And Who Knew?

Are You Okay?

I was running away from the Hotel. For a nice little recap, I had seen my wife, the P.E. teacher, have an affair with the math teacher. My best friend's brother just stole my girl. He was the counselor of this school. God, I could probably use a counselor myself. I don't remember anything after that, just that I tripped and fell. My head ran into a light pole and I was seeing stars.

"Fuck . . ." I cursed and rubbed my head. I got up and saw a crying girl sprawled out on the ground. Even after "completing the reception" I still couldn't go outside the hotel parking lot, causing me to bump into that pole. But the crying girl was new. Should I leave her, or should I talk to her? Would that make me look like some sort of pervert, or . . .?

"Uh, miss? Are you okay?" The girl completely ignored me and continued to wail. I tried tapping her shoulder.

My hand went right through her.

"What the . . .?" I tried tapping her head, and again, my hand went right through her. I literally got up and walked through her.  

"Holy shit, she's a ghost!" I stumbled away from her.  A car drove into the parking lot, and it parked next to mine. A woman got out and knocked at the door. The girl with gray hair gave a speech, and the woman sighed and walked back to her car.

"Uh, hey!" I tried grabbing the attention of the woman, but she acted like I didn't exist. I tried putting a hand on her shoulder, and my hand went through her. I watched as the old woman approached the younger one, only to be called crazy and have the car speed off.

This is fucking insane.

"Po, Po, Po, Po, Po, Po . . ."  I froze, and slowly turned around. the tall woman was right behind me, and she was smiling.

"Are you lost?" She said, tilting her head. I heard a crack and her neck bone popped out. I screeched and tried running away from her, only to be back in the parking lot again. Why can't I leave this place!? I screamed and stomped my foot on the ground.

"Katika" Someone softly called my name.

"Katika, come here" It was April's voice.

". . . April?" I turned around, but I couldn't see her anywhere.

"Katika, I'm over here" I blindly followed the sound. Even if I was mad at my wife, it was still comforting to hear her voice.
"Reike, no." This time, a different voice called out to me I didn't recognize it. And it was strange, since no one calls me by my last name.

"Reike, get back inside" You didn't have to tell me twice. I ran back inside and closed the door. Some things are better left off without knowing. The receptionist was standing behind the desk, calmly looking at the wall. I took a deep breath and sat on the recliner. I'm not doing this without a drink. I rested for a moment then dragged myself to the bar.

"Two whiskeys, please" I groaned. I didn't let him pour the shots and instead pointed at the bottles. He gave me two who bottles and I chugged them down like a sailor.

~

"As a VIP resident, I advise you that you are exceeding your alcohol limit. Please rest in bed directly afterwards." The grey haired girl came by again. I had chugged down four bottles at this point.

"Oh, come off it. I'm fine."

"As a VIP resident, I advise you that you are exceeding your alcohol limit. Please rest in bed directly afterwards." She repeated. I sighed. If I was going to be in this strange hotel, I might as well get used to how things work here. At least until I figure out how to get out. A man took place a seat away from me and asked for a tequila. It gets prepared, but in a blink, the guy disappears.

"Damn Hitch hikers" The man growls, and downs the tequila. 

"Excuse me, what is this place?" I tried asking as I glugged another drink.

"Pardon?" He gruffed, looking at me. I explained the situation briskly. He scoffed.

"You don't know what you got yourself into, kid. Haven't you heard about the old lady?"

"No?"

"Dumbass! The rule is to never accept the seventh card or question."

"Fuck you! Can't you just give me a long, detailed explanation of what's going on here?" The man sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Sit tight, this will be a long one" He said and grabbed two bottles for us.

"Urban legends get made up all the time, each with their own designated hotel. That old lady was stupidly conjured up by the elementary school kids. She used to be known as Kokurri San, until some popular kid had the bright idea to change her story. Someone fucked around with some witchcraft dumb shit and now she can move in and out of the human and Urban Legend spaces." I didn't actually expect him to spill like that. I wish I could think "what a nutcase" but in his defense, I asked for it. I sighed. What the hell did I get into here?

"Kokurri San? You mean the silly game where you ask questions and she replies?"

"Yeah, that one. Good for you, a dumbass can be taught. Kokurri San was originally about a little girl but someone changed her story into an old woman. No, it doesn't mean a huge mob thought the same thing. It could be a random amount of people thinking about Kokurri San for her form to change. Kind of like how it's a debate what wards off Kuchisake-onna, the slit mouthed woman. It really just depends." I'm going to blame his blabbering on him being drunk, because he downed another shot. And like I said, I asked for it. 

"The point is, never ask more than six questions, never take more than six cards. If you do either or, you're turned into a ghost. that's the legend."

"But that doesn't explain why I'm here."

"I'd worry about sleeping before you worry about that. I heard your room mate is Hachishakusama. good luck, fucker. She's a mysterious woman if I ever saw one. Doesn't talk much. Likes kids." I stayed silent, choosing to down another drink. I'll process this information tomorrow.