Tap, tap, tap.
Do you hear that, Mr. Snuffy? I thought silently to my worn-out teddy bear.
The thunder clapped heavily outside and the rain beat against the rooftop. I hugged Mr. Snuffy close to my heart.
Tap, tap, tap.
Why does Daddy have to do that? Every time when it is dark and stormy out?
Tap, tap, tap.
The footsteps continued in a rhythmical pattern up the stairs, one step at a time. Once in awhile, Daddy’s footsteps would pause in front of my room. I would hug Mr. Snuffy tightly and shut my eyes as hard as I could. Maybe Daddy will get tired, I would always thought to myself.
Tap, tap, tap.
Why does he not stop? Those scary men will never come back, I thought, trying not to remember that night similar to this one.
Someone rang our doorbell that time. Daddy went to check who would be out so late in such a horrible weather. I was standing behind Mommy at the end of the hallway. I watched Daddy turn on the porch light. He cracked the door open by a slight.
“Yes?” He said through the small opening. There was a man, wet from the rain.
“May I use the phone?”
“I’m sorry,” Daddy shook his head, ready to close the door. The man stopped the door with his hand.
“Please, my car broke down. You’re the only house out here.”
Daddy hesitated. “One moment.” He shut the door and told Mommy to get the cordless phone. When she handed to him, he opened the door once more to give the phone to the man.
At that moment, he grabbed Daddy’s arm and pulled him down. A gun was held to his head.
After, three big men burst through the door from the darkness of the night. They all had guns. Two of them held me and my family hostage. That night, we lost most of our valuables.
But we managed to get some back when we reported the police. Those bad men were caught and were locked up forever. It was a dreadful experience.
Since that day, Daddy would walk around the house on nights like these to make sure that we were safe.
Tap, tap, tap. The footsteps finally stopped at the bottom of the stairs. I held my breath and waited. He did not walk no more.
I could not take it anymore. I kicked off my blankets and ran into my parents’ room with Mr. Snuffy in my hand. I dove under the covers and slithered up to my Mommy’s side. She was wide awake, just like me. I sobbed into her pajamas.
She stroked my hair, embracing me in her arms as she tried to reassure me.
“Why? Why must he always do that?” I choked between my tears. “They won’t come back.”
“You know he loves us, dear. He died protecting us.”
THE END