Guest UnfortuNATE

Chapter 5: The Apparition

Just a little while later and Ace heard their breathings even out, indicating her friends had finally fallen asleep.
Somehow, she couldn't sleep. Her thoughts keep going back to Diamond's dream.

"And then a black shadow emerged from the closet, clutching at you from behind." She remembered how her friend's body trembled at that.
"Ace, he grabbed you and tried to suck you in the closet if we haven't ran to you. It was so strong, it keeps on clawing on you and the harder we tug at you, the deeper he dug his sharp claws on your skin. You were dripping with blood, covering us three. The fear we felt that moment turned to anger when it started to cackle, like its teasing us because we can't save you from its clutches. His cackles turned into a menacing laughter, sending chills down our spines." Diamond gulped.
"We were begging you to fight back, Ace but you were just staring into nothingness. Your eyes darker than what it normally is but holds no emotion. Your body went limp, turning pale as if your blood was drained off you. Fuck, Ace, I've never seen you so helpless as that moment. We lost it when you suddenly turned at us with that creepy smile."
"That ain't Ace," Heart shook her head, the image of her friend terrifying them was something she won't and can't accept.
"I smiled like this?" They glared at Ace who tried to scare them, displaying her creepy smile but pouted when they just laughed at her.
"Creepy, huh? You look like an idiot smiling like that," Spade reached out to pinch her cheeks, savoring that rare moment when their normally intimidating friend started acting cute.
"Yeah, that wasn't Ace because when we tried to run out of the room in fear, we met her at the door looking at us with her familiar unbothered expression but eyes glinting with worry. And guess what?"
"What's with the suspense?" Heart grumbled in annoyance.
"Guess who's she with."
"Nate?"
"Yeah. With another person."
"Just tell us already."
"Well, I don't know her."
"Her?"
"Well, yes. She had her back against us and was hidden behind Nate. All I was able to see was her white dress and long hair tied in a ribbon."
Spade straightened up and shot Ace a glance but the latter had nothing but an unreadable expression on her face.
She hates how she had been friends with Ace but until now could not even read her and tell what's going on in her mind. She really wanted to know if they were thinking the same thing.
"In the next moment, the four of us found ourselves in a forest with a lake in it, we were rushing to jump in it but it suddenly turned dark and the water became black. We're already knee-deep in the water and Heart started to scream about something trying to pull her under. Diamond followed suit but it was Ace who disappeared right before our eyes, she was pulled under. We desperately tried to look for her but we could see nothing in the water. When we surfaced, we were surrounded with floating bodies. When we turned one over, it was Nate. And all the others were him. The nightmare ended when I heard Ace screaming behind us, calling my name."

She wasn't scared at all but she had a weird feeling about it that she can't shake off, her guts telling her there's something more to it than it seems.
She was bothered by the fact that she knew Nate as a man who never failed to keep his words. He had been a close acquaintance to her before, serving as her secretary when she was voted as the president of the highest organization during their uni days and she could testify that he never breaks a promise. If he said he'll be there, he will definitely show up. She also knew him as someone who was very strict with time; never a minute late on the agreed time especially when he was the one who set it himself. He despised the Filipino time and called it disrespectful.
"Well, people change..."
But she just can't imagine Nate being the opposite.
Or did something happened? Could be.
But, if something did happened, she also knew Nate would have sent them a message or called to have told them he can't make it.
But she remembered Heart telling them last night that he won't answer her calls, nor return it, not even responding to her text messages.
Millions of possibilities running through her mind, with the worst of him being in an accident or something.
"God forbid."
Or kidnapped?
"For fuck's sake!" She shut her eyes tight as she pressed a finger on her temple in an attempt to stop the pain as she felt her head start to ache.
"Nate, you're starting to sound mysterious."
Her eyes shot wide open as a thought suddenly popped in her mind.
She carefully tried to remove Dia's head on her chest but cussed to herself when Heart turned on her sleep, sprawling a leg on her as she was about to get up.
"Come on..."
She glanced at her phone on the table and silently wished she could be Lastika even just for that moment so she would be able to reach it without waking any of her friends up.
She waited for another couple of minutes before trying to remove Heart's leg on her praying that she won't wake the latter as she knew she was a light sleeper.
"Thank goodness."
She sighed with relief when she finally managed to pry herself off her clingy bestfriends and got out of bed. She quickly unlocked her phone and scrolled through her contacts. She smiled when she finally found what she is looking for.
"I thought I deleted your number. Hoping, you didn't changed it, though."
After she's done, she placed her phone back and crawled between Diamond and Spade, willing herself to sleep.

But before she could doze off, she heard their closet door creak. She thought she was just imagining things but a little later, she saw it open a little wider.
Fearing nothing, she quickly bolted out of their bed and opened the closet door, shining her phone's flashlight but found nothing unusual. She even rummaged through her friends' pyjamas but still, nothing.
"What now? You feel like playing?" She grumbled angrily at the darkness.
She turned to get back on their bed when she saw a faint glow of light outside their bedroom door.
"What the hell is that?"
Being the naturally curious being that she is, she decided to investigate. When she opened the door, she saw the light at the end of the hall. She was already nearing the top of the stairs yet she can't still make anything out of the glowing thing that has now moved downstairs.
She stared at it and it was like beckoning at her to follow her. She was being tranced on how the light dances in circles and lines, making her head swirl until she started to feel dizzy.
Before she could take any step further, she found herself being pinned down on the floor, fully waking her up as she hit her head hard on the floor.
"Cheska?"
She quickly sat up to look down at where she last saw the light but the bottom of the stairs is now pitch black.
"What the hell, Ace. You must be going crazy and now seeing things."
She then felt her dog nudge at her from behind. She reached out to pet Cheska as she started to whine and whimper taking the end of her hood between her teeth, trying to drag her back towards their room.
"Cheska, what just happened?"
But when she was about to get up, another glimmer of light started playing at the bottom of the stairs. She crawled towards it but was leapt upon by Cheska, pinning her on the floor again, growling. She's like scolding her and telling her to stay put before turning towards the light and barking softly as if not to wake the others but she can sense menace in it. She then growls angrily, threatening whatever is down there that it won't be afraid to jump on it if it won't leave them alone.
She watched as the light gradually died down along with Cheska's growls. She gave out a last warning yelp before turning back and nudging at her face, like its telling her to get up. She obeyed and stood up, finally walking back to their room.
"Cheska, what was that?"
Oh, if only dogs could speak.
But for now, all she can do is stand guard by her master's door, making sure to chase whatever that thing away is if it would rear its ugly head again.