me nor did he protest that I would always find him wherever he hid. He only smiled at me.

“Kids, dinner time!”, mom was calling us.

“Come, let’s get inside now.”, I said to my brother as I held him and pull him inside the house.

Inside our house, I could smell the delicious aroma of roasted chicken. It made my mouth water. As we make our way to the dining area, my brother stopped.

“Hey, I’m going upstairs for a while.”, he said to me.

“Hurry up or I’ll get the good parts!”, I jokingly answered.

A bit later, mom, dad and I started to eat without my brother because dad was already hungry.

“Where’s your brother? I thought he was with you.”, asked my mom.

“He went upstairs. I think he did some number 2 business in the bathroom, if you know what I mean.”, I answered.

Just then, my brother came running to the dining room covered in sweat and dirt.

“Hey! I thought we were still playing! Why did you leave me outside the garden without saying anything! I was patiently waiting for you to find me under the stairs by the door. Now I stink.”

I immediately went pale, my mind went blank and at that moment my vision started to get blurry.

Who… went… upstairs then…?

The last thing I heard was my mom shouting something like 911 as my face hit the cold hard floor.