House of Memories

House of Memories

She was sick of her life. What's a life worth living if all of it was spent seeing dead people? Miyah Matthews, a 23 year old with a spectacular gift, or curse. She's not really sure yet if it's a gift or a curse. It's a gift in the sense that she saw her grandmother a lot, a curse in the sense that not all spirits are kind. She saw a lot of the bad in the world through the ghostly eyes of the dead. Through the eyes of the man that killed her father. Her father didn't come around much, but his murderer did. It happened a few years ago. Miyah's father owned a 24 hour convenience store, one of his employee's got sick, and he had to fill the late shift. Someone came in to rob the place and her dad fought back. He ended up being shot and killed. The killer was sent to prison where he was sent to his death.

Back to the situation at hand. Miyah has had
enough of the dead. She wants to see the living, not the dead. She can't tell the difference anymore. She reminded herself this as she walked down the long driveway to Florence Hill Psychiatric Hospital. The hospital looked about as run down as it sounded. Vines of all shapes and sizes scaled the four story, square shaped building. The bushes and shrubs out front were overgrown. The grass was flooded with leaves from the previous Autumn. Weeds grew out from between the brick road under her feet. She got up to the steps below the large oak doors that towered above her. The doors were chained and padlocked shut.

"The doors have been locked for years," someone said from behind her. Startled, Miyah whipped around to face the stranger. "But the back doors are always open."

"Um, o-okay. Thank you," she replied.

Miyah brushed off the strange encounter and walked around to the back of the building. She saw elderly people sitting around a large garden. She thought it was strange how well the back of the building was kept. The garden was lush and colorful. A younger woman was weeding the garden and digging up what looked like potatoes. The grass was perfectly mowed. There was another building in the back, a barn. It was perfectly painted brown. An older man sat by the open barn doors smoking with an old dog sitting at his feet.

"Can I help you," a young woman in vintage looking nurse clothing asked.

"I need to check myself in," Miyah replied, nervously. She was intimidated by how normal these people seemed.

"Of course, follow me," the nurse said.

She led Miyah up the back stairs into the hospital. They walked down a long hallway to the front of the building. Miyah noticed the doors that were locked shut. The main office was to her left, they went inside. A 60 year old or so man sat at a desk with his glasses on the tip of his nose, he was doing paperwork.

"Doctor Henry, someone new is here to see you," the nurse said. The man looked up and smiled. He took the glasses from his face and ushered for me to sit down.

"I'm Doctor Jason Henry, it's nice to meet you. What's your name? How can I help," he asked.

"My name is Miyah Matthews, I see dead people. It doesn't ever stop. I just want some help," Miyah replied. He looked concerned.

"You see dead people," he asked. He looked at the nurse standing behind her and shrugged his shoulders. Miyah was concerned. She nodded. "Can you tell the difference between the living and the dead," he asked.

"No sir. It's driving me insane," Miyah replied, her voice straining.

"Well Ms Matthews, you've come to the right place. We can help you here," Doctor Henry assured her. She smiled. Soon it'd be over.

Miyah was acquainted in a bedroom with a roommate she had yet to meet. She was unpacking her small bag of clothing when the room door opened and shut.