[ WP ] WARNING : Do not leave the child unattended

“ Don ’ t worry, Mr. and Mrs. Harris. Everything will be fine, you guys enjoy your evening, ” my voice cooed soothingly to Mikey ’ s parents who still stood in the door way with their keys in hand. Mr. Harris looked down at his watched and rolled his eyes as his wife took another timid step toward Mikey. 
 
 “ He will behave himself, Jan. Ella has everything under control. ” Mr. Harris ’ s stern voice sent chills through my skin, but Mrs. Harris ’ s proved that it did not affected her as she bent down in front of her six year old son. 
 
 “ You will be good for Miss Ella, won ’ t you Mikey? She is a good girl and you want her to come back and babysit again, right? ” I cocked my head toward Mrs. Harris with a half crooked smile, trying to understand why she was so paranoid. Mr. Harris cleared his throat and called for his wife in an even sterner voice. She rose quietly and briskly walked toward the door clutching her silk purse, indenting it with her newly polished nails. “ Good luck, Ella. Please remember, the emergency contact numbers are in the drawer next to the oven. ” 
 
 Giving Mikey ’ s parents one more reassuring smile and farewell, I shut the door behind them. The last four weeks had been full of torture, trying to convince them I was more than capable to babysit their child form more than ten minutes on my own. All I wanted was some extra money babysitting the kids around the neighborhood. My parents had forbidden me to find a real job, so I settled with this. The Harris family was one of two families on my street who had kids other than mine. Taking a deep breath and relaxing my shoulders, I turned to Mikey who sat stoically on the hardwood floor. Determined to make his parents see I was capable, I smiled as I sat in front of Mikey. “ Hey buddy, what do you want to do tonight? ” 
 
 Mikey ’ s vibrant green eyes smiled with true enthusiasm. “ We can play hide and seek! ” His little voice squeaked with more energy than I had ever known him to have. Flashing memories of his mother listing the rules for me on my first tiring day, playing hide and seek had been one of the games that was forbidden in the Harris household. 
 “ Why don ’ t we start with something else? ” I asked gently, hoping not to spoil his good mood. Disappointment quickly flooded into his eyes and began to wet the edges of his eyelashes. “ Your mom said we couldn ’ t play hide and seek. ” I didn ’ t want him to hate me on the first night, but the thought of little Mikey innocently describing our night to his parents the next morning to reveal I had broken one of the rules wouldn ’ t be much fitting either. 
 
 “ You hate me, don ’ t you? ” his voice quivered on the brink of heart wrenching tears. His rosy bottom lip curled out as he stared down at the floor. My heart sank for him. How terrible would it be to play a few games of hide and seek? 
 My chest felt heavy with pressure to please Mikey, knowing that the only fun he would ever be allowed to have was with me when his parents were away. Between his stern father and overly concerned mother, it was amazing to me that he even knew what hide and seek was. “ I tell you what, Mikey. We can ’ t play hide and seek because your parents specifically told me not to. But if you keep it between just me and you, we can play Black Out. ” 
 
 Mikey slowly looked up at me withdrawing his lip back and revealing curiosity. “ What ’ s that? ” 
 
 I smiled at him intently. Touching his soft arm, I explained, “ It is just like hide and seek, except better. It ’ s in the dark. ” His eyes were bright once again and his smile extended to the point where his dimples were no longer visible. The agreement was made. We would play Black Out before bed, when it would be dark enough outside that the light would not seep into the house through the shades. The night went smoothly and quickly. Of course, Mrs. Harris had called several times to check on us. It seemed odd Mr. Harris was okay with the many times his wife called, but on the last call a toilet flushed in the background and it dawned on me that she was sneaking off to the bathroom. 
 Every time the phone rang, I reminded myself that the continuous pestering was worth the fifteen dollars an hour. Soon the sky fell dark and the night became washed with distant stars. Mikey began begging desperately for Black Out. 
 
 Smiling, I answered his nagging by putting my hands over the light switch and flicking them off. “ Twenty, nineteen, eighteen… ” Mikey chuckled loudly and almost manically, which sent chills down my spine. In a strange way it reminded me of the power in his father ’ s stern voice. My voice echoed against the well-polished floors and expensive paintings that hung against the walls. My mind wandered as I realized of the risk of breaking any of the Harris ’ s priceless art that hung from their walls or the vases which stood beautifully on end tables. Taking a deep breath as I reach ten, the sound of a deafening crash and a door slamming made my stomach twist and my heart race. 
 Instinctively I threw the lights on. “ Mikey? Mikey?! Where are you? ” Running room to room, I couldn ’ t find him. There was no sign of anything broken or of Mikey anywhere. “ Mikey, it ’ s time to come out, I just want to make sure that you are okay. Please Mikey! ” Minutes seemed like hours. Thirty minutes had agonizingly gone by and there was still no sign of him. My heart was weighed down with guilt and panic. I rubbed my sweat covered fingers together as I hesitantly walked toward the kitchen. I couldn ’ t bring myself to open the drawer next to the oven as I frantically paced the kitchen. I ran my hands through my hair, knowing I should call his parents to see if they knew where he would hide. I called out for Mikey one more time, trying to swallow the lump in my throat that seemed to be strung by my tears. With shaking hands I slowly opened cherry oak drawer. 
 
 My stomach fell to my feet, and I could feel myself getting dizzy. The book of emergency contacts was gone. I lifted the scrap paper and mounds of old restaurant menus to make sure it wasn ’ t hidden beneath it. A single piece of paper stood out. The writing looked as if someone had scribbled on it, and it almost seemed like it had been spattered with blood. I read the words slowly out loud in a quivering voice, “ Don ’ t leave him alone. ” At that moment the power in the house went out, and the sound of claws clicking against the kitchen tile made my heart race even more. “ Mikey? ” 

