I’m what you would call a “couch potato”, I like to sit down on my sofa with a beer and just stare at the television for hours. I only get up whenever its absolutely necessary and that usually consists of me using the bathroom or making myself a snack to eat just to return back to the couch and in front of my T.V. I was married once and my wife left me because of my sloth like behavior, she said I had no drive or sense of direction and that she wouldn’t waste anymore time on a “bum” like me, well at least I think that’s what she said; I was too busy watching some infomercial on how to in their words “slice and dice to perfection” the only thing I do remember was the door slamming shut with ferocity. Honestly I didn’t care, my world was simple, go to work and put in my eight hours and then come home and watch the world through my magical screen. There was always something on, the news that outraged me, the movie that made my eyes teary or a good ol’ fashion comedy to make my gut hurt from excessive laughing. It was a world that I loved and had no plans on changing, well that was until I saw the ‘blank spot’.
It was in the upper right corner of my television set, it was small and not noticeable until I saw it during an infomercial, the blank spot skewed one of the numbers when it came to the price of the cheap item.
“What the heck is that?” I asked out loud to myself.
I stood up and walked closer to the television, at first I thought it was just a smudge, so I licked my fingers and aggressively tried to wipe of the spot but to my disappointment it didn’t clear.
“Great its busted” I said with annoyance.
I returned to my couch irritated but tried my best not to pay it any mind.
The next day returning home from work I did the usual, went to the fridge pulled out a nice cold beer and headed towards my sofa, I picked up the remote then turned on my television and to my dread the ‘blank spot’ had spread. It now completely engulfed the top right corner of my T.V. By this point my frustration caused me to do something I thought would never do and that is I turned off the television and headed to bed early.
On my way home the next day I stopped by the electronic store and got myself a brand new T.V. it was marvelous; 80 inches, the thing would put me in debt for the next few months but the idea of me sitting on my couch and watching this beauty for hours caused my skin to curl up, me getting goosebumps at the thought. As soon as I got home I quickly set up the T.V. putting it on my stand and plugging it in. I sat down and with the new remote pointed it towards the black screen and clicked. To my horror the ‘blank spot’ was still there, but now it covered half the screen.
“Impossible” I yelped out loud.
I stood silent for several minutes trying to make sense of the situation, but I had nothing, this was beyond coincidence I knew this had to be intentional some how; perhaps my ex-wife was hacking into my television set.
“Is that even a thing” I asked myself.
In the moment I felt overwhelmed and just decided to sit down and stare at half the screen, after all, there was still 40 inches to watch. I doubled the amount of beers I usually consumed hoping the buzz would offset the frustration I felt and it somehow did. I sat on my couch pounding beer after beer as I stared on with wonderment; because right before my eyes I saw the spot growing. I laughed and cried; all the emotions the television usually made me feel were now hitting me all at once as if I was high on some lucid drug, by the time I passed out from the 18 beers I consumed the T.V. screen was completely engulfed with the ‘blank spot’.
I woke up once the sun seeped in through the slits of my old dusty blinds, the light hitting my face like a bag of bricks, I had the hugest headache and I could feel the room spinning; I hadn’t drank that much in years.
“What time is it?” I asked my addled self, me unaware even what day it was.
“Shut! I got work”
I quickly got up from my couch, kicking the empty beer bottles out of my way as I stormed toward the bathroom to wash up. I left with such haste I didn’t bother to look at the T.V. it wasn’t until I was driving to work did I wonder if the television was completely broken.
Coming home that night I was hopeful that the T.V. would some how be magically repaired, it could happen I thought; stranger things have occurred. So as I pulled in to my driveway I proceeded with my usual routine, I went to the refrigerator and pulled out a beer, headed to my sofa and sat down, I then cradled the remote in my hand but before I pointed it towards the television I was met with the most disturbing sight. The ‘blank spot’ had now grown beyond the television, it now covered my entire wall in the living room. My mouth gaped open with bewilderment, me not understanding what I was witnessing. I stood up and cautiously approached the mysterious ‘blank spot’ that now covered half of my living room and with apprehension I held up my hand and carefully touched it.
The ‘thing’ clamped itself around my hand and began to suck me in, it making a horrid slurping sound as I struggled and squirmed trying to free myself, I screamed at it to let me go. I was still holding my beer in my other free hand and I throw the bottle towards the ‘thing’, I’m not too sure if it was the impact or perhaps the alcohol but the strange ‘spot’ released it’s grip. I fell to the floor with a heavy thump, caressing my now bloody hand, and as I looked up to the wall I saw that the ‘thing’ was getting even bigger; it climbing up the ceiling as if it were some nightmarish spider. I ran out the doors with swiftness and got into my car, I just started to drive, I didn’t know where I was going I just knew I didn’t want to be there when the ‘blank spot’ finally consumed my house. I’m not too sure what the hell that thing was, but one thing I do know it’s going to keep growing and devouring. How big I couldn’t say, for all I know it might have already consumed my entire neighborhood, you see I wouldn’t know because nowadays I no longer watch T.V.