Smiling Ghosts

2

[~~)George(~~]

Ranboo, Florida was.. quite a place. I didn't have enough time to look around, but I made a mental note to later. The house was much larger in person, all I could do was stare. How could this place cost so little?

I saw the door wide open, and so I thought it was either the past owners or a realtor. I grabbed my sad amount of luggage and hauled it to the house. As I stepped in, the house was a bit dusty. I coughed and had to wait for my eyes to adjust to the burning darkness.

I looked up, and there was this brilliant chandellier light. I stood there, mouth agape. I looked like a dumbstruck idiot, but I just couldn't help it. I was interrupted by someone clearing their throat. I tore my eyes off of the magnificent light. My eyes caught a figure in front of me.

A small woman with faded pink hair and pale skin. "Hello!" A thick Welsh accent spilled out of the woman's colored lips. "You must be George Davidson?" I nodded shyly and shook her greeting hand. "I am! Are you the owner of this place?"

"Well I was! Until you bought it! Welcome to Ranboo Florida! My name's Sally!"

I smiled and nodded, "How come you're selling it?"

"My husband and I are much too busy to take care of this old place. Of course, as you saw, we could have never gotten permanent residents." She said with a frown. "Our children keeps us on our toes!"

"Well, I am determind to keep this house!"

"Yay!"

Two small boys came barreling in, "Tommy! I'm gonna get you!" A brown haired boy called out. The blonde's laughter filled the air.

"Shall we duel then?"

They then started fighting with their wooden sticks. "Dear Tubbo, you will never match my skills!" Sally smiled at them, "Tommy! Tubbo! You better not be making a mess of this place! Mr. Davidson, these are my two boys. Tommy and Tubbo."

The outspoken blonde puffed up his chest, "I'm Tommy! And this is my twin brother Tubbo! Are you new here? Dad says no one new comes in! Only once in awhile."

That was peculiar. Why would someone's father say that?

"Honey! Who's car is that?" A British voice called out. Then, from around the corner, a tall man with a red beanie, skinny blue ripped jeans, and a yellow sweater emerged.

"Oh! You must be the new renter! I see you have met Sally, Tommy, and Tubbo. I'm Sally's husband. Wilbur Soot!"

I took his hand and shook it gently, "George Davidson! Nice to see a fellow Brit!"

"Indeed! I'm from Brighton!"

My mouth dropped slightly, "So was I!"

"Wait, weren't you the boy that used to recite books in the middle of English class?"

I laughed in embarrasment, "Yep. That was me! I didn't recognize you! Well, you were always singing in your free time under the Lman tree."

"Yeah, yeah! You accompanied me as well! It's great to see you again man! What brings you to Florida? Especially in a town like this?"

I sighed, "I'm not sure. I got bored with the same routine and wanted more. Hence I only had online friends that lived hundreds of miles away from me."

"I get that! Well, my father is going to be in town to watch my boys tonight. It's mine and Sally i's anniversary!"

"Congratulations!"

"Thank you! Well, here are the papers for the house. All you need to to is agree to the terms of agreement and I'll get this to City Hall early morning."

I unfolded the white papers.

TERMS OF AGREEMENT-

no summoning things
do not go in the basement after 5 PM BHJ time
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES yell the word 'DREAM' 7 times
Turn off ALL electronics at 4:04 am AND pm

"Wilbur, why are these terms... so... different?"

"You know this house is rumored to be haunted. If you want to live here George, you must be smart about it."

These agreements are so stupid. Sighing, I wrote my signature at the bottom in blue ink. "Is this all?"

"Mmm I think so... Wait, are you gay George?"

My heart seemed to drop cold. My mind fogged and panic washed over my senses, "Yes, why?"

"I just had a feeling." He nodded and collected his small family. I looked around the house. "Home sweet home I guess."

I collected my luggage from my car and threw it into my bedroom. I looked around the dusty area, I opened the window and opened the drapes. Well, I did struggle with the window. I don't think anyone has been up here as frequently as the other places. My eyes scanned around the sunlit area. I noticed a tall mirror that was dirty.

I grabbed my sweatshirt sleeve and wiped across the cool surface. My eyes meet with a yellow pair. I stayed still for a moment, he did as well. His features were soft and his lips were full. His dirty blonde hair danced across his forehead. His skin was pale and almost looked cold.

The sparkle in his eyes seemed dull. The striking features were realistic. He rested his hand on mine, where the glass was our only barrier. Or so I thought. For a single moment, I could have sworn I felt his warm hand touch mine. I could have sworn I felt his fingers slightly cross mine. A small smile graced his features.

My heart froze, and then the sweating panic struck. My heart restarting. I felt my voice and I screamed loudly. I backed away and ran down the stairs. My foot tripped on the end rail and I fell. My head struck the side of the rail and I landed on my arm. Before the pain could bleed in, everything faded into nothing.