The Haunted 7; The Ghosts

At last we’re here.  If you thought you saw this surprise coming, comment with what movie this story is loosely based on.  I’ll bet none guessed.

There were five people sitting in the Magic Room, seemingly a bit anxious.  Two appeared to be a Hispanic couple, the woman looking exactly like the woman Nicky appeared as earlier.  The other three all appeared unrelated, each a different skin color, two men and one woman,  The woman held a laptop, explaining EVPs while one guy held what looked like a complex phone.  Carlie started yelling. “Who are you?”

The device the one guy was holding repeated her question a moment later, making them all jump.  He spoke into the air in a voice that sounded so familiar to her. “Carlie, are you here?”

Carlie felt the rage well up. “Of course I am.”

The Hispanic woman gasped. “I told you I saw her.  I saw her when I wasn’t myself.”

Her partner tried to calm her. “Yes chica, I know.  Let them do their work.”

Carlie looked at them all. “Why are you still here?”

Carlie practically boiled at that point, causing one of them to turn as she swung at them. “This is my house!”

As the phone flew from his hand, he seemed shocked, but waved them down as the couple were mumbling about how they knew something wasn’t right here.  The guy who held the phone before picked it back up calmly. “Carlie, who’s the President?”

That surprised her. “Well, Obama just got elected…”

One of the other guys slammed his hand on the floor. “Yes.  The fire was 15 years ago.  That makes sense.”

Carlie sat, stunned.  15 years?  That would mean it was...2023, not 2008.  But that couldn’t be. “Wait, I’m not dead!  I’m alive!’

At that, the three guys looked at each other knowingly.  The couple seemed terrified. “What’s going on?  How could she still think that?”

One of the guys put a hand on the lady’s shoulder. “Sometimes ghosts don’t know they’re dead.  Sometimes they kind of hibernate for a while until something comes along and stirs them back up.”

The woman who’d explained EVPs piped in. “Like suddenly moving in and doing repair work.”

The man had the question. “So what do we do?  Do we move out?  Do we sell?”

Carlie listened, stunned, as she felt Nicky come in behind her.  Was she really the ghost, not knowing what was going on? “I’m dead?”

Nicky nodded. “I’ve been here since 1981 myself.  Died in the basement.  Sorry.”

She listened as the guy who seemed to be in charge answered the man’s question. “No.  Try and make a deal with her.  Let her know that she can stay, but that it should be both your house.  Fix her room back up for her, let her have a place she can feel comfortable.”

The couple talked for a moment, agreeing, then asking Carlie if it was okay.  After she agreed, then asked to restore the Magic Room, to which they agreed, she walked out.

But was she really walking?  She asked that of Nicky, who told her that, yeah, although they didn’t feel dead, they’d never really have to worry about much of anything anymore.  As long as they were there, the house would, technically, still be hers.

And that, yeah, she wouldn’t have to use a cutting implement anymore.  She died, from smoke inhalation, after calling the fire department, but she wasn’t able to reassemble herself.

At that, Carlie pushed down, separating her halves with that familiar good feeling, then pulled her head off.  With that, she had one more question. “Can I see my parents again?”

Nicky shrugged. “I don’t see why not.”