Black Raven | Wattys 2018

Chapter Thirteen

The best moments in life are those that happen unexpectedly; are those we don't plan. They happen when we stop thinking and we start enjoying.

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Suddenly, the window burst open. A strong wind came through it. The curtains started moving abruptly, and the lamp on my bedside table fell and broke down. The clock stopped at 2:47 a.m., and my laptop shut down. The room was completely dark and I could barely see. Trembling and scared, I stood up from the bed and peeked out the window. Like every night in Orange County, Southern California, it was dark outside. The sky was starless and there was barely any moonlight. Outside, the trees moved ferociously as the wind blew strongly, swooshing on its way. The sky thundered and a flash-yellow light illuminated it a second after. The light allowed me to see that there was someone standing out front the house; again looking up at my window. This time I didn't hide; instead, I rushed downstairs and opened the door. The clouds started to cry. I stepped outside into the pouring, rumbling sky, barefooted over the wet, green grass. My heart ached a little. Out front the house, under the crying clouds, was Dylan. With a straight face, he said, "You figured it out."

I stared at him confusedly. He was completely dry, while I, on the other hand, was soaked from head to toe. I wasn't sure of what was happening; of what I thought I knew; of what he was. I didn't know what to say. I looked at him with tears streaming down my face and said, "I don't understand what's happening. I don't get it. I don't know who you are or what you are. I don't even think you're real."

"Deep down you know. You are just refusing to believe any of it."-Dylan told me very calmly.

I didn't even know why I was crying. I held my head and said, "I'm going crazy. I'm seeing things that are not even real."

Dylan stepped closer and said, "You're not crazy. Everything you're seeing is completely real".

I snapped at him. "No, it's not!! My head made you up. You're not real; the kids down in the laundry room are not real!! This is all a huge, horrible nightmare; one that I can't wake up from."

He looked at me with sad eyes and said, "You did not make us up. You're not crazy. We are real, each and every one of us, but we are dead. Our bodies are rotting somewhere inside that house".

"Then why am I the only one that can see you? Why me?"-I asked angrily.

"Because you're dying and you're stuck in-between the living and the dead."-He answered very seriously.

"What?" I was appalled.

"Come on! You can feel it...and you've known it for a while now."-He said looking at me straight in the eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me the truth from the beginning?"-I asked.

"Because you wouldn't have believed me."-He answered straightforward. "First, when Lena moved into the house, we tried to reach her, but she couldn't see us. Then, the other kids moved in and we tried to make contact with them, but they couldn't see us either. Later, you and your siblings arrived at the house. We tried to make contact with you too, but we failed, like with the others. It wasn't until a couple months ago that I noticed you were starting to perceive our presence, and that's when I knew you'd be able to see us."

"What do you want from me?"-I asked.

"We need you to find our bodies, well, our skeletons. We're stuck here and we can't move on."

"How am I supposed to find your bodies?"

"I don't know... and I don't know where our bodies are either. I just know they are somewhere inside the house."-He responded.