Chapter 3 House Of Horror 3

"Maybe I can come listen for a moment and be sure it's not the booze that's affecting you," Amanda offered, smiling a little as he lifted his head to look at her. He nodded, feeling the sense of relief return.

Matthew had half-expected the flat to still be derelict as it had been when he left. Instead it all seemed very normal with nothing out of place. They checked each room together, but they heard nothing.

"I think you are going to be alright now," Amanda told him as they got back to the front door.

Matthew realised she was about to leave and grabbed a hold of her wrist.

"Please stay with me." He felt degraded, begging her to stay. It felt like all the times he had begged his mom not to go out and leave him when she was looking for another man or buying more drugs.

Amanda looked at him, her expression unsure, and then shook her head.

"I promise I won't touch you," he added. "Please stay."

He could see that she was in two minds. Her lips seemed to tighten as she made her decision and gave a small nod. He led her to his bedroom and, Amanda climbed under the quilts. Matthew had been going to sleep on the small strip of floor, but she patted the bed beside her.

"You can sleep here as long as you stay on top of the quilt."

Afterwards, he was never quite sure who started it, but somehow her face was right beside his. He pressed his lips to hers and as soon as they touched the voices started.

Amanda sat bolt upright and her eyes darted around the room. She cursed under her breath then laid back down.

"You hear them don't you?" Matthew asked her.

"Yes, I do. And you really should treat girls better, Matthew," she replied. He didn't understand what that had to do with anything. She didn't explain, just turned her back on him and pulled the quilt around her shoulders.

Matthew envied the way she slept serenely and undisturbed while the voices tormented him for the remainder of the night, as the walls cracked then healed themselves. He listened to the whispers and Amanda's light snoring for the remainder of the night. Matthew was too scared to close his eyes, God only knew what would happen if he fell asleep.

He must have dropped off to sleep eventually, because he woke with the alarm. Amanda was already gone, the bed still warm where she had slept.

That evening, he was walking back home with his catch for the night - blonde, curvy and cute - when he stopped in his tracks just outside, key poised to put in the door because the house began to change. The outside brickwork crumbled away, leaving large holes in the walls. The roof collapsed and sank in. The windows shattered, with explosive pops, spraying shards of glass. The surrounding properties changed from rows of houses to a cluster of foreboding trees.

The house now looked like something you would see in a horror movie. It gave off that creepy feeling, and the hairs at the base of his neck prickled. His heart was dancing a song of fear, drumming and banging against his chest. Was he going mad? Had someone spiked his drink?

"What's wrong Matt?"

He looked at the girl, Taylor she said her name was.

"Don't tell me you have changed your mind?" She twisted a lock of her blond hair and bit her lower lip. He shook his head, afraid to speak in case his voice cracked. Taylor looked completely unaware of anything being wrong. He looked back at the house and let out a gush of air. It stood tall and proud, no sign of decay.

He was done with the girl within an hour of getting home and was sound asleep before midnight struck. It was only when the noise was unbearable that Taylor woke him up to complain. It had just gone past midnight. He had let her stay, breaking his usual habit, because he had not wanted to face the night alone.

He had half-convinced himself Amanda had only said she heard the voices to please him. If she had heard them, there would be no way she would have been able to sleep. She would have been as frightened as he was. But Taylor heard them too, or heard something, she just moaned about his neighbours making so much racket.

Excusing himself to get a glass of water and give himself a moment alone to pull himself together, Matthew was in the kitchen when the wailing started again. This time, it was louder, and it seemed to have found a loophole in the walls because he could hear the voice clearly. It hissed his name over and over again. Hearing the sound of his name echoing through the walls made his stomach lock up tight. He scanned the room looking for the source of the voice. Secretly, he was hoping it was just a silly prank, but deep inside he knew that wasn't true. Whatever was happening was completely real.