Starry Nights Tales

The Wilsons

I recall this incident from my days in America.I was a foreign exchange student.Like any other brown parents my parents used to call me all the time to check if I ate or slept enough.They cared a lot .Although I did not appreciate it as much as I do now, I understood their unconditional love.Like any other brown kid I just wanted to look cool & independent.

Moving from Bangladesh to USA seemed like a really good idea until it became incredibly awkward.The family that looked after me was the Millers.They made it very easy to go on.At first I felt awkward to ask anything from them & I felt like everyone was looking at me like I am an alien from another planet.I hardly ever found someone from my country & there were really a few people who looked like me.Was it lonely? Yes. Did it get better ? Also,Yes. I had two pairs of parents who cared for me.My dramatic parents were concerned 24/7.My mother always thought of the possibilities of me getting hurt.To her a papercut could have also killed me during my days in that foreign country.

After a few months, everything fell into place.I felt more alive while living in the states.I needed sometime to adapt to this completely new situation that I was in.I became an average exchange student who had already adapted into the norms & culture of the Americans.Sometimes I even talked the way they do.

After a few months living in the states, I met the Wilsons.They lived a few blocks away from the Millers.During Summer, one sunday my Amercian parents were having a garage sale where almost the entire neighborhood came.Our mom Ashley wanted to get rid of a lot of the old stuff that we no longer needed.Eric Wilson & his wife Sandra Wilson came to the sale which was surprising to my parents.The Wilsons were known to be detached from the society .They hardly ever got out.As I was sitting by the old furniture , Mrs Wilson came towards me.She put her hand on one of the coffee tables & said,"This will be a very nice table for my daughters to have their tea parties!" I said,"Indeed ! How many children do you have?" Her eyes sparkled for a second then they faded immediately.She paused & then replied,"I have twin daughters.Sarah & Melissa." I nodded with a smile.Switching the topic she said,"You must be Nahid! You are new here.Aren't you?" I replied,"Yes ! I am here to finish high school." She smiled and said,"Ashley & Matthew are lovely ! You have a nice family !" I said,"Yes ! They have been really helpful to me ." She looked at the coffee table for a few moments which seemed like an eternity to me.Then she looked at me & said,"I'll take it ! Can you have it sent to my house ,please? " I said,"Sure.I'll ask mom!" She smiled as she walked around to explore more things.

Mrs Wilson older than her actual age.She looked exhausted which she tried to hide.She had bags under her eyes which referred that she had not slept in weeks.Her hair was not brushed properly & her behavior seemed unfit.

To me Mrs Wilson  unusual.I asked Ashley about sending the table to their place.She asked me to take it to their house.Part of me refused to meet Mrs Wilson again but I could not say no to her. So, the next morning I took our truck out & put the coffee table on the cargo bed.I drove off to the Wilson's residence.

It took me 10 minutes to get to that area & 5 minutes to find their house.I knocked & Mrs Wilson opened the door.At first it seemed like that she had not quite recognized me.Then her eyes inquired me for a few seconds and she said,"Oh !Nahid ! Come on in !" I gave her an awkward smile & I said,"Thankyou ! Mrs. Wilson.Actually I'm here to drop off the table you bought yesterday." Mrs Wilson suddenly remembered something & said,"Yeah ! please take it inside.My daughters are very excited to have their tea parties."Then she paused &  after that she yelled towards the house,"Hey girls ! your table is here !" Nobody answered her.She looked distraught and told me,"They are very shy!" I took the table from the truck and went inside her house.After setting everything, I said,"So, this is it.It was nice meeting you.I should go now."She stopped me & said,"Stop ! You came all the way here. At least drink some soda.I wanted to leave but instead I said,"okay." 

Mrs Wilson took me inside her dining room.It was colder than usual.Beside that there was an odd smell which I could not decipher.She poured some soda to a glass & offered me.As I was sipping my soda I noticed two girls across the room.Mrs Wilson was talking to them.They did not move nor their eyes blinked.They looked like they were mummified as they had a dead stare.Seeing this I could not help it.Again Mrs Wilson assured me,"They are very shy."Something was very wrong.I became terrified as I slipped the glass from my hand & poured soda allover the table.Mrs Wilson looked at the two girls and said,"Sarah! You are being so rude to Nahid ! You should be nicer !He brought you your tea table." I could not help but wonder that she actually believed that they were still alive.The girl she was talking to  was dead silent.She  did not move a limb of her body.I was not prepared for this horrifying scenery at all.I had no plans to start my morning that way.For a few seconds I could not move & my thoughts became cluttered.I got up & said,"I'm sorry ! I remembered something ! Mom told me to get home as soon as possible !"Saying that I stormed out of the house & got on the truck.I did not look back not even for once. 

After I got home I went to the bathroom immediately. As I vomited tears came down to my cheeks.I stayed there for a while & I took a shower.I was not sure about what I had just seen.I took sometime to calm down.When I felt better I got out.Ashley was not at home as she had gone out to get some groceries.After she came home, she was surprised to see me in that condition. She looked surprised as she asked,"What's wrong?"I  replied,"I went to Wilsons today.Do you know about their daughters ?"Ashley looked concerned.She said,"Yes..They had two daughters...they drowned in a pool a few years ago.We went to the funereal." I looked at her and said,"Those girls were mummified and they still live in that house. I saw them with my own eyes!" Ashley was hesitant to believe me at first.She paused & asked me,"Do you know what you're talking about?" Tears came out of my eyes & I said,"I know what I saw, mom !Believe me ! Mrs Wilson still thinks that the girls are alive !" Ashley comforted me as she should have. A few moments later she went to call someone. 

It took me a few months to heal from that incident.I could not process it.I could not do anything  properly.That morning kept replaying in my head & I could not get over it so easily.I needed time.Eventually I got to know that Ashley had told the police.After a few months almost everyone knew about this.Some neighbors  came to light about how they experienced unusual activities happening in the Wilson residence.A carpenter named Matthew also contacted the police saying that he saw the girls when he was  upgrading the interior of their house.Gradually it came to our ears that the girls were embalmed by Mr Wilson because Mrs Wilson could not deal with the loss of their daughters.Mr Wilson kept this to himself.He did not tell anyone that Mrs Wilsons mental health was on the rocks.The Wilsons kept this a secret which is why they never socialized.Mrs Wilsons treated the bodies as though her daughters had been still alive.She cooked for them & made their beds every night.That was heartbreaking to even think about !The bodies were eventually buried as the Wilsons were confronted by the Police.I still  have no idea why she told me all that.Maybe she trusted me.A part of me still thinks that I did something wrong as I had broken her trust. 

After 5 years or so , I was living in Bangladesh.I was informed that the Wilsons disappeared.They left all their belongings in the house as they left with their car.Their car was found after a few months but they were nowhere to be found.To this day they are still missing.