The Thing in the Corner of Your Eye

Felix stood in the corner fidgeting. He felt the familiar lump in his throat that you get when you think you have to throw up. Wrinkling his nose, letting out an exasperated sigh, he shuddered.

He hated being here. It crawled with the deplorable and miscreants. Every corner occupied a body riddled with disease or drugs.

Glancing down, he saw an unknown liquid settling on the floor not far from him. Felix was reviled.

Still, through all the human filth, dizzying lights, deafening music, and mindless gyrating, swinging, and swaying, he saw it.

Just out of the corner of his eye. He attempted to swallow the growing lump in his throat, but it stuck. His muscles tensed painfully tight as he watched it move closer.

That creature. The one that lurks in shadows to breathe down your neck. That thing you never fully catch in the center of your gaze. Sometimes it tickles your arm, making you fear little insects that aren't there, or maybe you've mistaken it for your hair. You hear its footsteps in other parts of the house when you're supposed to be alone, but dismiss it as random noise.

You've seen it, too. In the dark, when the door isn't closed all the way, it walks by too fast to comprehend. You've seen it staring back at you, but you blinked to look harder and believed it to was your discarded jacket. The creature you've seen standing in the corner but thought it was your hat. It raises the hairs on your arms, making you look around when you walk outside after dark. It gropes your subconscious to whisper for your attention. Bring your attention to how alone you are.

But you weren't alone.

You never are.

The creature hunts only when you think you're safe. It preys on you when you're in bed. It aches for when you are alone and vulnerable. It calls so we are once again slaves to its unique brand of fear.

Felix didn't breathe. He didn't want to alert it. He didn't blink. He didn't want to lose sight of it. He didn't move because he didn't want it suddenly upon him.

But it was too late.

"Hello Felix," it slithered.

Felix adjusted for his skin crawling

"Are you well?" its voice sent chills through him, making Felix's head hurt. It was imitating a human. For now.

Why? Felix thought to himself. Why must this thing waste breath asking? With his screwed face and hunchback posture at it being there, Felix knew it was fucking with him. Always picking on him. Peeling back his strength and mental reserves with ease.

"Please," Felix quaked, his teeth gnashing. He was shivering. He sucked in the stale air, attempting to steady himself. With a small pivot, he could see more of the creature. He was closer than Felix prayed he would be. Much closer. He was always too damn close, Felix feeling his frustration, grinding his teeth.

The creature grinned, showing unusual perfect teeth before chucking. It was amused. Felix's discomfort and suffering a simple party job in such a lively setting.

"Come, Felix."

It turned away from him and began to slither away. Felix turned his head and saw it full on. From behind, you would think it was an ugly, bald human. In the dark, at least.

Felix felt like he was walking to his execution. But still, he continued to follow the demon through the thickening crowd. From the corner of his eye, in the sea of dancing bodies, Felix thought he saw a familiar beauty.

The woman from Italy. The one he fucked until he was raw...the one who lost a son because of him. She was a flash in a room of searchlights. She looked just as beautiful as the day he last saw her, and just as naked. She looked almost holy, with glowing olive skin and raven hair. Felix adjusted to face her, but in a flash of the strobe light, she was gone. He couldn't help feel a pang of guilt and remorse.

But he was a victim, too. He was a just pawn in this demonic game. He couldn't get away from it. Nothing could be done to stop it. Things were the way they were. There was nothing he could do. He felt castrated.

Felix focused back on the head of the creature and squinted. His lip curled back in a show of disgust. He was sure it was responsible for his vision. It was probably just fucking with him, only making him hate it more.

They reached the staircase at the other end of the vibrating nightclub that leads to the VIP rooms at the top of this establishment. At the top of the stairs, Felix took in the new scene.

Felix choked on his own spit when he saw something else in the corner of his eye.

It was the boy. Her boy. The boy from Italy. He looked like a corpse, propped up in the corner of the room; skin reminiscent of ice and snow matched with dull hair. His eyes were blank, staring ahead. And his mouth...still missing. His skin was so pale, it glowed in the dim lights of the VIP section. The boy's body wouldn't be fit for a viewing at in his own wake.

But why was he here?

"Some of my best work. Truly a thing of nightmares," the creature spoke erroneously, smiling with what could only be described as shark's teeth at the appearance of the boy. Felix retched at its words. The creature rounded on Felix, catching him off guard, causing him to stumble. Glancing up, Felix gazed upon its true nature, witnessing what it really was.

It has been said the devil made the creature itself. After having a nightmare, the Devil contrived this creature, dragging it from the depths of his deepest, darkest depths.

The devil's way of having fun. This vile, amorphous creature existed to torment. Its victims were those meant for the devil's reach, as well as those who aren't. Throughout ages, this living nightmare has held countless names, but is most commonly known as The Boogeyman.