Laughing Jack

Imaginary Friend

In the nice summer day in California, I was unpacking the boxes in our beloving new home. James was playing outside in the backyard, he was a quiet boy he doesn't  have many friends and he played by himself most of the time. He has always had a wild imagination. I was in the kitchen feeding our dog Fido, when i heard what sounded like James talking to someone in the backyard. I wondered who he was talking to. Could he have finally find a friend? Being a single mother it's hard for me to always keep my eye on my son, so I decided to go outside and check on him. James was alone in the backyard. Was he talking himself? I could sworn I heard another voice. "James! It's time to come inside," I called out to him. He came in and sat down at the kitchen table. "James... who were you talking to out there?" I said. James looked up for a moment. "I was playing my new friend," he said smiling. "Does your friend have a name?" I asked. James stared at me for a moment before replying. " His name is Laughing jack." "Oh? That's a strange name," I said. "What does your friend look like?" "He's a clown," James replied. " he has a long hair and a big swirly cone nose. He's got long arms and baggy pants, with strips socks, and he always smiles." I realized my son was talking about a imaginary friend. I suppose it is normal for kids his age to have imaginary friends, especially when he has no on to play with him. The rest of the day was uneventful,  and as it was starting to get late, I put James to bed. I tucked him in, game him a kiss, and made sure to turn on his nightlight before I closed the door behind me. I was pretty tired myself so I decided to to go the bed not long after. I had a awful nightmare... It was dark. I was in some kind of rundown amusement park. I was scared, running through an endless field of empty tents, broken down rides, and abandoned game huts. The whole place had a horrible look to it. Everything is black and white, the prize stuffed animals all hung from noses in the game huts, all with sick grins stitched on their faces. It felt like the whole park was looking at me, even though there wasn't another living thing in sight. Then, suddenly, I began to hear music play. The sounds of Pop Goes the Weasel being played on the squeezebox echoes through the park, it was hypnotizing. I followed its time to the circus tent almost in the trance, unable to stop my legs moving forward. It was pitch black, the only light came from from a single spotlight shining on the center of the big top. As I walked toward the light the music slowed down, I founded myself singing along unable to stop. "All around the mulberry bush the
The monkey chased the Weasel
The monkey though it was all in fun...
The music stopped right before its climax, and suddenly the light shit on. They were blinding and all I could see was a small dark silhouette shuffling towards me. Then another one appeared, and move, my legs were frozen, all I could do was watch as the haunting figures drew nearer. As the children fire me apart and I faded away, all I could hear was laughter, horrible, awful, evil, laughter. I woke up the next morning in a cold sweat. After taking a few deep breathes I looked over and saw that a few of James' action figures were positsioned facing me on top of my nightstand. I sighed, James had probably woken up ealry and out these here. I gathered up the toys and made a way to James's room, however when i opened the door James was sounded asleep. I just shrugged and placed the toys back into his toy box, and headed out the living room. A little whole later James woke up and I made him his breakfast. He was quiet and seemed a bit groggy, perhaps he didn't sleep well either. I decided to ask him about the toys, "James honey, did you put the toys in mommy's room this morning?" His eyes shot up at me for a moment then quickly glanced back at his cereal. "Laughing Jack did it." I rolled my eyes and responded, "well you tell Laughing Jack to keep the toys in your room." James nodded and finished up his breakfast, then decided to go play out in the back yard. I went to relax in the living room and I must have dozed off, because I woke up a couple hours later. I was a bit worried. I needed to check on James. It had been over 2 hours and I hadn't seen him.i went stepped out into the backyard, but James wasn't there anymore. I was getting nervous so I called out to him. "JAMES! JAMES WHERE ARE YOU?" just then u heard a giggle coming from the front of the house. James was sitting on the sidewalk. I breathes a sigh a relief and walked over to him, " James how many times have I told you to stay in the backyard... James, what are you eating?" James looked up at me then reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of colorful hard candies. This made me very nervous. " James who gave you that candy?" James just stared at me not speaking. " JAMES!" I cried. Please, tell mommy where you got that candy." James hung his head down and said, " Laughing Jack gave it to me." My heart sunk, I knelt down to look him in the eyes. " James I've had enough of this Laughing Jack thing, HE IS NOT REAL! now this is a very serious situation and I need to know who gave you the candy!" I could see my son's eyes tearing up. " But mama, Laughing Jack DID gave me the candy." I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, James never lied to me but what he was telling me was impossible. I make him spit out the candy and I threw rest away. James appeared to be fine. Maybe I was just overreating. That night I put James to bed as usual, and decided to go to bed early myself. Suddenly, I was woken up by a loud bang coming from the kitchen. I sprang out the bed and hurried down the stairs. When I got to the kitchen I was horrified. Every thing on the counters had been thrown on the floor, and dead body of our dog was hanging from the light fixture. His stomach was cut open and stuffed with candy, the same type that James was eating earlier that day. My shock was quickly broken by a sharp scream coming from James's room followed by loud crashes. I quickly grabbed my knife from the drawer and moved up the stairs with speed thay only a mother whose child is in danger could have. I burst through the door and flicked the lights. Everything in the room was knocked over and tossed on the floor, my poor son in his bed crying and shaking with fear, a pool of urine staining the sheets. I scooped my child up and ran out the house and went next door to the neighbor's house, luckily they were still awake. They let me use the phone and called the police. It didn't take them ling to arrive, and I explained what had happened, they looked at me as if i was crazy. They searched the house,  but all they found was a dead dog and two trashed rooms. The officer told me that someone had probably gotten into the house and done this,  making a quick escape when they heard me coming up the stairs knew it wasn't true. All the doors were locked and none of the windows were open. Whatever was in my house didn't come from outside. The next day James stayed inside. I didn't want him to leave my sight
I went to the garage and ound his old baby monitor and set it up in his room. " if anything comes into his room tonight, I'm goinf to be able to hear it." I went to the kitchen and he added a largest knife from the drawer and put it on my nightstand. " imaginary friend or not, I'm not letting anything hurt my little boy." Soon enough, night came. I put James to bed. He was afraid, but i promised him thats I wasn't goinf to let anything happen to him. I tucked him him in, gave him a kiss, and turned on his nightlight. Befire closing the door, I whispered to him, " Goodnight James,  I love you." I tried to stay up as long as i could , but after a few hours I felt myself drifting off. My baby would be safe for the might and I need to sleep. Just as I lay my head on the pillow I heard a soft noise come from the baby monitor I had put on my nightstand. At first it sounded like interference, like that kind a radio would make. Then it turned into a soft moan. Was James asleep? Then I heard it... the laugh from my nightmare... that horrible laugh. I jumped out of the bed and grabbed the knife from under my pillow. I rushed over to James' room and creamed the door open. I tried the light switch but it wouldn't come on. I took a step in and I could feel the warm thick liquid on my feet. Suddenly James' nightlight came on and I could see the absolute horror laud out in from of me. James' body was nailed up on the wall, the nails piercing through his hands and feet. His chest was cut wide open and his organs hung down the floor. His eyes and tongue had been removed along with most of this teeth. I was disgusted, I could hardly believe this was my baby boy. Then I heard it again, the soft desperate moan. HAMES WAS STILL ALIVE! My baby, my poor baby, in so much pain barely clinging to life. I ran across the room and vomited on the floor, but my sickness was interrupted by a horrible crackle coming from behind me. I spun around while still wiping bile from my mouth, then out of the shadows emerged the friend responsible of all his horror, Laughing Jack. His ghost white skin and matted black hair hung doen to his shoulders. He had piercing white eyes surrounded by dark black rings. His twisted smile revealed a row of sharp jagged teeth, and his skin didn't look like skin at all, it was rubber or plastic. He wore a patchy, black and white clown outfit with striped sleeved and socks. His body itself was grotesque, his long arms hanging doen past his waist and the way he was posited made him look almost boneless, like a rag dog. He let out a sickening laugh as if to me me know he was pleased eith my reaction to his 'work'. He then turned around slowly in front of James and began to laugh even more at the horrific sight he has laid out. That was enough to shake me fromr my terror. "GET AWAY FROM HIM!" I snapped. I rushed at the monster raising my knife above my head, and stabbed down at him, but as soon as the knife passed right through him he disappeared in a cloud of black smoke. The knife passed right through and pierced James's still beating heart, splashing the warm blood on my face... "No...what have I done? My baby, I killed my baby!" I immediately fell yo my knees, and I could hear sirens in the distance growing louder... " my boy, my sweet baby boy... I promised mommy would protect you... but i failed...I'm sorry James...I'm so sorry." Police soon arrived to find me in front my son, still wielding the knife covered in my baby's blood. The trial was short. I was found not guilty by reason of insanity. I was placed in a mental home for the criminally insane, where I have been for the past 2 months. Its bit so bad here, the only reason I'm awake now is because someone is playing Pop Goes the Weasel outside my window. I'll talk to the orderlies about it in the morning...