The Portal

Chapter One: A Fascinating Discovery

The morning sun peeked in around the ugly green curtains, disturbing Claire's sleep.

Annoyed, she turned over, burying her head in the pillow, hoping to get just a few more minutes of much needed rest. Her dreams, most nights, were plagued with dark images, bad memories. Not last night, though. It was her first good night's sleep in a long time.

With a sigh, she gave up and slowly rose to her feet. Another long day ahead. She didn't look forward to going to work today. She hated her job at McDonald's. She felt it was somehow beneath her. Despite her poor work history, she really was very intelligent and talented. Couldn't prove that on a job resume though.

Her boyfriend already long gone to work, Claire enjoyed the peacefulness of the morning. A bowl of cereal and a cup of coffee helped her to feel more alert. As ready to face another day as she'd ever be.

She glanced at the microwave clock. 6:00. Four hours to kill until work. She thought about going to work out at Curves, but decided to sit down at the computer and do some writing, instead. Logging on to her favorite site, Writing.Com, she checked her email, looking forward to seeing how people liked her short stories.

Claire opened another browser window so she could make her moves at https://www.itsyourturn.com while she read and responded to her emails. Yawning, she rose and sauntered into the kitchen in search of another cup of Maxwell House.

Kitty, her 14-year-old tan, long-haired feline, meowed at her softly as he made his way slowly to his food dish.

"Good Kitty," Claire smiled as she bent down to pet the loveable cat. She was so glad they'd found him through the classified in the Winona Daily News. He was very cuddly and loveable and still in excellent health for his age.

Going back to the computer, Claire sat and stared thoughtfully at the screen. She felt bored and restless this morning. Not sure what she wanted to do next, she set her coffee down and leaned back in her dark brown, executive-style high-back chair. It was very comfortable and she loved that her boyfriend, Scott, had been willing to pay almost 80 dollars for it, just for her. She smiled to herself. With everything that had gone for her in her life, at least she had a good man, a loving man. Much better than her last boyfriend.

She immediately felt a pang of guilt. She really shouldn't think ill of the dead. Joe had had some good qualities, they just couldn't get along, and he had a bad habit of breaking promises and forgetting important things, like Valentine's Day. Her mind wandered, thinking about the past and all the horrible things she had gone through. She knew she should count her blessings, but she couldn't help but wonder, what if?

A loud bang from the hallway startled her out of her reverie. She jumped out of the chair and ran to the apartment door. Flinging it open, she bolted into the hallway.

"What the fuck?" she gasped. There was a HUGE hole in the wall. She cautiously approached and looked into it. She should have seen into her neighbor's bedroom, that's where the hole was located after all. But instead, she saw nothing but blackness. It was as if no light could exist within the space the hole occupied.

Curiosity getting the best of her, she poked her head into the hole. Immediately, a feeling of dizziness and nausea overcame her. She backed up, quickly.

What on earth was going on around here?