Falling in Love with a Ghost

I was walking down a long hallway in an old house, every corner I turned it became a little more narrow, it felt as if I was somehow walking in circles. Then I stumbled upon a small bedroom with a cute little table that seemed to be set up for teatime; the teapot was hot and the pastries looked freshly made, but no one seemed to be around. I sat down to enjoy a cup of tea with a couple of cookies when I felt a heavy, cold hand grab my shoulder followed by a deep voice that said "excuse me, do I know you?". I let out a fearful gasp dropping the small plate of cookies for I didn't know anyone was home and had not heard anyone walk in, with a slight turn of my head I said, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to barge into your home, I just figured no one was here so I didn't want the tea and pastries to go to waste". As I got up to leave, the man walked over to the other side of the table and sat down, he quietly said, "well, now that we're both here, have a seat". There was something off about this man but I couldn't quite make out what it was, he had pale skin and somber-looking eyes, but he asked me to stay so I did. We sat there for hours talking about his life as if he had lived for several years, the tea never seemed to run out and the stories flowed as much as the tea did; he didn't look to be much older than I but was much more mature than any man I knew. He spoke of events that had occurred in the olden days which seemed quite particular to me, but I never questioned him because I was enjoying his company.

As the time passed, the day didn’t seem to grow any darker and I felt I had been sitting with this man for many hours. I took a glance at the clock on the wall but it wasn't telling time. I asked the man if he knew what time it was since I had to get back home to make dinner, he pulled out a pocket watch that was cracked and dented, he said "oh, it seems to be past my supper time". I mentioned that I was going to be on my way home and invited him to dinner, but he declined followed by saying that he "couldn't go out", so I said my goodbyes and went on my way. Strangely enough, as soon as I stepped out of the house, it was pitch black and not a speck of light in sight, I pondered on how I got there but rushed home to make dinner. As I was home cooking, I couldn't help but wonder who this curious man was and how I ended up there, maybe I had slept walked and stumbled upon this place. "Was I taking a nap when I wandered off?" I asked myself. So, I sat down at my dining table and ate my chicken dinner, then went over to the living room to watch some TV. It startled me when I heard a loud noise outside my house followed by a thundering knock "BOOM... BOOM... BOOM!" I was in such a panic I couldn't get up to check the peephole, then they knocked again, every time getting louder and louder. I finally yelled "who is it?" frightened awaiting their response. "It’s your neighbor, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you..." he said, "but you forgot your red coat on the tea table chair". Glancing over to my coat rack, I noticed that my coat was hanging there, so I responded "it must be someone else's, mine is right here. Thank you". A long silent chilling pause came after and then footsteps going down the few stairs on my porch.

I finally was able to bring myself out of the fear I felt, went up to my bedroom, and laid down. As I laid there in my covers, I couldn't get the thought out of my mind when he said, "you forgot your red coat on the chair", I couldn't stop thinking of how frightened I was that he had walked over to my house when he said that he couldn't go out. After a few minutes of thinking, I eventually fell asleep. Before I was able to wake myself up to go get some water in the kitchen in the middle of the night, I heard creaking footsteps in the bedroom next to mine, knowing that I live on my own, I was worried that this man or someone else had broken in; with my umbrella tightly between my hands I walked up to the door, quietly turned the knob, and quickly swung the door open to scare the potential intruder. But no one was there. There was no indication that it was a break-in, they didn't open the window to jump out, nor were there any signs of anyone when I turned on the lights. Then I thought, "maybe I'm hearing things from when the man came over", still with the thought in the back of my mind of how strange the visit was. So, I closed the bedroom door and went down to the kitchen for a glass of water, much to my surprise, there was a full glass of water sitting on the countertop. "There is no way I slept walked to the kitchen and served myself a glass of water!" I said in despair. Without answers to the weird things going on, I called the police and reported a potential intruder, the dispatch advised the police were on their way. I waited impatiently by the front window, when they finally arrived. The police took a full report of the events from the night before and tonight, they informed me they would further investigate and get back to me. Days went by and never heard back, I called the local police station and kept being told they were still looking into it.

In a ditch effort to get answers, I went back to the old house to see if I could speak to the man that I had tea with. I knocked on the door, there was no answer, but the door swung open as if someone had left it open, so I let myself in. Walking past the doorway, I hear a deep voice say "finally, you came back for tea. What a delight!" followed by a sinister laugh. I yelled from where I was standing, "why did you break into my home, what did you want?", he responded in a sarcastic tone, "how can I break into a home when it is not locked and when I was invited in?" Not knowing how to answer because I couldn't remember letting him in, I stood there in silence. While he was awaiting my response, he said "you seem to be quite flustered, why not come join me for a cup of tea?" I walked up the stairs that led me to where he was, he grabbed my hand and guided me to the small bedroom. This time, the bedroom was set up differently, instead of a tea table, there was a large king-sized bed in the middle of the room, with thick ropes tied to each leg of the bed... I didn't know what to make of it, so I politely stated "I don't feel comfortable being in this room with you. What happened to the small table and tea set?" He just smiled and turned around to grab something from behind the bedframe... I couldn't manage to decipher what it was but I was so scared that I couldn't even move. He turned back towards me with his hand behind him and asked me to close my eyes. Frightened with the thought of what he was about to give me, I said no and tried to run out of the room... the door shut in my face all by itself!

There was a dark presence in this room, I can feel the cold chilled air on the back of my neck, the feeling of an evil force that would hold you down in your place not allowing you to move an inch; was it fear or was it a force beyond this world that wouldn't let me do anything? As I stood there motionless, he came right behind me and took a wiff of my hair. He sniffed my hair! Who does that?! Something about his presence was eerie yet I couldn't get myself to walk away, I wanted to know more about him. I gave in. I sat on the edge of the bed and waited for his next move. He put his left hand on the inside of my right thigh, grabbing it softly, slowing caressing me, and going a little higher each time. His hand was ice cold, chilled as if he had an ice cube held in his palm, but with the warmth of my thigh it didn't bother me, I let out a quiet sigh, he smirked knowing I was enjoying his touch, gazing into my eyes... it’s as if he can look into my soul and knew that it had been a while since I had been touched in such a manner. I finally begged him to stop but he knew I didn't really want him to, so he kept on. Gripping my inner thigh with his left hand, lightly pulling on my hair with his right hand, kissing on my neck while standing in front of me, I couldn't help myself... I was hot with passion, I laid myself back and let him have his way with me. "But... how?? How did this happen?" I asked myself in my head, not being able to say no, secretly yet openly enjoying his passionate, lustful lovemaking taking over my person, I let out rivers of tears... joyful tears. It felt as if I was there for hours, distantly hearing knocks coming from what could've been my house but I didn't care, I kept on in this escapade of lust with this stranger. He stops, panting heavily, trying to catch his breath, he says "I have taken your soul for my keeping and you will forever be trapped in my gaze". I broke out of the love spell I was in after what he said and I responded "wait... what was that??", not understanding what he meant, I gathered my things, got dressed, and stormed out of the room. Rushing down the stairs now with something else in mind, the quivering feeling on my legs and the desire of wanting more I knew I couldn't go back. I didn't know his name. I knew nothing about this man or where he came from, but I knew deep in my heart that I loved him. It's a scary thought when you have no idea of whom you're dealing with, yet you feel like you are more drawn to them than you have been with anyone else. Getting home, there was a notice left on my door from the police department saying, "we have information, please call us at (855) 473-9300." I went inside right away to make the call.

On the phone with the lead detective, he sounded confused, he was stumbling over his words, didn't know how to continue the conversation, but gave me information that kept me more breathless and absolutely speechless. The detective murmured with a shaky voice "Ma'am, the owner of the house, Mr. John T. Matthews, you have reported has been deceased since August 13th, 1809, the house was on the market but no one has purchased it due to the unexplainable activity taking place in there". Without anything to say, I fell to my knees in disbelief, I couldn't fathom the thought of what this man was saying! "Detective! I don't think you understand the severity of what you're saying!", I muttered with a stern tone in my voice. "This may not be the best thing to admit to right now, but I just got back from being in his house and sleeping with him!". The detective asked to describe the man, but I could not recall what he looked like, it’s as if he had been wiped from my memory. "Please! I beg you! Please go back to the house and look for this man!" I pleaded… the detective disconnected the call. I pondered upon the information that the detective had given me, not being able to wrap my head around it, I grabbed my coat and ran back across the yard on my way to the house. Approaching closer to the house, it seemed to be more and more damaged, it was no longer the house that was freshly painted with a beautiful cherry red door; it was a monster house. The house was broken down, tarnished, windows were broken, and smelled of burnt wood. There was yellow tap in front of the door and no way of getting back in. Flabbergasted with the sight of the house, I screamed, "John, please, if you're in there, please come out!", but nothing. I begged and begged for him to appear, but all that I came across was a mysteriously appearing note on the frame of the burnt down door that said, "My dear sweet Mary, I long for your silky soft hair close to my face, the caress of your plush lips on mine, I will come back for you but for now I had to go". I asked myself ‘who was Mary, how long ago was she here, and why would he leave a note for her instead of me?’ I flipped the note over and there was his name and the date August 13th, 1809, the same date that the detective had told me this man had passed. ‘Did John kill himself in agony that his beloved Mary had left him?’ ‘Did John burn the house with Mary and himself in it?’ So many unanswered questions and still not understanding what just happened.

The next morning, I woke up with a bouquet of red roses on my porch with a note:

"My Dearest Darling,

You have restored the lost love of my heart, you have allowed me to move on from the sorrow that dwelled deep inside me. Thank you for restoring my faith in true love and for allowing me to feel the warmth of your soul. I love you now and always forever more. - John T. Matthews

With the note to provide closure, not much of an explanation, but a note that expressed much love and passion, it helped me to move forward with my life, with the appreciation that a man was able to provide me the feeling of restored belief in intimacy and care, I could let go of the Ghost Man that made me fall in love.