As often happens a few friends and I were out driving about one day. The day was going about like normal. We had sat around a friends house for a hour or so and then went to the park and Wal-Mart. Then for a change we decided to go to Carlos' house and visit him.
Carlos is a nice kid that I've known for a few years. He is about 3 foot 12 inches tall. He is also a very violent man. Although he is short and not very strong, he still likes to put up a fight. He's not a person that one can just step on and walk away. He will bite your spleen out with Big Pointy Teeth.
The day was going just like every other day. The sun was out in force, heating up the air around us. The wind was calm so the heat seemed to linger around. We pulled up in front of Carlos' house and got out of the car. We crossed the street and began to climb the steep steps up to his porch. Jeff was the first one up the steps.,p> Jeff is another person I've know for quite some time now. Jeff has M.D. so he's never had much in the way of muscles and never will have. We like him just the same though. He recently started working at Wal-Mart as a stock man, which is very funny to watch him push carts in from the lot. But on this day we weren't thinking about work. We were just thinking about what we could do to occupy our time. That's what had brought us to Carlos' house. We needed something to do.
The streets were empty when we arrived. As we went up the stairs I got the sense that everything was not as it seemed. The flowers that sat around the porch were smashed. They were never smashed. They were always kept looking at least something like normal flowers. Today, however, they looked as though they had been stomped on for hours.
This bad feeling I had is hard to explain. I thought perhaps it was because of the nervousness I get when going to someone's house that I'm not all that familiar with. The feelings I had kept me from going all the way to the top of the stairs. I stopped about two or three steps from the top and leaned back against the rail. The other friend that was with us went to the top of the stairs and then stepped off to the side and leaned back against the railing that ran all the way around the perimeter of the porch. Jeff was the only one who went all the way up to the door.
As Jeff knocked on the door something else struck me and strange. Usually Carlos' dog begins to bark immediately. This time though, there was no sound at all. I waited a few seconds but still no barking. I started to feel really uneasy about everything. By this time I was almost half way to the bottom of the steps. My other friend still leaned against his rail though, and Jeff remained standing in front of the door.
I think we all heard the next thing about the same time. At first it was hard to make out, but then it got louder. It sounded like somebody was tearing the house apart. The sound continued for nearly a minute growing louder and louder every second. At this time I was at the bottom of the stairs calling for my friends to join me. They were sure it was just Carlos having some fun with us. I wasn't so sure.
Jeff raised his hand to knock on the door one more time. Just before he hit the door the noise stopped. We all held our breaths for a little longer than normal that time. I think my friends were starting to get the same feeling I had. My friend that had been leaning against the rail was now standing on his own. He also inched closer to the steps, hoping nobody would notice him back away. Jeff started to turn to leave when he suddenly stopped.
"Wait guys I think I hear something." he said, "It sounds like foot steps. I think Carlos is coming."
Jeff turned back to face the door