Ghost story

A while was an understatement.

Checking my voicemails he's been calling every single week for three weeks now.

And that's why I'm here in the cold winter night, walking to his house in my hoodie and sweatpants. Fuck it was cold.

But it was a beautiful night, the lights of the suburban houses were not as plentiful as the downtown areas. But that was okay. It created this peaceful aura which was also kinda haunting.

I really regretted not leaving my room sooner, was this what I was missing out on?

I thought about random things until I reached his house, I hoped he was there and preferably alone. Unlike me who was a shut-in after I failed high school. Styles was the opposite, taking advantage of his parents wealth and apparent indifferent attitude to what he did, he would always be entertaining a variety of people, someone constantly coming in and out of his house. And of course the booze and drugs were plenty.

I occasionally came of course but I always felt separated from his cooler friends even though he insisted he was okay with me being there. One more person added to the list I needed to make up to.

I approached the thick wooden door, and I took a deep breath. He didn't answer the phone but I took a risk coming anyway cause fuck it! who cares if there were some people around. He called me everyday damn it.

I use the brass knocker to slam the door a few times, maybe a bit harder than needed but who cares?. Strangely also the lights were off too, so who knows?

And I waited….

And waited…

Huh maybe he isn't home?

That would be weird.

The door suddenly opened, and a tall guy about six foot appeared. A few inches shorter than me and he hated that. Lean but athletic, you could see he had muscle definition but it was more suitable for running or more ‘endurance’ activities. He had brown hair that fell over his face, green eyes that were always half open sensually(how did he do that?) and was always topless, of course.

“I must be fucking high, cause is this Mother-fucking Harry Markovic or am i dreaming?” He wiped his eyes dramatically a few times.

“H-hey… dude”, I fumbled out.

“Ahh it spoke to me, the ghost spoke to me!”

“Victoria!!!, get your black ass over here did we take the pills yet?!” He shouted over the top of his lungs.

Oh no…

Victoria…

A rich kid that is always hanging around here. She seemed to always find a reason to poke at me. Fuck!

“Hey man, you don't need to call her!, I was just-”

Before I could finish, I heard heavy stomps and the slap of sandals on bare feet as a shape peeked out from under styles' arm that was resting on the doorway.

I actually couldn't see her well in the darkness until she moved closer letting the moonlight hit her. And it hit her well.

It glinted off her dark chocolate skin in a way that made my mouth water. Her afro was bouncy as usual and shiny, no matter how drunk or high she got it was never out of place. I had to fight my eyes to not look at her body cause they would never leave.

Seeing me, she simply rolled her eyes, “Ohh, it's this nerd of yours, I thought he died or something”

Styles nodded, “Good point, what are you doing here Mr ghosty? Looking for someone to suck dry?”

Yeah… this wasn't going to be easy, Time to pull out the big guns.

I smirked looking at Styles, “That was super cringe you know?”

Victoria didn't like that. She folded her arms,”Should I get the taser?, fuck off”

He nodded again, “Yeah, I'm not really feeling like doing this”

He started closing the door. Why didn't that work? Damn he always laughed at my sarcasm. Was he actually hurt or just playing hard to get?

Ahhh fuck, “Fine, fine, I'll give you three”

The door stopped closing.

“Four”

fuck no.

“Three is what im offering”

“Five!”

“One!”

“Two and I get to pick any!”

“Deal!”

He left the door swinging and it widened, already climbing up the stairs, I knew I was supposed to follow. Victoria was still standing there flabbergasted. I didn't provoke her this time, I was on thin ice. I simply looked at her waiting for her to go first. She glared at me and stomped up. I followed behind making sure to look down as we made our way up.

She caught up to him and I could already hear them arguing about something. I sighed, feeling an itching for my blankets. I pushed it down, no more.

I walked past a few doors and entered the one with soft pulsing lights inside and an agitated voice.

Inside was a large room, A big part of it occupied by a large bed. There were cushions, clothes, and a variety of bongs, vapes and other ‘utensils’ scattered all over. They were arguing at the coffee table in the middle of the room. She had her hands on her hips while he was leaned over and fiddling with something almost unbothered by her.

“He's been ignoring you for months and now he's back like nothing happened?”

“Yep, he's chill like that, heh heh”

“Fuck you, he's a creep and you know we're supposed to be popping some. How are we supposed to do it with him here?, creeping over us while we are high”

“Just like the usual, Vic”

“Ohh?, can you assure he won't molest us?”

“Oh him? no way. He's a total freak, hehe”

Wow thanks for the vote of confidence dude.

I swear a vein bulged on her forehead, “Then what do you mean?!?!”

He glanced at me, those half lidded eyes boring into my soul, “That's cause Harry Houdini over here is taking some with us”

He stood up and walked over, he extended his hand towards me, ”We were just talking about how we were going to handle the extra, seems Yahweh answered us”

Was I doing this?

What were the consequences, Mom was going to be worried if I didn't come home.

Drugs were bad…

and I didn't finish my episode earlier

But…

Dad wasn't home…

And this was a new chapter in my life.

fuck it.

I picked it up and quickly tossed it into my mouth.

Styles froze, “Man why did you take all of it, have you even done this before?”

Victoria was frazzled, I had never seen her like that. I thought I would never forget it, A look of shock and respect was etched on her face.

Right now I wasn't focused on that, I was still reeling from Styles’ question, “Of course I've never done this before dude!, I only ever do these things with you!”

Ohhh man, how was I going to get home like this? Would I do something crazy at home alone with mom?

Styles stepped closer to me putting his hand on my shoulder, “Relax, you can stay over here. There are plenty of room plus you know you mom is cool”

I sighed, He was right there was no other choice. It was still my fault I got peer pressured into this.

“What do you guys do when you take these anyway?” I asked them.

They both turned to each other and smiled.

---

“Arianna you skank!, you knew Harold was mine. And you still laid your nasty ass hands on him”

“What are you talking about bit-”, A smack could be heard as Tiffany smacked the eyeliner off her rival.

Everyone jumped forward holding the two women back from murder.

I sighed in complete boredom, I was actually surprised. It was pretty hard to be bored at Styles' house but today was pretty dull.

“Is this really it guys?”, No one responded.

Victoria had her eyes glued to the screen, her body unmoving like a pretty statue. She wasn't complaining.

Neither was my friend who currently had his arms around her. He would occasionally use one to grab her thigh and squeeze while the other would dip into her shirt and play around inside.

Ughh, he rarely cared that anybody was in the same room, there were many a times where I had to leave. Because he seemed ready to just get to fucking, right in front of me!

Sickened, I decided to raid his fridge, anything was better than this. I walked off mumbling an excuse to the two who weren't paying attention.

Turning a few corners to get the upstairs kitchen.

At this point even after months of not visiting,I still knew his house like the back of my hand. Entering the kitchen and opening the fridge, I found it fully stocked, like always. So I leaned down to grab a bunch of beers left in their wrapper and a bunch of grapes.

“Man… Lupita must find it a full time job to keep this full” I remembered the mature maid that was always struggling to keep this place clean. Poor lady.

Despite not hearing anything a shadow loomed behind me, the person behind seemed to be made of ridiculous proportions. Large and with swollen arms. Was there still someone here? Lupita? nah she would speak to me.

I shrugged internally and grabbed my snacks at my own pace. There was always some random person here. I stood up to give them space to get the thing they wanted too.

But they weren't there anymore.

Oh well, maybe they got impatient and went to check the other kitchen. I took my loot and went to sit at the nearest couch. Opened up my video player and watched this series I pirated. I could afford the subscription but it sometimes felt nice to just be sneaky.

It was about this politician who had been betrayed and was now climbing his way to the top again, using any method to his disposal. I popped a grape into my mouth, used my side teeth to open the beer and got comfortable.

“Ahhh this was bliss!, I forgot how nice Styles’ house could be when they weren't too many people”

And I got to watching, enjoying myself, I quickly went through two more episodes and even more beers. I was getting into a rhythm.

In the outdoor balcony I could hear shuffling. Sounds like someone was rooting around. Hmmm… strange the cleaning lady shouldn't be here at these hours, I check the time, almost 1 am in the morning.

I decide to listen for a bit longer and the shuffling noises continue, my mouth starts to get dry. I stand up and shakily shout, “L-lupita!, is that you?!?”

The sounds stop.

I look at the balcony’s glass doors, Moonlight shines in through making all shadows show clearly through the grey curtains. I see the hunched form of what looks like her slowly walking towards the door.

Oh thank god!, she had scared me so much. Why is she here so late though?

I shrugged, I know the relationship between her and Styles' was quite informal so maybe he asked her to stay over. I flopped back onto the couch with a sigh of relief. Should I go back to watching?, let me wait. I probably have to catch up with her first.

I took another glance at Lupita’s form that slowly walked to the door. Now that I looked closer was she always that small and hunched?

I watched her as she slowly started elongating, limbs twisting and unravelling before my very eyes. It looked like a ball of yarn finally stretching to its true shape. It finally stopped when she or It, finally assumed the shape of a massive creature.

Tall, bulky enough to easily tear off limbs and horns that pointed straight up to the heavens.

What the hell?, did it kick in already?

I didn't feel fear though.

I saw the shadow of a creature that be at place in a bad 1990s horror movie but I was calm, excited even. Was it because I knew it was probably just the pill?

I don't know why I wasn't scared.

I don't know why I stood up.

I don't know why I walked to that balcony door fully intending to open it and let him inside.

“Nerd?!?, what are you doing there?”, I flinched at the sound of Victoria's voice. I almost growled at her.

“Were you trying to go out to the balcony?!” I turned to look at her, she had her hands on her hips. There were two bags of chips under her armpits. She threw them on the couch and glanced at the beer bottles left haphazardly.

“And you were drinking too?, ugh!” She stepped over to me and roughly grabbed my hand pulling me with her.

“I swear, I leave any of you for two seconds and you're already up to some stupid shit!” she grumbled as she led me away stomping up the stairs like usual.

I risked a glance back and I no longer saw him.

Aww man…

---

A bright light flashed right onto my eyes, ouch!

It stayed there before moving on to the other one before clicking off. Styles’ lanky form was standing before me, a stethoscope hanging around his neck and those flashlights doctors used was being held in his hand. I have no idea where he got those or why he has them.

“Yep, dilated pupils and slightly increased heart rate. Nothing too much above his usual though”

“You said he was about to go out to the balcony?”

Victoria looked quite confused to be honest, she was slow to reply. It was actually quite funny, I guess a lot of his “friends” don't know how smart he actually is.

“Uhh… yeah, and he looked quite wonky. Out of it”

He rubbed his chin, “Hmmm, well let's ask him before we jump to conclusions”

They both turned to me, staring. His lazy green eyes and her angry dark brown ones. So much pressure.

I raised my arms in a placating way, “Guys come on, let's calm down. I just had a few beers and I had just been watching a show for a while and I j-just got a bit stiff.”

“I was going to just look at the moon for a bit, I swear”

They didn't look fully convinced.

She threw up her hands, “You've been gone for months, you show up acting freaky and now you want us to clean your body off the fucking ground?”

“Vicky…”

“No fuck this guy Styles' I don't know how you tolerate his boohoo fucking act all the time!”

I was getting pissed, “What's your problem with me, Victoria, what did I ever do to you?!”

She quickly rounded up on me, a finger pointed to my face. “My problem with you?!”

“My prob-”

Styles got in the middle of us. “This is not the time, we all have 16 milligrams of mescaline pumping through our veins possibly affecting our cognitive functioning”

“This isn't the right time to be having this conversation”

“Harry, go to the downstairs bathroom and take a bath. A full on bath. Use the bubble wash in there, it smells nice. its lavender I think”

He walked over to Victoria, “And youuu, we are going to watch the next episode of Love continent. Is that okay with you?. Do you wanna see what happens to Arianna and Harold's relationship?’

She pouted but didn't disagree.

“I'm gonna go to the kitchen, grab those chips and we are gonna devour them. Does Madam Vicky like that?”

She crossed her arms but didn't protest.

Styles clapped his hands, “Awesome guys, for the next 12 hours let's avoid any bad vibes. It could determine if you enjoy this experience again or not”

“Now fuck off and separate!”

---

I rolled the hoodie off my body and threw it on the floor. The bathroom had already started to fog up from the hot water pouring in the tub. I took the opportunity to flex on the slowly blurring mirror.

There wasn't anything to admire. I was as lean as Styles but unlike him who had some muscles to show off, I was stick thin on my arms and a little round on my belly. Pathetic. I sighed and just decided to step away.

I switched the nozzle to cold water and waited for it to dilute the water to a comfortable heat. Satisfied, I jumped in and felt the warm water massage my limbs.

“Ahhh…” bathing was actually nice, I didn't do a lot of it now that I think about it. I was always in my room, so why bother?

“Does that mean I always smelt bad like mom said, Is that why Vicky doesn't like me?”

Vicky…

Victoria Oguevo, A foreign looking girl with a foreign sounding name. She wasn't ever bullied for it and in fact was fairly popular but… there was still a distance between her and the other girls. They never could fully understand her. At least that's what Styles told me one time when we were hanging out.

Well who cares. All I knew was that she was always a bitch!

Always hounding on me, “What are you doing here?. Don't look at me like that!.”

She even spat on me once!

But… today she was scary. Scary in a way mother was whenever I did something dangerous. Was she concerned about me?

The thought of Victoria being worried about me… Certainly riled me up.

I felt a certain body part of mine start rising up. Wow I'm shameless, just the thought of someone caring and I'm already like this. I blame this bath. What do they put in these bubble baths?

Vicky…

Was she a ‘Tsundere’?. Having feelings for me but hiding them all this time. Mhmm…

I Imagined her, laid up on my sheets. An angry glare on her face, fists clenched around my sheets but still ready and wet for me. Her legs spreading wider by the second. Those dark brown almost black eyes meeting mine, “Don't think I like you or anything, I'm just doing this to help you lose your virginity, creep!”

Fuck… maybe just one tug while I was in here.

Next to my ear, someone's hot breath tickled my nape. They were really close.

They smelled like blood, semen and strong wine.

“HAHAHA RUBBING YOUR LITTLE COCK TO YOUR IMAGINATION HUH?”

“YOU KNOW YOUR FRIEND, STYLES? IS PROBABLY FUCKING HER RIGHT?”

I screamed and jumped off the tub. I heard it. I swear I heard it. I grabbed my privates and looked around the bathroom, using my other hand to prevent myself from slipping.

There was no one!?

I grabbed my hair, wiped my face and squeezed my hands all in the same span of time. Anything to calm myself. My left ear still tickled where I felt his breath. Fuck I swear I didn't imagine it.

Maybe let me look at the mirror, ground myself. See something real.

I stepped closer to it…

He was there.

A mountain of muscle, hair and fury. He loomed behind me like a nightmare. His form, so massive that he even had to lean forward to prevent his horns from scraping the ceiling. And he smiled at me, teeth shiny white but bits and pieces of red stuck between them. His tongue danced around while a mad glint could be seen in his eyes.

I jumped out the window.

Who cares about clothes, shoes or dignity.

I was running for my life.