HOUSE

All of the lights flicker once, twice, three times, and then the house plunges into darkness.

The girl says, “Hello?”

No reply.

The girl stands up from her chair, feeling around with her hands before she steps forward. The floorboards creak and whine as she heads in the direction of the doorway.

“Hello?” She says again, slightly louder this time.

The girl walks across the living room. When she gets to the corridor, there is a faint light. It’s coming from the doorway. As she approaches it, she sees a single candle, placed on the ground in front of the door.

The light is faint. The girl turns around and squints down the corridor.

“Hello?” She says for a third time. She is alone in the house.

When she turns back to the candle, the flame has brightened. The girl crouches down and stares at it. She reaches out as if to touch the holder.

The flame wiggles and glows even brighter still. The girl retracts her hand quickly.

“Hello?” She says tentatively to the candle.

The flame jumps and glimmers invitingly.

The girl looks around one last time and reaches toward the candle again. The closer her hand gets, the brighter the flame. At last, she grasps the handle of the holder. The light is blinding. It is so powerful and warm and comforting. The door to the girl’s house opens because it cannot contain the power of the light, and the girl walks through it.

She exits into a meadow, with wildflowers and soft moonlight and swaying trees. Her mother is there, standing straight and strong, just as the girl remembered. She is holding a candle.