She awoke terrified, as if something had startled her. But what? Had she heard something? She laid there paralyzed. Some white hot current had awakened every nerve in her body, and sapped every ounce of her strength.
Heavy darkness filled the room, and the dim red glow of the alarm clock did not cast enough light to see, even the surface of the nightstand on which it sat.
it was unnaturally quiet. She couldn't see the corner of the room down by the foot of her bed, and she did not have the will to turn her body look towards the door that was directly behind her. Would it have mattered? It was so black. She tried to listen. Then she became aware of her breathing. It was so loud. It was quivering. She tensed her body and tried to regulate the flow of her breath. She couldn't hear a thing. What had awakened her? Was it a nightmare?
It was so dark, unless she were looking directly at the clock, it was hard to tell whether her eyes were open or closed
