Thump in the Night

         It was nice grandma’s bedtime.  She put her teeth into a glass of warm water and added an Efferdent tablet.  She sat on the bed and checked her alarm clock.  She kicked off her slippers and got under the covers.

         That was when she heard it.  A kind of a thump, as if something fell over in the attic.  Loud enough to disperse the cloud of sleepiness.

         Oh, well.

         She was falling asleep in the quiet dark.

         Thump!

         Startled awake she wondered, what is there up there to fall over?  Maybe I dreamed it.  That’s it, I dreamed it. 

         She closed her eyes again.  She let herself drift into slumber.

         THUMP!!

         “I didn’t dream that!”  She sat up and slipped her feet into her slippers.  What could be in the attic that made a noise like that?  A mouse that could thump like that would be really scary. 

         Going up there was one way to find out and that was just what she was afraid of.  If something was up there at least it wasn’t down here.  She went back to bed but this time she left the light on.

         Thump, thump, thump, thump.

         But now it was coming downstairs. 

         Thump.  Now it was in the hall. 

         Nice grandma was sitting up in bed. 

         Tap, tap, tap.  It was at her door. 

         “Who is it?” she asked in a small voice.

         “Mom are you awake? I’m trying to find the Christmas trimmings.  Where did we put them?”
         
         “Left of the stairs.  The boxes that have Christmas written on them.”

         Thump, thump -- back up the stairs.  Thump, thump, back down the stairs.

         Nice grandma drifted off to sleep.


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