psychological
Mind games taken way too far; explore the disturbing genre of psychological thrillers that make us question our perception of sanity and reality.
The Woman at the Bar
I sat at the bar and politely flashed a smile at the bartender. He flashed a smile in reciprication. I ordered a drink, the usual, a glass of Merlot. It was a stressful week at work so this was my way of unwinding, at this particular bar and in this particular chair. The aesthetics of the bar were warm and inviting with the dim lighting and the soft candle light from the candles strewn about the bar. And of course, my favorite, the fireplace. I loved to sit and gaze into the fire while drinking and listening to the soft rock music the bar played. And that was it, thats all i needed to unwind from the stress of being a therapist Monday through Friday. As i sat in thought, not really thinking. All of a sudden, my trance into the fire became dark, blocked. My vision began to focus and i see a man sat right in my view. He was tall and handsome and reminded me of a lumberjack with his salt and pepper beard and his red and black flannel shirt. Despite all that, i began to become irritated with the fact that he blocked my view of the fire. He noticed me staring, with which my face had to have bore a sour look.
By Angelique Gamez5 years ago in Horror
The Children are Waking
Abel discarded another shovelful of earth and wiped his brow. It had been a tame winter and though the ground was soft, the morning sun was warm, sending trickles of sweat down his hairline and the back of his neck. Birdsong filled the air and from the short distance to the house, Abel could hear the slam of the backscreen door. He nodded to his brother, Adam. That would be Mother. If Mother was up, then it meant it was almost time for the Wakening. The boys felt a pang of excitement. They had been digging since sunrise, after all.
By Claudia Neaves5 years ago in Horror
Don't Drink the Merlot
My hands shook when the flame touched the wick. The candle lit, but it wasn’t good enough. I shouldn’t have shaken so much. I puffed the small fire out with an exacerbated breath, discarded the match and tried again. Light the match, light the wick, this time don’t shake so much. This time I let the candle ignite and the room filled with the aroma of cedar and rose petals. It should have calmed me. My stomach flipped three times instead. I lit the rest of the candles, one, two, three and pretended to bask in the ambient glow of the romantic candlelight. From the bookshelf, Sidero let out a low howl. Curled into a black pit of fur and fangs, she regarded me from her perch with judgmental yellow eyes.
By Claudia Neaves5 years ago in Horror
Gut Instinct
It started with a feeling. Nothing of note. Barely anything at all. Just a tingle really. A twitch of the gut, here or there. A sensation of bubbling, the odd sizzle of acid, flickering out from the stomach. Lizzie had never had issues with her stomach before, if you could even call it that, despite her rampant mistreatment of her digestive system up until now. She would be lying in bed, or relaxing on the sofa, just watching television or reading a book, and would notice a little rumble or gurgle, as though she had gas, but nothing would pass. Her mother or father would notice at times, and joke that Lizzie needed to eat more, else her stomach might start to eat itself. This was a long running joke in their family, though it was one that Lizzie had never liked, given her past struggles with anorexia. As a child she would have terrible nightmares of a monster or an alien chewing its way through her insides, and when she first saw the iconic chest-burster scene from Alien, she didn’t sleep for weeks.
By Gwendolyn Pendraig5 years ago in Horror
The Run-In
It was the advent of that early winter flurry that signaled the days with too much time with too little to do for Alexander Lomack. With those hours so voraciously unattended, he brought himself again and again to the same mahogany stool of the lounge where the well vodka would take the last of the straggling singles from his wallet.
By Sudipta Quabili5 years ago in Horror
Unwanted Amore
The first red flag was the fact his door was unlocked. Despite knowing that he had locked it that morning. Then there was the soft classical music playing when he came in. Which was something that he knew that he absolutely hated. Alex reached into his pants pocket for his pepper spray. Cursing the fact that he didn't have his phone with him. As it had been lost for a couple of months ago. Right around the time that he started getting weird little gifts.
By Raphael Fontenelle5 years ago in Horror
How Things Appear
Doctor I’ve tried to be a decent person my whole life. I’ve given fortunes to charities, found ways to help the poor, done community service that wasn’t court appointed. I have ensured that the police don’t even know my name, let alone ever been called by, or for, me. My life has been nothing to many, yet everything to some. Even with all of the good I have done there is a darkness in me that many should be glad to have never seen.
By Marcus Alan Perkins5 years ago in Horror
