Man With any Face

Out of all the things that I had anticipated on when I closed my eyes…this wasn’t it. My childhood monster, Mr. Toothy. When I was a kid, he was a horrible creature with more teeth than face. Something that came for me when I closed my eyes and tried to dream something nice for a change. As a child I tried not to think of Mr. Toothy. Tried everything in vain to keep myself from remembering him.

Yet he appeared.

Mr. Toothy always appears the same way. Looking like an ordinary man that you would see walking the streets. Until you looked away then looked back at him. And his face turns into more teeth than any normal man should. He wouldn’t always look the same though. He’d sometimes be men that I’d pass on the street. My father once. And I spent the next three weeks afraid of my father. Much to his confusion, I was too afraid to tell him or anyone else about why. Mr. Toothy felt like some kind of secret that I could never get rid of no matter how much I wanted to.

I don’t really remember when he came into my life. But there’s this…this feeling that I won’t be ever able to get rid of him. Though I can do my darndest to make sure that he can’t catch up to me. And right now, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. As I run through the halls of my childhood home, I hear his steady footsteps behind me. This time, Mr. Toothy looks like an ex-boss of mine. Except the lack of a real face. He’s steady behind me as I run and run towards the kitchen. This time, I won’t allow myself to be cornered or eaten or anything like that. I grabbed a knife from the block as I got to it and turned towards the large toothy mouthed creature. Who ‘laughs’ as he took a few steps towards me. Softly, he taunted,”You don’t have the guts…”

I didn’t say anything as I sliced deep into his neck. Screaming with all the feelings that I had been feeling since he came into my life. Watching the blackish ooze that passed as blood spray from the injury. Coating me in its coldness as he falls backward screaming in pain and terror and…and I wake up. In my own bed that I share with my husband. Letting out a yelp as I involuntarily smacked his shoulder. He lets out a startled grunt as he sits up next to me. Turning on the light as he asks,”What? What’s wrong? What’s going on?”

“…I’m sorry, baby. Nightmare.”,I explained. Kissing his shoulder as I carefully got out of our bed. My throat felt drier than the desert as I walked towards the kitchen. Deciding that since I’m awake, I may as well get something to drink. Then take a minute to get my heart from not pounding so hard in my chest. I heard the bedsprings creak and my husband’s footsteps behind me as I sighed. Getting a cup from above the sink, he questioned,”Want to tell me about the nightmare, Mars?”

“It was just Mr. Toothy, again. This time I nailed that asshole.”,I chirped. Turning to look at my wonderful husband. His shoulder-length dark brown hair mussed up. And his dark brown eyes look so much more alert than before. My husband, Adam, wore his normal tank top and jogging pants. When he leaned on the kitchen island, he smiled faintly. I turned back to the sink to pour myself a glass of water. Quietly, I heard Adam cough behind me and when I turned back…my blood ran cold. Adam…my…my husband…didn’t have his face anymore. In its place were rows of sharp teeth pulled into a smile much too wide for a man’s face. And I screamed as Mr. Toothy asked,”You so sure about that, Mars?”

“You might still be dreaming…”