The Replacement
written by: Alyssa Brocker
@Atelgy
“In slumber it’s best not to wander.”
This was the only rule at the orphanage.
It sounded like a suggestion,
but it was a demand.
Us girls would say it before bed every night.
10 voices, in unison,
harmonizing to a tune we knew well.
We must never leave our beds,
especially after midnight.
No one knew why.
The others would never dare defy Ms. Lizzie.
I was always a curious child,
starting trouble,
this one rule was no exception.
On a special night,
full of magic and fright,
when the clock read:
1 2 : 0 1
I crept from my bed.
Exploring the orphanage,
undistributed,
laughing,
carefree.
What a silly rule!
I thought.
I came back into the room,
my feet shuffling,
eyes heavy,
to find a girl sitting in my bed,
staring at me.
I looked down and
discovered
I was fading.
Into the walls,
the background.
I had become a shadow,
a mere afterthought.
The girl started chanting:
“In slumber it’s best not to wander.”
Three times.
That’s when I truly
disappeared.
Now, I wait.
For a little girl
to become just
curious enough,
stealing back a life,
that once was.
- Reason To Be Sad - June 10, 2020
- (ir)(rational) - March 16, 2019
- Without Him - January 30, 2018
