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GHOSTS FROM THE PAST

By Jeff Favor

    There was a high school girl standing on a doorstep; As she stood with her green messenger bag by her side she rang the doorbell of the suburban house on the side of the hill. Later, the girl reaches out her hand to a young boy playing with plastic dinosaurs on his bedroom floor. The girl made the young boy dinner, watched movies with him, and later tucked him into his race car shaped bed. The two became very attached and starting to grow a sibling-like bond. She would hold his hand as they walked through the park and he would hold onto a string with a red balloon at the other end. The boy seemed to change from six years old to ten years old overnight, or at least the girl thought. The boy became angry and began to yell with all of his ten year old might; The girl began to cry tears of absolute pain and sorrow. After that everything seemed to burst in flames. All of these memories were like photographs in a fire, disintegrating into nothing but ash in the flame of regret and suffering. The fire in his mind begins to spread, and Kevin wakes up from his nightmare.

“Just a bad dream,” he thought. “I just had another bad dream.” Kevin stood up in the back room of the coffee shop where he worked. He looked at his cellphone to check the time and noticed that he had overslept on his break by about ten minutes. His boss was  harsh about going over your break, so, as he should, Kevin prepared for the absolute worst of the worst. He stepped out of the back room and stretched his arms as he walked toward his manager. Hal, still washing coffee pots and pans, called out “You’re ten minutes late.” Kevin walked toward the register saying nothing. “You know, if you’re always late it makes you look really bad.” Hal made sure to put the emphasis on the “Really Bad” part. Kevin said nothing, biting his tongue in fear of saying something that would get him fired. Hal finished washing the last coffee pot and walked toward the register. “What if I needed extra help out here? What then?” “Yes, because this location at 4:00AM is so busy.” Kevin snapped, he could no longer bite his tongue. Hal took a step forward and pointed at the barista,”You’re out of line.” Kevin looked at the register as he said “And you’re an asshole.” Hal was quiet a moment before he spoke again. “Go home, Kevin.”

Out the door he walked and he lit a cigarette as he began his journey home. He inhaled the smoke as he began to think to himself. “These dreams are getting to me. That was the fifth one in the past week or so.” He walked past the diner that was open twenty-four hours a day and flicked the excess ash from his cigarette onto the ground. “Hal is probably going to give me hell next time I see him. I just won’t show up tomorrow, I guess.” Kevin waited to cross the street even though there was no one on the road. He had much to think about: his bad dreams, his current work situation, why he suddenly feels so guilty. Kevin, for the past couple of weeks or so, has felt a level of guilt that he’s never experienced before. What made it worse was the fact that he had no idea why he felt so horrible. He crossed the street and made his way to the park to use as a shortcut back to his apartment.

The ominous way the park’s trees sway in wind at night makes the park have an eerie atmosphere. The streetlights are either blown out or dim, leaving areas that rest in utter darkness. Kevin knew that the fastest way to his apartment would be to cut through the park. It still didn’t change his mind about how creepy the walk would be. He entered through the iron gates that never seem to be locked, and as he walked through them it seemed that the light outside the park began to dim, making Kevin believe that he was entering a void of pure darkness. He began to speed up on the path as he noticed the swings moving back in forth in the wind, as if lost children were playing on them on a visit from the underworld. He walked up the hill, cigarette in hand and smoking leaving his body, as he noticed something on the ground up ahead. It was something lying under what was probably the brightest streetlamp in the park. It was too big to be a dog and he was sure it couldn’t be a shadow from a faulty streetlamp. Kevin whispered under his breath as he began to run toward the lamp. “A body.”

He made it to the body in under two minutes. Out of breath Kevin began to look down and try and investigate. It was a woman, not older than nineteen, laying in a fetal position with her hands covering her face. “Oh my god,” Kevin whispered in fear of a killer that could possibly be nearby, waiting to kill again. The woman was in black jeans and a white blouse, her hair was dirty blonde and very messy. Kevin reached toward her right arm and raised it toward the light. Her skin was dirty and scarred, dried blood all along her forearm. Kevin looked at the face, his jaw dropped, and he fell backwards all at the same time. The body began to twitch, and soon The Ghost began to turn over so it’s stomach lay on the ground. Her arms helped push her up, her knees trembling as if she hadn’t walked in over a decade. Her back hung her body low, arms swaying in the wind. She growled out with a sinister tone,”Kevin…” His eyes widened as he began to crawl backwards. She stood up straight, arms reaching toward him. Her left eye was gone, what was there was an empty socket with a red light that glowed crimson. Her jaw was broken, it hung off centered. Her face was scratched and cut, the wounds infected and untreated. Kevin was terrified, all he could whimper was “You’re dead. You died a long time ago.” The Ghost took a step forward and let out another growl. “Kevin…” Kevin, able to pull himself together for a moment got up sprinted toward the other end of the park, never looking back.

He made it out of the park, and although he was out of breath, he kept running toward home. “That couldn’t be her. That’s impossible.” He ran and he kept running in fear of The Ghost haunting him again. Kevin was reminded of his bad dreams, and with that, he was reminded of the past.

“You must be Amy!” “Hello, Mrs. Thomas! It’s nice to meet you.” Amy walked through the front door, grabbing her green messenger bag. “How was the drive? I know you live on the other side of the hill.” “I enjoy the drive, I don’t mind it at all.” Mrs. Thomas walked to the stairs and called out for her son. “Kevin! Can you come down here?” There was no response, only silence. The mother sighed. “Hold on, he’s in his room.” “Mind if I follow?” “Not at all.” The two went up the stairs and turned down the hallway. Amy pushed open the door to find a six year old playing with dinosaurs on his bedroom floor. Mrs. Thomas walked toward her son, “Kevin, this is Amy. She’s going to be looking after you tonight.” The young boy looked up with wide eyes, saying nothing. Amy walked to him from the doorway and squatted on the ground; She reached her hand out and smiled her wonderful smile. “Hi, Kevin! I’m Amy. Wanna be friends?” The young boy stared at her for a moment in utter awe of what he saw. He had never seen anything, anyone, this beautiful before. He had never met her before, but he already trusted her. He smiled and shook her hand.

Kevin made it to his apartment complex. He took out his keys, his hands trembling, and unlocked the door. He ran toward the elevator, not looking back. He must’ve pressed the button at least twelve times before the elevator arrived on the lobby. He jumped in and pressed the button labeled 5, but when he looked out of the doors he saw The Ghost limping toward the elevator letting out the growl. “Kevin…” The doors closed as Kevin let out a scream of pure terror. Fifth floor, the doors open. He walked out of the elevator as the lights began to flicker. Whether The Ghost was near or whether the growl was still resonating terror within him, Kevin heard his named being called out in a low, sinister tone. He unlocked his door and entered quickly. He thought his home would ensure his safety.

“She isn’t real, Kevin. This isn’t happening.” He tried to pour himself something to drink, but he spilled the bourbon all over his counter. Frustrated, he threw his glass to the wall, shattering it instantly. With his head hung low he wandered out of the kitchen and sat on his couch. “She died almost fifteen years ago. It’s impossible for her to come back. There’s no way she can come back.”

“Amy, can I have a balloon?” “Alright, but you have to promise to hold on tight. If you don’t it will blow away.” “I promise to never let go.” Amy walked up to the ice cream man at the park and paid for the balloon. The sun was shining bright, it was a perfect day. She handed the balloon to the young boy, and he held on with all of his might. He reached for her hand and she gladly held his. The two walked from the park to the boy’s house and Amy began to prepare dinner. He ate dinner and watched a movie before he grew tired enough to fall asleep. Amy tucked him into his race car shaped bed before she kissed him on the forehead goodnight. She turned off the light in his room, left the door open slightly, and left the hallway light on to ward off any demons or monsters that may want to harm the young boy fast asleep.

Kevin kept splashing water on his face, convinced that if he did so that he’d wake up from this nightmare. He was shaking, he was terrified. “She died. This isn’t happening.” He looked in the mirror with tired eyes. He reached for his phone to check the time. 5:38AM. “This is just a bad dream, fall asleep and wake up perfectly fine. Perfectly safe.” He fell onto his bed and he rested his head on his pillow. His body sunk into the memory foam of the mattress, his head snuggled getting comfortable. Kevin began falling asleep. The thought of a ghost chasing him was no longer important because he knew that he was finally safe. As his mind began to settle he thought of a sentence that would comfort him into dreams. Four little words with meaning of powerful magnitude. Four words that many say, but few really mean. Before he fell asleep he thought told himself “I shouldn’t even care.” “Kevin…” Panic surged through his body. Kevin’s eyes became wider than they’ve ever been and he looked up to see The Ghost standing over him. He screamed and ran to the front door, dodging The Ghost’s grasp. He sprinted down the hall and made his way to the stairwell.

“I DON’T CARE!” “Kevin, you’re being unfair.” “I DON’T CARE.” Amy stood looking at the boy with his arms crossed. She sighed and turned around, facing the front door. “Kevin, stop this. You’re like my little brother. It’s been a rough day… Just go to bed.” The boy punched the wall as he shouted “YOU AREN’T EVEN MY FAMILY! YOU CAN’T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!” She couldn’t show him how much that statement hurt, she couldn’t let him see her cry. “Kevin, we’ve been friends for four years… I’ve looked after you for that long. We’re like family. I love you like a little brother, and I’ll always care about you.” Kevin shouted as loud as he could with his ten year old voice, “I DON’T LOVE YOU, I HATE YOU! YOU AREN’T MY FAMILY AND YOU AREN’T MY FRIEND! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!!!” Amy stood there saying nothing. Her heart was broken, her pain was too much. “Fine… Goodnight, Kevin.” She didn’t look back as she walked out the front door. She got in her car, closed the door, and began to sob. She felt broken. She felt hurt like she’d never been hurt before. After crying for a bit, she started her car and began to drive. She made her way out of the neighborhood and she started to drive down the massive hill. She was was going straight, the other car on the road wasn’t.

Up and up he ran until he hit the roof. Darkness on the horizon, he walked to the edge of the building. He looked out and saw a see of black. There was no light, and in that moment he felt no hope. He felt her presence, he knew she was there. Kevin started to cry as he began to whisper. “You were driving away from me that night I was such a brat. I don’t remember what we were arguing about, I don’t think it even matters, but it made you drive away an hour before my mom came home. You were driving down the hill when it happened… Drunk diver drove you off the road… You crashed into the ground. The car caught fire almost instantly. The drunk barely survived. You didn’t.” Kevin turned around to see The Ghost standing by the stairwell door. He took a couple of steps toward her. “I told myself that it wasn’t my fault. I told myself that I shouldn’t even care. But you’ve been at the back of my head for the past fifteen years, it’s been haunting me with guilt. If I was a better kid you would’ve stayed and you would’ve lived. I wouldn’t ‘t have lost my sister… You’d still be here… For years I told myself that it wasn’t my fault when I knew that it was. It was my fault that you died. It was my fault that you’re not here anymore…. I killed you…” The Ghost stepped toward him, arms reaching out. He stood there, ready to die, ready to pay for his mistake. She stood in front of him, and instead of tearing him to shreds, she embraced him. The Ghost gave him the longest hug he’s ever experienced and whispered in his ear; She sounded like the eighteen year old who tucked him in at night. “Kevin… It wasn’t your fault. You can’t blame yourself. It’s okay, I promise. Please, let go…” He closed his eyes, and when he opened them she was gone, and his guilt vanished forever.

Kevin looked up and noticed that the dark horizon was gone and that the sun was rising. Kevin felt calm and he felt at peace; he was no longer haunted by his past. The sun began to rise as he made his way to the stairwell. Before he closed the door he chuckled, even smiled, as he said under his breath “I think I’ll go to work today.”

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