Decay In Her Bones

CHAPTER 15

In most aspects, one would not consider Albert's room as a place owned by someone who was just thirteen-years-old; it was full of stuff you would imagine a college student to possess. Just like the rest of the house, its walls were not painted, forming a grey cement cage around Albert's small bed. Despite its earthly texture, however, the entirety of the room looked neat. A brown cabinet stood like a sentinel at one corner of the room, staging a wide array of things related to personal hygiene expected from a teenage boy. There were stickers of characters from 'Dragonball-Z' covering the upper half of the cabinet's door, but they were arranged it such a way that they looked like the actual design that came along with it. To its left was a knee-high table with four metal feet where a small collection of books was displayed in a neat pile. This might seem curious to you, reader, but at such a young age, Bobby's little brother already found a deep affection towards Literature. Don't get me wrong, Bobby also was what people called a "bookworm" but it was notable that Albert read books ahead of his level. When he was in the sixth grade, he was able to finish reading 'The Lord of The Rings.'

Getting back to the description of Albert's little abode, there were nothing else fancy in that room aside from the things mentioned as well as a giant Caha de Oro looming at another corner opposite the door. Side by side with the eastern wall was his small bed which fitted his body length perfectly. A window the size of outstretched arms opened through that same wall which let the blinding light of the sunrise pass through every morning. Because of this, Albert had to ask Susan to put a curtain with a thick fabric to enable him to sleep until noon during weekends.

That very same Wednesday evening, Bobby went straight to Albert's room after he had finished his dinner. He arrived home from school at around eight and another half an hour was spent eating. When he entered the room, he found his brother seated at one side of the bed as if an invisible person was sleeping on the other side. With his legs folded straight towards his chest, a small red book laid open under his nose. He looked up when Bobby entered.

"Hey," Bobby said.

"Kuya."

Without asking permission, Bobby sat next to his brother on the other side of the bed. Meanwhile, Albert seemed to know why his brother had come. After he confessed this morning what he had been seeing, he knew that a round of inquisitions was inevitable. Since they had to go to school a while ago, now seemed like the opportunity Bobby was able to get for his questions.

"Hey," he repeated, "Tell me. What do you see here in our house?"

Albert snatched a yellow bookmark from atop one of his pillows and inserted it on the page where he was at. After that, he closed the book and laid it beside him. He stretched his legs and eyed his brother. Albert was quite silent for a little while. He licked his upper lip and stared at his feet. Then, he began: "The other day, you were at the terrace... I saw someone else. A girl. She was beside you. I was about to ask you but when you turned, she disappeared."

"Yes," Bobby wondered. "I remember that, but I was there all by myself." A sudden chill went through his spine. The memory of that moment came to him like a candle being lit up with a small tongue of fire coming to life. When he thought of the reason why he was there, he soon realized that it was just one of his usual stays in his favorite spot in the house. However, he knew very well that he was alone.

He was about to say something but stopped when Albert went on:

"Yesterday, I saw her again. When you came home last night from school. She came with you."

Bobby swore he would never ever mock any paranormal-related stuff in his life again. He was certain it all happened because of what he did last Sunday. When he called the Bloody Mary. It was as if some sort of a spectre had attached itself to him. Bobby shivered.