At 11:59 p.m.

A boy witnesses a strange happening at midnight and he is haunted forever.

At 11:59 p.m.
The golden evening sun began to sink below the horizon. Everywhere was bathed in golden sun rays. A slight breeze made the great fir trees in the small town of Hillycombe swing. The cobbled streets were filled with people walking their dogs.
Noah, a sturdy built young boy arrived at his two-storeyed home after a cycling tour around the countryside with his friends. His parents had gone to stay for the day at a relative’s house and had left Sarah, the servant for company.
Noah entered the house.
He heard Sarah cooking in the kitchen and went upstairs to the bathroom to get tidy for dinner. As he walked along the passage to the bathroom door, he heard somebody walking softly in the opposite end of the passage.
Noah froze.
His heart beat faster and he scanned the corridor carefully. But there was no one. Who could it be? ' It couldn't be Sarah; she's in the kitchen.' he thought.
Finally, he calmed down and thought it as his imagination. After a refreshing bath and a good dinner, Noah finally retired to bed. As he climbed up the stairs to his bedroom, a feeling of being watched crept upon him.
Noah spun around, breathing heavily and eyes wide. There was no one to be seen. Was he being haunted? Noah didn't know. He got onto his comfortable bed and fell sound asleep at once.
Suddenly, Noah sat up in bed, wide awake. He glanced at the luminous hands of his clock. 11:59 p.m. The bedroom was flooded with moonlight that came through the white linen curtains covering the window.
Noah got out of bed and peeped through his curtains. The garden was shining with the silvery moonlight. The yew hedges formed massive shadows that looked like hidden figures. A slight mist covered the surrounding. An owl hooted softly and the usual sound of crickets chirping was to be heard plainly in the still night air.
Suddenly everything became strangely quiet. The sounds of crickets chirping stopped and the wind held its breath as if listening. Noah saw something that made his heart froze. Something was moving towards the house, keeping to the shadows of the yew hedge. As it crossed places with moonlight, he saw it was a tall, hooded figure. Noah was terrified. He heard a scraping noise on the front door that sounded like the sound of claws scraping wood.
He slipped out of the room with his torch. As quietly as a cat, he slid down the stairs with his heart pounding furiously. He came to the front door and hesitated. ‘Should he open it?’
Suddenly, the scraping stopped.
Silence.
The door creaked opened!
Noah stumbled back, gasping with horror. He switched on his torch with trembling hands.
There was no one there!
The beam fell on the grass in the garden but it picked out no one. His pulse relaxed and he sent out a long breath that had been held on for a long time.
He closed the front door and went upstairs to bed, mind still whirling with confusion but also relieved. Noah lay awake for a long time, mind puzzled about the strange thing. ' What was it? How could it disappear so suddenly? ' were the thoughts that ran over his mind.
He suddenly thought he could hear slow dragging footsteps coming up the stairs. Noah sat up suddenly as if he had an electric shock. The sound stopped.
Silence. Only the ticking of his bedside clock was to be heard. He waited for a long time with ears pricked. Not a sound was to be heard. Finally he relaxed and lay down on bed. He fell asleep.
Next morning, the morning sun rays flashed on to Noah’s face and he awoke. He stared at the ceiling, his mind suddenly remembering the events that happened yesterday night.
He got out of bed and found a cryptic note on his bedside table. It read " While the clock ticks ". Paranoia began to creep upon him. His hands trembled, slick with sweat. Noah glanced at the clock.
It read 11:59 p.m.