Beware

Paulo Janirrio:

I stood outside the airport, waiting for a cab to arrive. I was really tired, who wouldn’t be after a long trip to Rome? I was here on a short business trip for just a day. I stood against the light pole to support my tired body and spotted an empty cab drive up to me. 

I handed the driver the address to the hotel I had booked a room in and relaxed against the soft leather seat. We drove through the dark and empty streets of the famous City and after a little while, the cab halted in front of a big hotel.

I paid the driver and stepped out, dragging my small luggage bag with me. I walked up to the small hotel reception and told the man my details. He handed me the keys and I went up to the third floor in the elevator. The hallway was dark and smelled of dust. I walked along the wall with doors on either sides and finally came to my room. 

No. 309

The room wasn't very huge, just consisted of a small bed, table, a refrigerator and a door that I assumed was the washroom. As I was really tired, I dropped my bag on the table and pulled out my nightwear. A pair of pajamas and a thin sleeveless vest.

I fell on the bed to my right, sighing in ultimate relief as the soft mattress soothed my sore back. I snuggled into the warm covers and felt myself drift off to a deep sleep. 

Somewhere in the middle of the night, I woke up at the sound of soft thumping, as if footsteps on the carpet. Then it stopped. I was too tired to investigate and my eyelids were too heavy and I snuggled back in to sleep.

But just before I was off to sleep, I felt the bed shift to my right. Warmness suddenly enveloped me and instantly, I knew something was wrong. I slowly opened my eyes and I gasped at the sight.

A woman was resting on my bed, facing the opposite side. I could see her back and long tangled brown hair. I didn't know what to do. I tried to scream but a slight choking sound came out. And then, the woman turned.

No. Just her head turned. Her body remained still, facing the opposite side and her head turned slowly. It turned complete 180 degrees, leaving me baffled. I felt nausea built inside of me at the sight of the crooked neck.

The woman had no skin. I could see slimy fresh meat, covered in blood that dripped on the white pillow cover. Her teeth were brown and her lips were pealed off and purple. She smiled at me and that’s when I began screaming.

Was I able to scream? No.

________________________

13 August 1992 - 3:15pm

The man in charge of the hotel stood outside room number 309. He had knocked many times but had received no answer. The checkout time had ended an hour ago and his customer hadn't returned the keys.

After quite a while, once he was sure nobody was going to answer, he went to his desk to grab the spare key of the hotel room. He inserted the key into the lock and swiftly opened the door. He walked inside slowly and screamed his lungs out at the sight.

The walls behind the bed and the sheets were splattered and dripping with blood. On the bed laid a body covered entirely in blood. But the strange thing was that the body was headless...

The head wasn’t sliced or chopped off, it was torn. Shreds of skin and muscles were visible. The man turned around and heaved out his breakfast on the floor with all his strength.

_____________________

Paulo Janirrio :

Do you know why I couldn't scream? Because the woman grabbed my throat. She gripped with such strength, I could feel the blood vessels in my eyes about to burst. She was slow and painful. After a few seconds, My eyes bursted and yet I couldn't scream. i prayed in my heart for this to end quickly. I heard the woman's happy cackle and finally my neck snapped and she ripped off my head.

▲▼▲▼▲▼▲▼▲

Now I, Paulo Janirrio, haunts everyone who thinks about me and looks up at the ceiling above.

No, Don't look above now dear. Because I am there on the ceiling, watching you right now, I see you are getting nervous but don’t make the mistake of looking up, or I will do to you, what she did to me.

Oh, and if you see a headless man walking on the ceiling on his feet, just know its me coming to get you.