We needed to get out of the dark basement. My younger sister,Lane, and I were stuck in here because my older brother, George had locked the basement door while we were getting the laundry from down here. Usually my mother would do the laundry but she was gone now, meaning dead. I still remember the last words she said to me. "Take care of your siblings and don't fight. Be strong and don't forget me." They were still fresh on my mind. I quickly got the clothes and put them in a basket. Lane was sobbing next to me. I patted her head and reassured her that we would get out of here. She nodded and swiped at her eyes. For a six year old, she was pretty brave. I held her hand and we both hauled the clothes in the basket up the creaky stairs. Lane flinched at each creak on the wooden boards until we reached the door. I already checked it when we came in, the door was locked. We even banged the door until Lane told me to stop. She was trembling and I realized that so was I. We've seen countless movies about what happened in the dark and our eyes kept playing tricks on us. I set the basket down and took out my phone. Surprisingly I had a signal and another surprise was I had some battery life remaining. I dialed my brother's phone. It rang for what felt like ages until my brother answered. "Hello?" I quickly said," I'll give you ten dollars to open the basement right now!"

"Make it twenty!" He negotiated.

"Fine, just hurry." I said in defeat. It would take me two Saturdays to regain the money that was gone so fast. I really hated my brother now. Then suddenly, the door slowly creaked and Lane held my hands even tighter. My brother let out a giggle and we ran out of the basement. I gave him the money and a quick punch to the arm before running to my room to lock the door. I hated my brother and even my mother for leaving me with him. I especially hated my father for not being around enough. Most of all, I hated the darkness because the darkness surrounds.