The Ghost Lives Rent Free

Chapter One - Invisible Visitor

CHAPTER ONE 

     “Are you sure you want to buy this place?” the middle-aged woman with creases on her forehead, looked at me warily. She gave an impression of a gentle, caring figure that would look after you like a mother to her child.

  “What’s wrong with the place?” I responded, eyes boring into her hazel eyes, indifferent. At first glance, the place looks habitable enough to live in, but upon further inspection, you could see the depreciation of the house.

  The walls’ paint coating had begun to wear off; spiderwebs were etched around like a Halloween decoration and dust accumulated the untouched furniture. It was a miracle, to the say the least, that electricity still flowed and water dripped onto the faucet despite the condition. 

  Frankly, this property is not something an individual would bother considering; however, I didn’t really mind. The creeping silence and isolation from everyone was a perk that had drawn me.

 “I’m not supposed to say this,” she leaned forward, a hand hovering near her mouth. In a soft mumble, she glanced sideways before uttering. “—but this place is haunted.”

 My eyebrows furrowed. “Haunted?”

 Instantly, she nodded. “The last occupants said that they saw a visage of a young pale lady, hovering over their mattress. That was ten years ago.”

  “As a resident of this village, I’d advice you to choose somewhere else,” she gasped, like the words she uttered stripped her lungs out of air. 

 My eyes shifted from her to the dark corners of the house, my mind playing tricks on me, making out random figures from the mixture of shadow and light. Just the first impression of this house was enough to scream haunted, however, if what she said was true, then getting a ghost buster was out of the equation.

 The only solution was to adapt and co-exist with the supernatural beings, I guess.

Seeing my unbothered expression, her shoulder drooped down. “Despite my warning, you’re still planning to take the place?”

I nod, putting down the sling bag that clung around my torso towards the vacant yet worn couch. “I’m not really a firm believer of ghosts. If perhaps they exist, then I’ll just have to accommodate them.” 

Her gaze lingered at me for a few moments with judgement, probably pondering to herself if I was unhinged or simply suicidal enough to accept this offer.

  Come on, let's be practical here. Who would pass this offer--- 2,000$ dollars to own this property--land and house included with additions such as : furnitures, bed, and every necessity you'd need in your home.

  In this current time where inflation is at its peak and wages that could barely get you by--what's scary about a ghost anyway? Sure they can haunt you for all they want, but I'm not foolish enough let some supernatural being sway me in declining this opportunity.

"Here's my number," Edna, who lived a few miles from here and close to the heart of the town, gave me a torn piece of paper with her number scribbled on it. "---call me if you need anything. You might need it."  (heavy emphasis on the last part.)

"Thank you very much for your help," I replied curtly, accepting the paper that's now curled in my palm.

   With a wave of her hand, she bid farewell and closed the wooden door before she left, earning a soft creak that echoed the room. The skies painted a murky shade of white, clouds hovering over the beam of the sun which caused the house to be dimmer than usual. It didn't help that the incandescent already attached here were dull that it would prove itself useless.

  I sighed, dreading with the thought of cleaning this place up, making it more decent that a human being can live in comfort. My body is already sore and slugglish from the brief packing to the plane ride and kilometers of truding by foot in finding house prospects. I needed a massage, but I'd rather get down to business than sleep over a mattress  that hasn't been touched for a decade--or worst case, could be infested with bed bugs.

  Pulling the sleeves of my polo, I strolled towards the kitchen, my eyes lighting up once it registered the broom casually leaning by the counter. I grabbed it and started sweeping, the unswept dust over the floor whirled around my nostrils and I instinctively sneezed.

"Geez, couldn't someone even bother sweeping this place before putting it for sale?" I grimaced, sweat trickling from my temple as I resumed my cleaning duties.

  To be fair, they probably didn't bother considering that : first, this place is "haunted" and second, no one would think of buying it--after hearing its eerie history.

  Though it did slightly perk my interest on how this place came to be and its first occupants--to why it's currently abandoned. I might catch up with Edna and ask her if she knew.

  After sweeping the living room and kitchen, I glanced at the three vacant rooms--one with a queen sized bed, the others with a single sized bed.

  Heading to the first room, the built-up smell made my nose flinch; it stinked of those unused clothes hidden in the closet and diarrhea induced fart, so I decided to rummage around my bag and found a pair of mask and gloves.

  "Remind me to put "housekeeping" in my résumé," I joked, picking up stray clothes and objects dropped by the floor. As I shoved them aside in a pile, a certain thing caught my attention.
 
    Picking it up with my index finger and thumb like a poised rich lady, my eyes scrunched with revolt upon recognizing it.  Instinctively, I flung it to the side, landing by the wall and dropping to the floor.

   "How old was that condom anyway?" I shuddered. "--that sperm might as well be a pre-teen now."

"They might've left it mid session," a female voice propped from behind me.

  I replied, rubbing my palms. "Tell me about it----"

  I halt mid-sentence, my mouth gaping frozen like a paused character in a game. The hairs on my skin pricked upwards and the room suddenly felt chilly, to the point that even with the closed windows, breeze still seeped in.

I lost track of time and didn't realize it was almost night time with the sun setting in view.

Behind me, someone is there, its presence made obviously known. Swallowing my fear and gathering the remains of my balls, I craned my head to the direction of the "thing."

   There she was, eyes beaming and mouth curved to a smile. With a soft gesture, she commented. "Yeah, I'm a ghost. I get that a lot."

    
The Ghost Lives Rent Free
(c) thegirlwithevilface
August 2, 2023