• 　
    Chapter One: The Eye of the Storm

    Looking up at the unfamiliar ceiling, I wondered what had happened the night before. The hard mattress under me stabs me in the back. I could feel the cold, steel, coils; pinch themselves, as I rolled out of bed. The floor was unfamiliar also. The jagged floor boards that lie to me about their beauty and craftsmanship lead to the door.
    Before making my escape I looked out the window. It was layered with dust and grime. Mother wouldn’t approve of such a mess. With my silk sleeve, I wiped away the mess. Only to see that there was nothing, just pitch black. Tick, tick, tick. I heard nothing else.
    Looking down at the lock I thought to myself “They can’t be serious!” For the lock was rusted. Examining it even closer, I noticed that it was not just that one lock that was keeping me from the brisk cold air. It was also sealed with glue. Sinking my fingers into it, I tried to force it open. “One, two, three!” My fingernails snapped, leaving nothing but pink skin and blood.
    While the window stayed triumphant. Furiously looking around the room for something to stop the bleeding, I realized that there was a small bathroom in the corner of the room.
    I flicked on the light. There stood only a sink and toilet. The sink was as untidy as the window. Brown stains and hair everywhere. There was a roll of bandages conveniently placed by the faucet. I grabbed it, not caring if I didn’t have scissors or not, tore the bandages with my teeth.
    “How disgusting!” I thought looking around the new room and nursing my fingers. The room must’ve once been white and clean, now it stands with mold and scum.
    Cautiously looking at the toilet, I saw something that would make a grub crawl back in the dirt. A pool of black murk welcomed me when my pencil plunged into the murk. Looking at my bloody hand and the murk, I couldn’t stomach sticking my hand in.
    “Forget it! I can get another pencil.” I walked away and shut the door, leaving that nightmare of a latrine.
    I walked casually to the door. My hand stung when I touched the door knob. I should’ve noticed that the knob was orange with heat. I held my hand in front of my face. Scorch marks. Sizzzzz…I could still see the heat burning away the bandages. I quickly smacked it against my pant leg and looked at the door.
    “Can’t kick it down! Maybe I don’t want to. The door knob was so hot. It could be the same way on the other side.” I looked around for an extinguisher. No good. I went back to the bathroom, thinking there might be something to help me. Perhaps a bucket to fill and splash on the knob and whatever is outside causing it.
    Flicking on the lights, the scenery changed. The once gross and slimy bathroom was nothing but a room with a tub. “W…what is this?!” I couldn’t believe it, I knelt down. When I looked up, I saw something written in grime on the tile wall.
    “Do you wish to leave?” My brain rattled in my head, this couldn’t be! Is the house talking to me? No! That’s not right! It’s completely illogical! I look up, hopefully it will be gone.
    “Nope, I’m still here. Heh heh!” The grime was dripping. It must’ve been just written. This is crazy! “Houses can’t talk! And they certainly can’t write either!” Then without skipping a beat. I saw it. A ghostly hand reached out of the wall, erased the sentence, and wrote
    “Well you don’t have to be snippy about it!” My heart stopped, I could feel my face losing blood. I shook myself conscious. “Okay! Maybe you can write!” “So glad you’re up to speed.” “So can you help me?!” The house didn’t answer. I sat back on my heels, waiting. Again the ghostly hand appeared. This time it set its finger higher, almost to the ceiling. As it wrote, I gazed in awe. Or maybe it was impatience, because it kept going back to correct mistakes and change words. Finally, the house was done. I stood up and read
    “Aren’t bathes soothing? The cold ceramic tub filled with hot, steaming, water. Well sadly, you don’t have that kind of time do you? You’re running out of air, and in a few seconds I’m about to tear a hole in space and time and chuck this nasty old room out. The only reason I kept it was because you were in here. Anyway, climb into the tub and you’ll escape your doom. Unless you want to be sucked into another dimension?”
    Crack! The door came lose. I looked back in horror. The door had been sucked into a black hole. The floor boards were screaming, as they slowly ripped out of place. The blackness that I saw earlier wasn’t the night; it was that black hole, coming to destroy me and this room.
    “Fine! Just don’t leave me here to die!” I shouted as I placed myself in the tub. “Alright then! You better hold on!”
    Creeeeekkk! “Uh oh! This isn’t good…” “What! Damn you! Move it before I die!!” Now the door pane was sucked away. The slick tiles were sliding out of position and into the mouth of the black hole.
    “Hurry up!!” Click! A latch flung open, a door was revealed. I could feel my body sliding to the bottom of the tub. Tilting upwards, it didn’t take long for it to lunge itself down the shoot. Riding into a dark tunnel, I looked back and saw that the wall tiles had disappeared. I had finally escaped. But where was this tunnel going to lead me?