“You’re not afraid of clowns are you?” Haylee’s brother asked her.
“No!” she insisted. She slammed her laptop shut, ending the Skype call.
She took a shaky breath and peeked out of the window. For the past week, MC had been visited by clowns. She’d never seen them but the thought of it being true freaked her out. She’d called brother to talk about it but he ended up just trying to tease her. Outside, the sun had finished setting but the sky was still tinted with red. She shuddered. The color red was the last thing she needed to be thinking about when freaks in makeup were somewhere around campus. They only came out at night and they’d never been spotted inside a building. That was good news!
So why I do feel like someone out there is laughing at me? Haylee thought.
Outside her dorm she could see the Lover’s Swings, a circle of wooden swings where couples typically located...until a few days ago. She spotted a few girls and guys hurrying towards their dorms. But she also saw a small crowd gathering in front of the Cafeteria. She rolled her eyes. Did these people not watch horror movies? Why did they want to catch it? But honestly, as long they kept the craziness from her...she didn’t care what they did.
She was closing her curtain, when she heard low, cold, laughter. She spun around quickly, bumping into her desk and knocking over a cup of coffee. The hot liquid spilling onto her blue carpet wasn’t her concern. Where had that laugh come from? Her door was locked and her roommate left for formal an hour ago.
You’re not afraid of clowns are you? Her brother had asked her.
Shut up, Joel, she thought to herself. She took a breath. It’s probably just some pledge trying to scare people.
She lay on her bed. She just needed some sleep. Recently, she’d been determined to be in bed early but she always felt tired the next day like she’d spent the night running around. Her clock read 9:00. She put on pajamas, slipped under her covers and closed her eyes.
Then she heard giggling. She squeezed her eyes tight. Just a dream?
Suddenly she heard something beside her bed...like a footstep. Then the giggling turned into the cold laughter. Haylee found herself shaking and the laughter got closer. She felt warmth by her ear like someone was whispering into it. She sat up with a start. She looked around, panting. She was alone.
Ok, screw it, she told herself. She hopped out of her bed slipped on sweats, sneakers, and an XL T-shirt. She was going to find this clown! She was NOT going to be afraid of some guy in makeup and silly hair. Luckily, her roommate left her softball bat so she grabbed it from the closet. As she locked the door, she heard the laughter again.
We’ll see if you can still laugh after I bash your teeth, she muttered to herself.
Luckily, the clown-hunting crew was nowhere to be found. She wanted to face it alone. She needed to. Her Psychology teacher had said that the one true way to conquer a fear was to confront it...gosh, Haylee hoped that her teacher was right. Ok, now where had it been seen? The white fountain behind her dorm, the Kugel and the parking garage.
The fountain was closest so that’s where she decided to start. In two minutes, she was there. She paced around it, spinning the bat. But she heard no laughter, saw no clowns or the hunting party, and after fifteen minutes, she decided that the clown wasn’t there anymore. Part of her was relieved, until she realized that she had two places left to check. The parking garage was right down the hill so jogged down and spotted the hunting party. She saw teenagers spread out over the parking garage’s three levels. Thy searched between and behind cars and used the flashlight app on their phones to peer into them.
“Are you sure it's out here? Did you even get a good look at it?” Someone asked.
“I swear it's out here!” A girl responded. “It had a red smile and red streaks on its chest. It was terrifying! And it had a giant club!”
Haylee’s heart sank. She looked at the softball bat and her weapon suddenly made her feel nervous. She didn't like the idea of going against an armed psychopath. Really, she didn't want to fight it…she just wanted to hit it and get away. She shifted her weight from foot to foot. Was she going to go through with it?
Only one more place to check, she told herself. It probably won't even be there. I mean I proved I'm not scared just by coming out here, right? Why not?
A few minutes, she was in front of the Kugel, a black marble orb that was supposed to be rotating on a pool of water in a concrete base but was now broken. She tried not to think of the nasty things that had happened to the Kugel as she waited for the clown. For once, the nearby Piazza was empty. The lampposts were bright which made her feel better in the cold night. Ten minutes went by and nothing happened. Twenty minutes….
Haylee pumped her fist. “Heck yes!”
She let out sighs of relief. She’d beaten her fear! She'd come out to face the clown and it wasn't even here. How awesome was that?!
Haylee had taken two steps away from the Kugel when the lampposts dimmed. Haylee froze. She heard giggling….everywhere! She spun and while she didn't see anything, the giggling got louder. Haylee felt sweat on her forehead and her heart almost burst from her chest. She hefted the bat.
“C’mon!” She yelled. “Do I look afraid to you!”
The giggling turned into a chuckle. She realized that she probably did look scared: a short, sweaty blond girl with a softball bat and a crazed look in her eye. If she was the clown, she might have laughed to.
Haylee’s eyes scanned the area. The lights were dimming really fast. She looked behind her and she saw a figure lumbering towards her. She couldn’t make out its features in the shadows but she could tell that it was roughly her height and dragging something heavy behind it. The chuckling now turned into loud, crazed laughter. Haylee wanted to scream for help but her voice caught in her throat. Then it came into the light. Its skin was pale like milk and it had a dark red smears on its shirt. It’s hair was yellow and wild. There were red streaks under its eyes and around its mouth was a red streak in shape of a smile and Haylee saw sharp yellow teeth.
At that point, Haylee was done being brave. She turned to run and tripped over the Kugel’s base, scraping her hands and drawing blood. The bat rolled out her hands. She turned and the clown was above her, laughing.
Silly girl, its eyes seemed to say. You came to here to what, prove you’re not afraid of me? Well look at you now. It’s kind of funny.
For a moment the clown just stood there, laughing and staring at her. Haylee couldn’t move. Her limbs were numb and her insides were cold like ice. Suddenly, the clown raised his hands and they morphed into talons. As he brought them down, Haylee shut her eyes and screamed.
+++++
Haylee opened her eyes. The clown had disappeared. The lampposts were still dim but she was alone. Haylee let a sigh of relief. She was alive. Her hands were still bleeding from the fall but she could put a band-aid on them later. She beat her fear! And the best part was that it all seemed to be in her head. The whole time!
That’s kinda funny, Haylee chuckled. Then she started laughing. This whole thing was ridiculous.
She got to her feet and realized that her hands were deathly pale. Her fingernails gotten longer, sharper and the blood from her hands dripped off the tips. Haylee doubled over with laughter.
Now I’m seeing things again, she snorted. Yeah, ok, now I’m the….
Haylee stopped laughing and looked at her hands. She smiled and wiped off some the blood on her shirt, leaving polka-dot stains. Then she wiped some on her mouth rubbed under eyes. She glanced over at the Kugel’s pool and grinned. She had tear shaped streaks of blood under her eyes and smile around her mouth.
Perfect, she thought. Just like before.
She walked over to the bat and gave it swing. She hoped that the hunting party was still out there. She wondered if they liked to laugh as much as she did.
