Hide and Seek

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay



“Come out, come out, wherever you are.”

Tommy’s sing song voice comes to me from another room.

As if. I’m the king of hide and seek. I’m not making a sound
until you find me.

The house, which had just been full of voices is quiet now.
I press my eye to the one tiny little hole in my hiding place. The hall is visible
through the open door to mom’s sewing room, but across the hall, the bathroom
door and Sissy’s bedroom door are both shut.

That’s an amateur move. A closed door means something to
hide. He’ll look there first.

I put my hand over my mouth to hold back a giggle, cuz oh no.
I may only be five, but this is my game, and there’s no noise.

I hear Tommy’s heavy boots on the hallway floor and back
away from the peephole. It’s tiny—just a nail hole in the corkboard, and almost
covered in newspaper clippings, but you don’t get to be king by taking chances.

This time, the game is super easy. Mommy told us to start playing just as soon as she heard Tommy’s car door slam, so he might not even know I’m playing.

I hear a doorknob and the sound of Tommy’s boots changed cuz
he’s on the bathroom floor. The shower curtain rustles, and Sissy starts
screaming just like mommy did before. Boy, she doesn’t like losing this game. Next
time she shouldn’t close that door.

Tommy’s walking on hardwood again, and Sissy’s done
screaming. A floorboard squeaks, and I know Tommy’s in the room with me. I hold
my breath. He’s just listening too, cuz the only sound is that drip, drip,
drip.

That’s okay, I can be super quiet. That’s why I’m the king of Hide and Seek.

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