Room 203

...

Tammy Williams pulled into the motel parking lot, her hair sticking to the back of her neck from the brief moment she had been forced to go out in the rain. It was well past midnight, she was dead tired, and it was the only motel she could find that had vacancies. She didn't care that it looked like something out of Psycho (she half expected to see Anthony Hopkins come out of the motel entrance). She just wanted a halfway decent bed she could sleep in for the night.

She grabbed one of her suitcases, deciding the other could stay in the car until morning. She only needed the essentials for the stay. She put the suitcase over her head and ran, the rain pelting onto her, her purse smacking her waist. A middle-aged man looked up when she busted through the door, looking like a drowned cat. She smiled and stepped towards the counter, brushing the loose strands of hair out of her face. Thunder crackled and lightning flashed. "I'm looking for a room," she said.

"We have no vacancies," he replied.

She frowned, confused. "But, the sign out front says you do."

"The only room we have needs to be worked on."

"I don't mind, really." She put her suitcase on the floor and her hands on the counter. "I need this room. I haven't slept in like...two days. And I'll be leaving first thing in the morning. Please?"

The man sighed, looking tired himself. "Believe me, miss. You don't want to stay in Room 203. Just get in your car and drive away."

"Oh, come on, you're being ridiculous. It's just a room. You're acting like we're in some kind of horror movie," she said, picking her suitcase up.

He chuckled to himself, and shrugged his shoulders. There was a tiny glint in his eye she couldn't decipher. "Well, if you insist, I suppose you can stay in the room."

She smiled. "Oh, thank you so much!" She pulled out her wallet, paging through the dollar bills. "How much is it?"

"One night?"

"Yup."

"That'll be thirty dollars."

She looked at him, surprised. "Thirty dollars? That's it?"

His eyes were dark as he nodded his head. "Thirty dollars."

She gave it to him, not about to question why it was so cheap. Better for her, in the long run. The man picked up the key and gestured for her to follow him, shrugging into his coat before heading out into the rain.

The room was small, holding only two single beds, a television, dresser, and a night table. A door across from the second bed led to the bathroom, as the motel manager explained. The carpet beneath her feet was a deep red-the shade of blood. "This is perfect," she told him. "Thank you."

Without saying a word, he left, closing the door behind him.

Tammy frowned, a shiver running down her spine. There was something off about him...something strange in his demeanor. Stop being so paranoid, she told herself.

She lifted her luggage onto the bed closest to her, taking out clothes to change into. I should shower. Deciding to do so, she headed towards the bathroom, her clothes bunched in her hands. After placing them upon the sink, she stepped into the rectangular bathtub, closing the white curtain behind her.

She groaned as soon as the hot water hit her skin, trying to work some of the tension out of her shoulders and neck. The bar of soap smelled of vanilla, comforting her as she lathered it onto her body. The shampoo had the same rich vanilla scent, far better than any other she'd used at previous motels.

Ten minutes later, she stepped out, the steam from the shower billowing around her. Wrapping a towel around her body, she walked in front of the mirror, wiping away the steam.

A cry erupted from her throat when she saw the shadow of a person standing directly behind her. She whipped around, meeting the eyes of no one. "Holy shit," she whispered, turning back around. "I'm more tired than I thought."

She shook her head, scolding herself for being so paranoid. She was so busy trying to calm her beating heart, she didn't notice the chill in the air-settling around her like a fog.

Tammy combed through her brunette locks, throwing them into a high ponytail before changing into a pair of jogging pants and a tank top. Her eyelids were heavy, begging for sleep. But there was one more thing she had to check on before she could allow herself to go to bed.

Inside her suitcase, her laptop sat upon her clothes in a pocket made specially for the device. She took it out and turned it on, yawning loudly. A knock on the door frightened her, causing her to jump slightly. "Damn it!" she exclaimed, rising to her feet.

She made her way to the door, opening it slowly. Tammy frowned when she saw that no one was there. "Hello?" The only sound she received in return was the falling rain. There wasn't a trace of a person anywhere she could see.

She rubbed her arms, kicking the door closed and locking it. "What the hell is wrong with me?" she muttered, heading back to the bed.

Once comfortable again, she logged onto her e-mail, looking to see if he had written her back.

"You've got mail," her e-mail told her quietly. She inhaled, his name appearing in her inbox. Her finger hesitated, and for a moment she considered shutting down the computer and going to sleep. It was the rational thing to do. She had promised herself that she wouldn't let him get to her anymore. Anything they had was gone...

But what if it isn't? What if we can still have what we had?

She shook her head and clicked on the letter. She was pathetic.

Tammy, it started.

I haven't heard from you in a couple of days. I hope you're okay. I know I've said how sorry I am countless times in the past, but I can't stress enough how much I mean it. I never meant to hurt you. I miss you, Tammy.

She looked to her suitcase, smiling confidently. She knew her trip wasn't for nothing. She would see him, and they would talk things over in person...they'd be better.

Hope to hear from you soon. I love you.

Tammy quickly hit the reply button, her heart thudding in her chest.

I know. I'm about two towns away from you. I've been driving for two days...after I leave the motel I'm staying in, I should be to you in a day. I love you, too. I always have. We can work things out, I know we can. I'll see you soon.

She sent it, feeling like a large weight had been lifted off her shoulder. She turned the computer off, her eyelids heavy. She would get to sleep, wake up early in the morning, and finish her drive to his apartment.

She yawned once more, placing her laptop back in her bag. Then, she climbed under the stiff covers and turned the light off, her head against the pillow. Within minutes, she was asleep.

...

A loud noise awoke Tammy from her deep slumber. She jerked awake, her eyes wide. Her eyes tried to adjust to the darkness. For a moment, she couldn't see a thing. Then, shapes began to form. She fumbled to flick on the light, her heart beating quickly.

Once the room was drenched in yellow, she saw nothing out of the ordinary. She got up, her legs shaky. Thinking maybe something in the bathroom had fallen, she opened the door, flicking the switch instantly so she could see.

Nothing.

She frowned, wondering if she was going out of her mind.

She shook her head, rubbing her temple. "Whatever," she mumbled, turning the light back off. Before she could get anything farther, she was yanked backwards. She hit the cold tile, her head smacking into the sink before she fell onto her back. She screamed, the feeling of a cold hand on her wrist. She tried to get up, but found she couldn't. Something was holding her down.

Her body felt like it was drenched in ice. She started to panic, unable to catch her breath. While struggling beneath the phantom weight, tears began to fall from her eyes.

"It's just a dream, just a dream," she kept repeating, wishing she would just wake up.

Just as quickly as it came, she was released. She darted up, practically throwing herself from the bathroom. Her whole body was on edge, twitching with the adrenaline. She took clothes out of her bag, shaking her head.

"I'm getting the fuck out of here."

But, before she could begin to strip down, she was pushed onto the bed-the weight once again descending on her. She threw her head side to side, screaming loudly.

She looked down in horror as her jogging pants began to slide down, revealing her pink panties. A body began to form, covered in maggots and decaying flesh. Its eyes were hollowed out, staring at her blankly. She screamed again, her throat sore.

Its hands lay on her bare thigh, two fingers missing. Vomit began to rise in her throat as it ripped her panties off.

She closed her eyes shut, her body quivering. "Please, no," she whispered.

Something, she wasn't sure what, entered her deeply. The vomit worked its way past her throat and she spit it out, turning her head to the side. The creature above her moaned, still staring at her with those empty eye sockets.

Tears streamed down her face.

Suddenly, she felt something warm on her chest. She looked, her eyes opening wide when she saw blood blossoming through her tank top. Another thick, red line appeared, this time closer to her throat.

She tried to push the creature off, the blood running down her side. It just kept moving, oblivious to her attempts.

All she could do was scream and hope the motel keeper would hear; but no one came to her rescue.

A last line appeared, slicing right across her throat. The metallic liquid bubbled up from the wound, choking her. She coughed, blood dribbling from the corners of her mouth. The last thing she saw was the monster on top of her, the foul stench of its decay entering her nostrils.

As she died, it stopped moving, content.

...

The storm was over. The sun's rays graced the humble motel. The keeper opened the door to Room 203, shaking his head when he saw the body (if you could call it that) on the bed. He'd told her not to stay...

He gathered up her things in a pillowcase, careful not to touch anything.

Pieces of Tammy Williams lay strewn on the bed, jagged teeth marks marring any bone showing. He'd seen enough of the same horror, so the sight of it no longer affected him. He collected the dripping pieces, throwing them in a large, black garbage bag. She was just starting to smell. He'd have to buy yet another bed; the stench never quite left the mattress. And the sheets were definitely unusable, what with being covered in blood and guts and all.

The creature sat in the corner, watching the keeper with a tilted head.

"Fed good, didn't ya?" asked the keeper, chuckling to himself.

It nodded its head and made a sound that resembled a laugh. The keeper didn't know who the corpse was, or if it had even been a human before, but he knew that as long as he kept the thing fed his motel was never questioned in the deaths of the women. And there had been many of them.

Once everything was gathered, he loaded it into his truck (making sure there was no one around) and placed a Closed sign on the main door. Then, he drove down to the deep pond a few blocks away, where the other fifty odd bodies lay. He put a cinder block on the bottom of the bags and threw them over. The water bubbled over as they sunk. He watched until he couldn't see the pillow case or garbage bag anymore.

Then, he headed back to his motel, prepared for the day.

He wasn't worried. There were always people to invite to Room 203.

a/n: Horror is so fun to write. I definitely enjoyed writing this (although it creeped me out a bit) so I hope y'all enjoy readin' it!
Faith