Argh... it was one of those dreadful nights where I just couldn’t get comfortable. Actually now that I think about it, I honestly don't think I've ever felt comfortable enough before going to sleep. Oh but tonight... tonight — it was much worse! No matter how much I tried to move around, I just couldn’t seem to get rid of this feeling — this horrid feeling of getting suppressed !
Ha! In truth, I had been so tired that I suspect I could've been able to sleep for all of eternity that night! Ah, alas, that too seemed merely impossible a thing to attempt.
"Uhh... where's the sandman when you need him!..."
I groaned in frustration before pulling my blanket tightly over myself. I'd been waiting hours to finally get some decent sleep and yet... there I was, still wide awake!
And even with those soft blankets wrapped tightly around me combined with the timid relaxing sound of the drizzle outside, could not even so much as lull myself into slumber. In fact, the more I thought on it, the more I feared I was never going to sleep! Not with the sound of my heart beating rapidly in my ears, or the smell of those old books and paper which clung to the shelf. And every time I attempted to drift off to sleep, a loud noise would wake me up once again. Ha! It was almost as if there was an alarm nearby, blaring every minute that went by!
Ah... these series of unfortunate, aggravating events continued nonetheless until, at length, I was no longer able to keep my eyes open - despite all my body's struggles to stay awake. And though I did not realize it until then, I found myself slowly drifting off into a peaceful slumber. But it wasn't long, before yet another issue came to disturb my night again.
Now somewhere between midnight and the early hours, from what I suspect must've resonated from the backdoor, was a loud and heavy thud. So loud in fact, I could scarely hear the sound right there from deep within my nightmares. The sudden thud caused the entire room to shake violently from the shock, causing my already restless body to twitch and jolt against the restraints holding me down on the bed. Or at least, it felt like they were restraints because upon awakening from the nightmare, I found that I couldn't move my body one bit.
To make matters worse, my vision also seemed to be blurred and blurry, leaving my field of vision very limited in scope. And with each attempt to take hold of something in the dark, I would find that I simply lacked strength to even raise my arm a centimetre further than a few inches from my face. This left me absolutely helpless.
"Oh God, not this again!"
I thought as my breathing picked up pace and all the blood in my body rushed to my head. Presently, i began hyperventilating, my chest heavying up and down in rapid succession, making breathing a little difficult. Yet somehow, despite all this, I didn't feel quite as panicked or anxious as one would've expected I should've been. I mean after all, this wasn't my first time experiencing sleep paralysis. However, it WAS my first time getting robbed.
Suddenly, that previous thudding noise which once sounded from the backdoor, soon turned to a loud crash on the kitchen window; as I presently began hearing low muffled voices and footsteps, approaching the upstairs floor.
"Oh no... Robbers!" I shrieked in terror as my heartbeat quickened considerably and i tried desperately hard to concentrate on anything other than the noises from the outside world, but it soon became useless.
Ah yes...I could've sworn my heart fell right into my stomach when I heard one of the robber's voices whispering:
Hey! Check the rooms! And get rid of anyone that tries to stop you...
That last statement sent chills through my spine and I began feeling this eerie sensation creeping its way through my body.
And with every step that robber took closer to my room, I felt as though my brain would explode out of anxiety. My entire body felt numb, my head felt heavy, and the sheer amount of goosebumps that filled my skin, made me feel cold — very cold. Then suddenly, without warning, the bedroom door slammed open with a bang followed by a loud grunt before a large figure appeared in my view, blocking out most of the light and all I could see was a black blur of movement. But it was obvious it wasn't a shadow.
Fervently, my throat began closing up, my brain racing in panic, and my breath aggressively getting caught up inside my throat in fear. I wanted to scream but couldn't form any words. All I could manage to do was whimper.
"Mmm..." I squealed, taking a big gulp down my throat. "I'm toast!"
But just then, something quite remarkable happened: Amidst my mortal anguish, I noticed that the robber, instead of trying to dispose of me, quickly called out to someone. Apparently, it was his superior.
"Hey Boss!" he called silently in his voice." Come up here for a second! You might wanna see this!"
With this, another man entered the room, wearing a dark hoodie and carrying a gun. From behind the hood, a pair of pale blue eyes stared right back at me and instantly the hairs on the back of my neck stood at attention.
"Fred!" his voice belted. "What the hell's going on man! You killed her?" the superior asked.
"What? No boss!" the other robber replied. "I swear I didn't do anything! I just found her like that!"
Now the superior paused momentarily and looked directly at me, taking a couple steps towards me and examining my body. And that only made my nerves jump even more, sending a shiver down my spine and making the hair on my arms rise; although, he didn't seem to notice.
"Great! Just our luck! After all these years, we finally muster up the balls to rob a house and then this happens! Some dead chick ends up on the bed!" he said, sounding very on edge.
"Jeez boss, just calm down! It ain't that bad." the second robber implored.
"Calm down? How in heaven's name do you expect me to calm down???Everything's ruined now!" the superior raged.
Back and forth, this little dialogue between them continued, while I cautiously observed them from the bed half awake/half asleep; all the while scared for my life. Then suddenly, the superior stopped his raging and put his focus on the bed once again.
"Ahh..." he sighed loudly.
"What now boss?" the other robber asked anxiously.
"Arghh..." the superior sighed again. "Just uh... help me with the body. Will uh... take it around back to the yard. Get rid of the evidence."
This comment made me gasp and I instantly became very nervous.
"Crap! I've gotta do something!" I thought.
Then, in an instance, I began feeling this rush of adrenaline catalyzed by all the fear and tension that had built up since the paralysis. And as the two men slowly approached the bed, I felt this sudden jolt in my body that enabled me open my eyes suddenly and leap out of the paralysis state, thus freeing me from the bind!
Sitting upright, I screamed as loud as I could that seemingly, frightened the robbers too:
"What in the holy biscuits!" the second robber screamed.
"Dear God! It's a ghost! Run for your life Fred!!" the superior screamed as he pushed his partner in crime away, and sprinted out of the room in fear.
"Boss don't leave me!" the robber screamed and then turned back to me. "Please! Oh please! Don't hurt me! I have children!"
Undoubtedly confused but more the less acquaint with what was happening now, I decided to take advantage of the situation.
"Then run! Run! Run like your partner has done fool! And never come back to this house again or I will HAUNT THEE FOR A THOUSAND YEARS!!!" I yelled and pointed dramatically toward the doorway. Then frantically, I leapt out of the bed and chased the man all the way downstairs till I was sure he and his superior had both fled the house. Then finally, when I had satisfied myself with the fact that they had truly retreated away from the house like cowards, I proceeded to lock all the doors of the house.
Dramatically, I fell to the floor and began crying. They were both tears of turmoil and relief.
"Oh... Thank goodness..." I whispered in a sigh of relief.
At the very end, that same paralysis I dreaded so much, was the very thing that saved my life that night.
