Thoughtful Thursday-Behind the Door

Continuing with my flash fiction month, the photos this week are my own. I had the stories in my head when I took them.

Behind the Door

The door knob rattled. It was a worn-out skeletal sound, like the knob had been rattled many, many times before.

She reached for it, unsure whether she should commit to seeing what lay on the other side. It would be easy to walk away and pretend she'd never seen or heard the door knob move at all. There was nobody around, after all. Nobody to call her a scaredy-cat. Nobody to make fun. She could simply...walk away.

Except she couldn't. She was too curious. The door knob continued to rattle, the seductive sound echoing in her head. It was as if something was trying to tempt and draw her in. As if it dared her to see what lay on the other side. But I've been on the other side, she thought. And there was nothing there. 

She grabbed the knob and the rattling stopped. The metal was cold in her hand. Cold and still. What now? She contemplated opening the door quickly--kind of like ripping off a band-aide. Or maybe she'd open it slowly--like the many times she'd opened cupboards in the house she'd left behind. She was never one to do things slowly. Turning the knob with finality, she yanked open the door.

The ghost was unprepared for the bright light that lay behind it.