nightmare

The fear of waiting for death is far more than the fear of actual death.

Dipesh Joshi

It was a chilly August evening when Daniel Parker first heard the phone ring. The shrill sound echoed through his small, dimly lit apartment. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was well past midnight—an unusual time for anyone to call. He hesitated, then picked up the call.

“Hello?” His voice was thick with sleep.

At first, there was silence. Then, a faint whisper crackled through the line. “I’m cominggggg for youuuuuu…”

Daniel’s heart skipped a beat. “Who is this?” he demanded, his voice rising in panic.

The whisper returned, this time clearer, and filled with malice. “You have one night left to live.”

Chills ran down Daniel’s spine, but he quickly shook off the fear, convinced it was some cruel prank. “Nice try, but I don’t scare that easily,” he said and hung up. He tried to go back to sleep, but the unease lingered, gnawing at the edges of his mind.

The phone rang again.

Daniel stared at it, dread blooming in his chest. Reluctantly, he answered. The same voice—cold, lifeless—drifted through the receiver. “You can’t escape me, Daniel. I see youuuuuu…”

Daniel slammed the phone down. He was wide awake now, his heart pounding in his chest. He checked the locks on his doors and windows, double-checking each one. But the phone wouldn’t stop. Ring after ring, Daniel refused to answer, but the sound burrowed into his skull, each unanswered call a taunt, a reminder of the voice’s sinister promise.

By 2 AM, the calls had stopped, only to be replaced by something worse: knocking. It started softly, almost hesitant, then grew louder, more insistent. It seemed to come from everywhere—his front door, the windows, even the walls. Daniel tried to stay calm, but every knock rattled his nerves, pushing him closer to the edge of sanity.

Desperate, he called the police, but they found nothing unusual. No sign of forced entry, and no evidence of anyone nearby. They left him with a warning to stay vigilant and promised to send a patrol car to circle the area.

But as soon as they left, the phone rang again.

This time, Daniel didn’t hesitate. He picked up, his hand trembling. “What do you want?” he shouted, his voice cracking with fear.

The whisper was colder, crueler. “I want you, Daniel. And tonight, I’ll have youuuuuu…”

A wave of terror washed over him. He could feel the presence now, cold and heavy, pressing in from all sides. The walls of his apartment seemed to close in on him, and the air grew thick with the stench of decay.

Desperation drove Daniel to action. He grabbed his keys and fled his apartment, driving aimlessly through the empty streets, the phone clutched in his hand. But no matter how far he drove, the phone calls followed him, relentless, unyielding.

The night stretched on, each hour more agonizing than the last. The whispers grew louder, more insistent, until they weren’t just on the phone but in his head, echoing off the walls of his mind. He could see shadows out of the corner of his eye, fleeting glimpses of something dark and malevolent.

By dawn, Daniel was a wreck, exhausted and terrified. He pulled over at the side of an empty road, the sun’s first rays creeping over the horizon. For a moment, he allowed himself to hope that the nightmare was over, that the daylight would banish whatever horror had been stalking him through the night.

But then the phone rang one last time.

With shaking hands, Daniel answered.

The voice was different now—deeper, more resonant, and full of malevolent glee. “Did you think you could escape me, Daniel? I am always with youuuuuu. And now…”

The line went dead, leaving Daniel in suffocating silence. He dropped the phone, his mind racing, his heart hammering in his chest.

He looked in the rearview mirror and froze.

There, in the back seat, was a figure—its face pale, eyes black pits of nothingness, staring back at him.

The end…

Now, was it just a dream of Parker? was it just a hallucination of Parker? Was everything real? What’s the best thing you could imagine? what would you do if this happens to you? Comment to me…

Whatever the truth, one thing is certain: the nightmare was far from over. And for Daniel Parker, the dawn brought no comfort, only the beginning of a new terror.

The fear of waiting for death is far more than the fear of actual death.

Dipesh Joshi