Picked by La Llorona (Short Story) by Hanner Goenaga

 

When Anderson was 12 years old, his older sister moved to a house on the next street and left her room, which was the last one unoccupied. He used to sleep in the bedroom in the middle of the house, but he had grown curious and sometimes went to sleep there, in an old bed that was the only thing his sister had left behind. The room was dark, located next to the patio, and it was the furthest one from the house's front door; until one night, in the early morning hours, something extraordinary happened.

​He was sleeping in the darkness when, suddenly, he began to see the room as if his eyes were wide open, yet he was still asleep. In that state, he saw a woman entering the room. She had a black afro with matted hair, and her face was hidden behind it. She was wearing a white gown that seemed to glow. He thought it was his mother because that was what her pajamas looked like.

​The woman turned beside his bed and walked up to the headboard. She stood there next to him. Then, she lay down by his side, and he felt the mattress sink. Afterward, the ghost woman turned over and hovered just inches above him, propped up by her arms on either side of his body on the bed. He could feel her chest brushing against his, and at that moment, he woke up and cried out in distress, "Mommy!" But when he opened his eyes, the woman was no longer there. He could only see the darkness of the room everywhere. He writhed in bed and trembled with fear for the rest of the night.

​The next morning, he thought that what had appeared to him was La Llorona. But what terrified him the most was realizing that she hadn't uttered a single word or made any sound. She hadn't asked her typical question: "Where are my children?" This meant that she had already chosen him to be her next victim, to be taken to the river to have her way and fulfill her deadly purpose.