A Quiet Vigiling Companion

I padded back inside through the side gate as evening arrived, seeking the quiet dusk of the living room. On the plush sofa cushion, a round purple Gengar doll sat propped against a throw pillow, its stitched grin frozen toward the television screen where dark, eerie shadows flickered in silence. You wondered about callers at the door, but the entrance remained shut and still. Instead, I hopped onto the seat and nudged a glass bowl of wrapped hard candies across the fabric until it rested between us. I settled beside the plush toy, pressing my flank against its soft felt side, and watched the monochrome phantoms drift across the screen.