The Headless Ghost

I lay awake in bed, unable to get back to sleep. I can't stop thinking about him! I can't stop thinking of his long black cape, his knee high boots, his... his headless body, and his head which he carries in his hands. Every time I shut my eyes, I hear his evil laugh, which just wakes me up again. Who is he, and why is he haunting me?

What was that? Dear God, there’s something outside my bedroom door! It sounds like something or someone hitting a chair out in the dining room. I sink deeper beneath my sheets, trying my best to hide. I hear my bedroom door slowly creak open. It’s him!

I try my best to hide from him. My heart is beating a hundred mile a second, my eyes are tightly shut, and my teeth are beginning to chatter. Never have I in my whole life been so scared. I hear him walk through my bedroom, right up to the side of my bed. I can sense he is close, like if he is just above me. I begin to grind my teeth together, to prevent him from noticing I was here. I remain as still as I can, and as quiet as a mouse. Beads of sweat are dropping from my pale white skin, drenching my sheets.

I suddenly hear him snuff like a horse, and begin to walk out of my room. I hear my bedroom door close slowly and he was gone, I think. Still I hide beneath my sheets, knowing he would soon be back as soon as I thought it would be safe. All I hear now is the pattering sound of rain on my window, combined with the thunderstorm that is raging on outside, like a steam train roaring out a tunnel.

I once heard of him in folklore, but I didn't think we would be like that. I thought we were the country that sent our criminals to the gallows, not the one who would chop their heads off medieval style. I continue to lay there; still unable to get back to sleep, afraid he might come back again…