Deception

 I stared around, befuddled for a moment. I’d an inkling that my visage must have been pallid and my hair disheveled…

There was not the slightest sign of any mobility anywhere in the house. “Mom? Dad? Where are you?” I called out in consternation. The house was in a state of disarray: furniture had been toppled; trash was strewn everywhere in the vestibule. As I ventured further, I saw shards of glass jutting out from unlikely places. Terrified at the thought of apprehending goons and with my heart palpitating, I started moving slowly.

“WHAAAAAAAM!!!” the front door closed with a bang. I was scared witless. As I turned to encounter the peril, I found myself shivering momentarily. Queerly enough, I felt a sudden surge in temperature in my proximity. It was getting unbearably hot. The scorching sun seemed to be piercing through the windows, and dazzling my face. But it was definitely not the sun. I could smell something foul – as if it was burning strongly. This was followed by a crackling sound.

 Without a second thought, I turned to bolt but found my path of flight impeded by gargantuan flames leaping out of the kitchen. In a split second, the fire was raging through the vestibule incinerating the objects that came in their way. Left with no option but to retreat, I made my way to the bedroom. 

How the fire had engulfed the entire drawing room so swiftly was inexplicable, but there wasn’t time for investigation. As I endeavored to reach for my phone to make a distress call, my eyes started searing. It was as if the world would fall apart – excruciatingly painful. Even before I could recover from the stinging effect, I felt that I might die of asphyxiation…

“Don’t give up, sweetie. I’ve always marveled at your obstinance. Your mom is there with you,” my mom’s ethereal voice exhorted me. 

“But I cannot see you mom!” I cried out in agitation. 

“Of course, you cannot see me, you indolent prat! You need to wake up.”

I sat upright on my bed. I stared around, befuddled for a moment. I’d an inkling that my visage must have been pallid and my hair disheveled because my mother and brother were laughing at me heartily.

“Your brother has often mentioned your somniloquy, but I must confess that witnessing it live has been quite entertaining, to say the least,” she said, grinning.

“But…but… I heard a door slam shut…”

“Yeah, that was me lividly entering the room to wake you up.”

“What about the shivering, temperature increment, and sunlight?”

“Yeah well, you’d to be shaken to stir you from your deep slumber. The fans are also off as you can see. I remember your sensitivity towards light, so I turned on the LED lights as well.”

“I heard a crackling sound.”

“Ah! That was your brother creating some peculiar noises using paper crackers.”

“But my olfactory senses couldn’t deceive me! There was a pungent smell.”

“It’s that imbecile neighbor of ours,” she muttered, nettled. “Despite continued grievances, that idiot always deems it fit to burn rubble in our backyard.”

“My eyes are still hurting though. What did you do?”

“Sorry about that. It’s your mischievous brother again. He applied a concoction of jalapeno and pepper to your eyes.” 

Sure enough, he stood smirking at one corner. “I daresay this was fun. We heard you muttering and swearing in your sleep. At first, it was gibberish, but then you started moaning and mentioned mom and dad. So, I thought it best to record a video of your tomfoolery.”

“How dare you….!!!” I said, embarrassed, as I chased after him.