Phantoms

They say that fear only exists in the mind. That all phantoms are imaginary. But the tricks of the mind sometimes makes it hard to tell the difference between truth and fiction. Especially if you are a 7 year old boy with a vivid imagination.

Billy is terrified. On his way home from school he encounters three black figures standing beside the gravel road. He knows that they are only poles covered in black plastic but still, they look so alive. As if they were staring down at him. They follow him into his dreams, becoming nightmares with phantoms in black cloaks.

The next day he does not dare to walk home alone. Borrowing a dog might help him face the darkness at the edge of town. But the dog is tired and he still has to walk the road alone. And there they are, looming over him. Scaring him. He turns back to the city lights and his father comes to bring him home.

After story time, in the night. The phantoms return into the small boys nightmares. Scared awake he does not dare to fall asleep again that night.

On the final day Billy decides to make it. But with dawn courage sinks and he once more has to turn around. Once again back in the city. Sitting alone at the school stairs his daddy calls to ask him where he is. Not daring to disappoint him he tells a lie, saying he is at home. Then and there he makes a decision. He steals the dog and a flashlight and head into darkness. Determined to make it home.

He is terrified but the dog and the flashlight gives him courage. Unexpectedly the dog snaps away and Billy loses his grip on the leash. The dog disappears and Billy is forced to follow into the pitch black. Suddenly finding himself standing face to face with the phantoms. Then and there he is forced to make a final decision. Is he going to give in to his fears and turn back or is he, once and for all, going to face his fears and stand up to the phantoms?