I shuddered. Her every words were cold but somehow, inviting. What's wrong with me? I took a closer step towards her. She's beautiful but also sad. Very depressing, even with that smile on her face, she still looks miserable in some way. "I'm not Alston, my name's Aaron." She smiled widely, and giggled to herself, "You never change do you, Alston? Always such a joker. It's ok, Tse Yee won't see us, let's continue. You promised you would. Do I have to ask again? Fine, will you dance with me?" Yes... i mean, No! What was I thinking? "No, sorry, I don't know how, and you've mistaken me for someone else, I think I should go to sleep now..." and she started crying. "I was left alone in this big mansion for so, very long... And yet, you wouldn't dance with me..." She looked at me with her beautiful eyes filled with tears. My heart softened. I moved forward, "maybe, just a short one?" and she smiled another one of those ghostly smiles. She took my hand, her skin was cold, almost icy. She put one of my arms on her waist and another one held hers. And swiftly, she guided me, and we danced. I couldn't remember when we stopped, it just seemed to go on and on. And oddly, I liked it. I shut my eyes and enjoyed the rhythm as we glided on the dance floor.
I opened my eyes. It was already morning. I rubbed my eyes. I'm in the bed. Was it a dream? The woman's smile still lingers at the back of my head. I washed up and went downstairs for breakfast. Mom's bacons and eggs were just the right thing to kick start the morning. I gobbled a few bacons and two bulls' eye eggs. Not hungry anymore, but the smile still haunts me. I shook my head over and over again. Maybe it'll wake me up. "What are you doing, Aaron? You sick? Let grandnana take a look," and she put her wrinkled old hands on my forehead to check my temperature. "Nothing wrong, hmmmm," "I think its my assignment, grandnana, I have to finish it fast hahaha... It's quite challenging, this place is huge, the backyards' huge," "Yes it is," she nodded in agreement, "once, your great-grandpapa, Sir Fabian Perez, held a ball here, thousands were present to enjoy the fine wine and a pleasurable dance with beautiful ladies," I tried imagining it, "you must be really beautiful too, aren't you, grandnana?" i asked. "Back in those days, I guess I was, Jacqerina and I were always the one's who attracted the crowds' attention," she explained. "Jacqerina? Who's that?" grandnana's expression turned cold in a sudden, and she answered, "No one, just an old friend, eat your eggs, it's getting cold," and she rose up from her chair and left the dining hall. Mom took a seat beside me and began cutting slices of bacon, "Did I say something wrong?" Mom looked at me and raised her shoulders.
I finished my breakfast and went out into the yard. This time I brought along my sketchbook. I sat down under a tree and began my sketching. I tried concentrating, but the woman's smile just won't stop appearing in my head. I stopped in the middle and walked back inside the mansion. I took a small tour myself around the house, maybe that'll get rid of her smile. I can;t believe I just danced with a ghost, maybe it was just a dream. I reached a large door and entered it. Its one of the master bedroom. I checked the lock, it open. So I entered the room. It was furnished with beautiful, brightly coloured tapestries, old wooden antiques were placed around the rooms and a large wooden wardrobe caught my attention. It was taller and bigger than me, I felt really small standing in front of it. Curious, I opened the door and dusts flew out. It caused me to cough. Once the dusts settled down, I continued exploring the ancient wardrobe. It was filled with suits, beautifully tailored. I ran my fingers on the surface of the fabric. Silk, very expensive, judging by the quality. I took a white one off it's hanger. I tried it on and looked at myself at mirror. Splendid, it fits me! Maybe I should show off to grandnana. So I left the room in search of my grandnana.
It was already late in the evening. Mom and grandnana were no where to be found. I searched the kitchen, and there was a note on the refrigerator. It seemed that they went out to buy groceries, so I'm alone in the house, and Dad won't be home till 8 p.m.. I went inside my room, I felt dizzy suddenly, and felt asleep, and there was that smile again. Go away... no wait, come back. I sat up straight and opened my eyes. I was in the middle of the dance floor. How did i get here? I stood up and brushed my newly found suit. "You're wearing the suit I made for you!" and she giggled to herself again. 'You look really handsome, Alston," I smiled shyly, "I do?" "Of course you do! Let's dance" and she took my hand, and we dance, all through the night. Her blood red gown pressed against my white suit. We dance, and dance, and dance...
"Aaron! What are you doing laying on the floor like this?!" scolded grandnana. I stood up, rubbed my eyes. "I, I was..."confused and cold, I didn't know how to reply back, "We were looking for you, go back to your bed, and take off that suit you're wearing, it's not yours!" and I was soon back in my room. I took off the suit and went to bed. I was really tired, tired from dancing. And there was her smile again. Those cold smile accompanied me as I drift off to my dream.
She still appeared in my head all day. I can't stand it anymore. I would do anything to stop it now. I sat in front of my laptop all day, trying to finish my assignment, but it's still troubling. I can't do anything, my mind's restless. I'm going insane. I took some pills and went to bed. My handphone's ringing made me woke up. I answered the call, it was Evon, "Aaron, I think I'm paying you guys a visit, so don't go anywhere," and she ended the call. Blur as a koala bear, I went out of my room. I went downstairs. No one's home again. I walked towards the dining hall, but my feet thought otherwise, and I was soon standing at the dance floor. "Alston, she knew, she saw me yesterday, you have to choose, be with me or stay here, come on, come with me, I can make you happy, she's bad, Alston, she caused my, my death, I knew it, come with me," she pleaded. My mind cleared at that moment, but not as clear as it should be, I'm tempted, under some kind of spell. I wanted to go with her, wherever she wants me to go. I wanted to be with her. "Where are we going?" I asked. "A peaceful place, Alston. Some people call it death, but I just call it, a peaceful place," she answered back. I don't wanna die, but my feet was failing me, I continued walking with her, hand in hand. One step at a time, each step, close to death. I could smell blood, the white marble floor has turned all red, stained with blood, pools of blood. We stopped and she turned to me, asking "Will you dance with me? Dance to our death? Just say yes, and it'll be over."
Then I heard a shout. "STOP!" Grandnana? It was her. The woman stopped and so did I. She turned and faced grandnana, her expression was ugly, full of hatred and pain, it wasn't beautiful anymore, nor cold, it's just full of anger. "Jac, give me back my grandson, he's not Alston." Jacqerina, the woman's name I now realise, spoke in a deep, rough voice, "I knew Tse Yee, I knew in the very beginning, but what difference does it make, you took away my life because of Alston, now, I'll pay you back, by taking the life of the person you love, your own grandson," and she laughed and giggled. My grandnana knelt down and begged, "It was my fault, I killed you, don't take away his life, take mine, please," "No, Tse Yee, no, taking away your life, is just a bonus for you, I'll take away his," she held my hand up, the one she was holding, "and you'll suffer more, until the end of your pathetic life," she said, with an air of triumph. "You're a beastly woman, I thought you would be no more of a trouble for me when I killed you, I was wrong, I should I have burned your very bones, cursing your soul into hell for eternity, I overlooked that, you were always weak, Jac, I was the stronger one, you'll never win, never!" Jacqerina laughed and my grandnana fell to the ground, "Not anymore, Tse Yee, this time, I've won." Was my grandnana dead? No! She can't be, I stood up and walked up to her, "bring her back!" I shouted, "you have no rights to take anyone's life away," she glared at me, "I do, as a matter of fact, I'll take your whole family's life, the Perez, starting with your grandmother and your dear sister," and she laughed again.
My sister banged at the glass door of the ballroom, she'd arrived, and she witnessed what happened, I can't let anyone get hurt anymore. Jacqerina started approaching my sister, Evon was afraid, but she stood her ground. I ran up and stood before Jacqerina. "I will dance with you, to your peaceful place, let's go, and forget everything, I'll stay with you forever," her face turned back into its beautiful form and she smiled. "Let's go, we must not waste more time," she held my hand and we walked to the pools of blood, where she died, years and years ago. Evon terrified, banged harder at the glass door. I turned and with one last smile at my dear sister, I, Aaron Perez, entered death, through the pools of blood, slowly descending with the woman in the blood red gown as she held my hand tightly.
.....
Haunted Mansion
Rumors has it, that the mansion, owned by the Perez family, was haunted, previous sightings of a woman in blood red gown was confirmed by many who passed the house. Recently however, there were reports and rumors, that a man in a white suit and the woman in her red gown would dance in the ballroom, all night, never ceasing. Is it a new ghost? Does the disappearance of the recent Aaron Perez and Madam Tse Yee Ng Perez who fell into a coma on that particular night when Aaron was discovered to be lost? Are they connected? How true are the rumors? One can never know until they experienced it themselves.
Reported by,
Emily Tan,
President of the T.G.C.
.....
And so the second story ended and the star continued a small dance of its own.
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