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The Sleepover That Wouldn't End

horrorEveryone
5 contributors · 4 paragraphs deep

Pip flipped the clock over and pried off the back panel. Instead of batteries, there was a tiny folded note inside. She opened it with shaking hands. In neat little letters it said: "To stop the morning, someone has to stay awake through it."

"Stay awake through it," Pip repeated. "So last time we all dozed off right at 7:02 and it grabbed us." They linked arms in a circle and pinched each other to stay sharp. The clock clicked to 7:02. The gray light flared bright, daring them to blink.

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They didn't blink. They didn't sleep. The bright light pushed and pushed, then suddenly gave up and faded. The clock ticked to 7:03 for the very first time. A bird chirped outside. Real sunlight, warm and gold. "We did it," Pip laughed. "We just stayed awake."

IF
Inés Ferro
11 votes · future 1 of 2