Little Footsteps

Sister Marta:

Paula thought it was a blessing to see her friend Daiana at that moment, for some reason she believed that her friend gave her some peace of mind. On the other hand, Daiana was surprised by Paula's attitude that she kept repeating over and over again «The nun» «The nun» Daiana did not understand what was happening to Paula, so she took her house. Daiana's house was not far from there.

"No! No! Nowhere is safe. They will follow me," said the girl among sobs.

"I don't know what are you talking about Paula. Come on! You have to calm down. Do an effort," said her friend.

When they got home, Daiana gave her a concentrated and very sugary coffee.

"What is happening, Paula? Is it about your relatives?"

Paula shook her head. What could she say to her? Surely she would look at her with pity, as Mrs. Parker did.

"What nun are you talking about? There are only two nuns in the church: Sister Lucia and Sister Marta. Although Sister Marta does not leave much of the church because she can hardly walk."

"You would not believe me if I told you."

"Oh my God! Did the Parkers do something bad to you?"

"No, No."

"So?"

"It's about ..." Paula fell silent.

"Trust me!" Daiana said with a decisive tone. Then she took her by the shoulders and said in a kinder voice: "You have to trust me."

"It is not that I don't trust you, but this might seem crazy to you. I did not believe it at first. I always tried to be reasonable but now..."

There was a silence. Paula took a breath trying to calm down and then she continued:

"There is something wrong with that house," she concluded shuddering from a chill.

Her friend didn't understand her.

"Something like what?"

"Something bad... An evil spirit. At first I saw the child and I thought it was real but then, I discovered everything and I came to the conclusion that I was imagining everything, but now weird things are happening around me and I saw someone else... Another «thing» was with the boy, and I listen to them... I listen to them, Daiana. They whisper all the time, I hear them walking around the house. I'm scared!"

"They attacked me! And I ran away," she said between sobs. "And in the church, that nun... I know they follow me! I don't know what to do!"

"Paula concluded desperately."

There was a long silence, broken only by Paula's uncontrollable sobs.

Daiana was trying to assimilate and understand what her friend had just said. But there was no comfort for her, not that day. She was paralyzed with fear.

"But, you have to be rational, Paula. That's impossible. Sometimes fear makes us listen and see things that are not there. You must have noticed."

Of course she had noticed, Daiana didn't believe anything. For Paula, that was a catastrophe because she desperately needed her friend's support at the time. She had been wrong to blindly trust her and regretted it. Daiana was more rational than she had always thought.

"You may be right," the girl conceded without being very convinced of it. "But then how can you explain this?"

Paula lifted her blouse and then Daiana looked at the three scratches she had on her back. The wound was still there as a mark of terror.