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Mr. Out-of-my-sight
"Out of my sight!" growled Mr. Out-of-my-sight, the grumpiest and most sullen old man in the lowly village of Caden.
Mr. Out-of-my-sight's real name has been forgotten since a long, long time ago. He was given this nickname because these were his favorite words.
"Out of my sight!" he would say to everyone he met on the street. The villagers disliked it and tried to avoid him as much as possible.
Though the villagers disliked him, they were not unkind. They paid friendly visits to the old man occasionally. However, each attempt had been rejected rather unkindly. Mr. Out-of-my-sight would tell them to get out of his sight. The villagers soon were discouraged and stopped visiting the old man as often as they used to.
One night, it rained heavily while Mr. Out-of-my-sight was getting ready for bed. Suddenly, there was a loud "Tock, tock, tock!" Someone was knocking on his door.
Mr. Out-of-my-sight was annoyed. How dare anyone disturb him at this time of the night? The grumpy old man swung the door open angrily, only to reveal an old ragged woman standing outside. She was drenched in the rain.
The grumpy old man started, "Out -," But the old woman cut him off.
"Please," she pleaded. "I am a visitor from another country and I need a place to shelter from the rain. Can I spend the night here or at least stay here until it stops raining?"
Mr. Out-of-my-sight's answer was no different from what he usually said. "Out of my sight!" he bellowed.
The old woman looked hurt. Then anger overcame her. "Alright, then I will," she replied. "And so will everyone else till you learn to be a kinder person. Good night!"
With that, she slammed the door and ran into the rain. The old man was puzzled. What a strange thing to say! Nevertheless, he soon forgot all about it and went to sleep.
The next morning, Mr. Out-of-my-sight sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes. But when he opened his eyes to look out the window, he was alarmed. Everything was pitch black. The old man was struck dumb for a few moments. Then, he laughed.
"It must be night time now," he reasoned with himself. "There is no moon so everything is dark. It will be morning soon."
Mr. Out-of-my-sight went back to sleep. But he did not sleep for long. He thought he heard a rooster crow. The old man sat up in bed.
Darkness again.
Mr. Out-of-my-sight froze with terror.
"It is only a dream," he tried to console himself. "When I wake up, all will be fine."
So, Mr. Out-of-my-sight went back to sleep. Some time later, he woke up.
"It must be morning now," he said and reluctantly opened his eyes.
All was dark.
The old man got the fright of his life. That happened one time too many.
"I'm dreaming. I must be!" He insisted. Not fully convinced, he pinched his arm. Still, he did not wake up.
Mr. Out-of-my-sight pinched and pinched. Soon, his whole arm was filled with bruises. Yet, his frightening dream did not end. This was because he was not dreaming. He was wide-awake.
(To be continued… hey, flip the page already!!!)
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