No contest, just for entertainment. Please submit a spooky story, long or short, to entertain or frighten members and visitors alike for this year's spooky season. Thank you all in advance, I look forward to reading all submissions and to writing my own! xoxo
It's been a few weeks, I have been trying to find something to write about but to no avail...until tonight. Tonight, I finally managed to come up with a plot to write about! I have about 500 words so far, not much but it's a good start after having writer's block for so long. I am looking forward to sharing and hopefully reading what other's write too!
Well...it's not quite done but since it's the last day of October I will just post what I have so far. Jane was actually beginning to get excited for Halloween. She had always loved this time of year but it seemed like forever since she had celebrated properly. After her fiancé had gone missing 5 years ago, nothing really seemed to matter that much. Her friends and family were all supportive of her and her never-ending grief but the time had come that they decided to push her into celebrating life again. The police believed that Simon was dead even though they never found his body. Everyone kept telling her she needed to let go and start living. She agreed with them, even though she still held a glimmer of hope that he was alive. Pulling all the decorations out of the attic was a lot harder on her own. Simon and Jane had always done that together. Dusting herself off as she climbed down the wobbly pull down stairs, Jane began to list to the side. Just as she realized she was about to fall, she felt a hand steady her…at least she thought she did. Confused and a little shaken, she finished her descent and quickly pushed the stairs back into the attic and closed the hatch. Taking a deep breath and letting it out in a loud “whoosh” she tried to forget the unnerving feeling that someone had caught her. Pouring a nice big glass of wine, Jane set about decorating the interior of her small home. With lighted faux pumpkins on the hearth next to the fireplace, skulls and candles on the mantel, and a few ghosts hanging from the ceiling, the living room was nearly done. Sitting in her favorite chair near the window, Jane sipped her wine and enjoyed her handiwork while she took a well earned break. She glanced at the matching arm chair on the other side of the tiny antique table that sat between them. She could picture Simon sitting there, her smile slipped and she sighed, still missing him. Memories flooded her mind, she could almost feel the way he would lean over the table and brush her hair off her face, caress her cheek and run the pad of his thumb across her lips. Closing her eyes, enjoying the sensations created by her thoughts, she allowed the feelings to wash over her for just a minute more. Eyes opening in the half light cast by the candles, the shape of a man sitting in the chair across from her was startling. Jane gasped and lunged for the lamp. Switching it on, she could see that she was, in fact, alone. For a brief moment she thought Simon had found his way back to her. Jane went to sleep that night with thoughts of Simon flooding through her mind, some that made her smile, some that made her cry and one that made her want to touch herself. She imagined her hand was his as she slid her fingers from her neck, over her breast, down to her belly and lower still. She climaxed calling his name and fell asleep feeling like he was holding her. The next morning, half asleep Jane reached out expecting to feel Simon in the bed next to her. Sadness washed over her as the fogginess of sleep lifted. All that day, as she put up the exterior decorations, Jane felt like she was being watched. Despite being observant of her surroundings, she couldn’t find the source of the feeling. The feeling lingered, even when she went to the farm stand to pick up some corn stalks to tie to the pillars on the front porch. While she was there, she over heard an older woman telling the cashier about how this is the time of year when the veil thins and spirits are able to come through easier. As she finished her purchase and turned toward Jane, the old woman’s eyes seemed to get cloudy for a moment. She reached out to Jane and said, “He’s here with you.” Then her hand went to her side, her eyes cleared, she smiled politely as she walked passed, as if nothing had happened. Jane was rattled after her strange encounter with the woman. She sat in her truck and did some quick research on her phone about spirits, the veil, and ghostly experiences. By the time she got home, she was half convinced that Simon was haunting her. The part of her that held the hope of him still being alive rebelled profusely because that would mean that Simon was dead. The rest of her, that had already accepted his death, wanted to hold on to any sort of connection with him. Rushing home, Jane looked around for some candles, she finally found a few emergency candles in a drawer in the kitchen. She retrieved a few things from the spice cabinet that the internet told her would draw spirits to her, and the big box of salt that she reserved for when the steps get icy. She pushed the table and chairs out of the way and formed a ring of salt on the floor, just big enough for her to sit inside of. Putting a small plate down in front of her she squinted at the instructions for the summoning spell on her phone. Once she felt she had memorized the words she grabbed the small jar of cloves and used one to carve Simon’s name into the side of a candle. It was a little wonky since her hands were shaking but she didn’t care. She melted the bottom of the candle and stuck it to the plate, then sprinkled it with cinnamon and rosemary. Jane quietly began to say the spell, her voice got louder as she repeated it over and over again. Once it built up to a steady chant, she lit the candle and called out, “SIMON.” After all the adrenaline and anticipation building up since she saw that woman at the store, she had expected something…anything to happen, but as she sat there in silence all she could hear were the crickets chirping outside. She sat there for what felt like an hour but was actually only a minute or two. She sighed, her shoulders falling. It didn’t work. Jane leaned forward, pursing her lips, just about to blow out the candle, when, without any breeze, the candle just went out on it’s own. In the scant moonlight that was filtering in through the windows, she could see the smoke rising from the extinguished wick and in the smoke she could see Simon’s face looking back at her. Gasping in shock, Jane lurched backward, stretching out her hand to catch herself, she accidentally broke the circle of salt and in an instant, Simon was gone. All that night, Jane cried for the loss of Simon all over again. Seeing his ghost cemented in her heart that he was, indeed, dead. The next day, through puffy eyes, she read all she could about talking to the dead, she took notes and gathered supplies. She wanted to make sure that, tonight, she had more time to try and communicate with Simon. She even prepared his favorite meal and poured him a drink. As night descended, Jane lit candles all around the kitchen and made a larger circle on the floor this time. She repeated the ritual as before but this time as she lit the candle she said, “Talk to me Simon.” All of the candles swayed and flickered in the still air but only the one inside the circle went out. She braced herself and held her breath. Simon’s face appeared in the drifting smoke, “Hello Jane.” Hearing his voice was astonishing, Jane laughed and cried at the same time, she was in complete amazement at what was happening. “Simon! Oh my god, Simon! I love you! What happened to you? Where are you?” Simon laughed as Jane spouted out a ton of questions, “Shh, my love, shhh. We don’t have a lot of time.” Jane began to worry, “Why? Did I do something wrong? Why can’t you stay?” “No, you didn’t do anything wrong but I have to strain to be here and I can only hold it for so long. As it gets closer to All Hallow’s Eve, it will get easier and after, it will wain again.” Simon looked at Jane with sorrow in his eyes and whispered, “I love you, Jane,” as he faded away. The next night Jane prepared a list of questions, she would stay calm and get as many answers as she could. Halloween was only 3 days away now, she didn’t have much time left to find out what happened to Simon.
