"So....what am I going to do in your house?" Regan asked as she was driving the car. Vesper was sitting there, following the beat of a song, some song that made Regan's ears cry.
"Watch a movie, perhaps? What do you think?" Vesper replied.
"Okay," Regan said. "What if I go to my house and rest first?"
"NO, because I know that you'll be lazy if we do so," Vesper replied.
"Fine," Regan said helplessly.
As she reached their neighborhood , she parked the car near her house, left the bag inside and locked the door.
"Come on now," Vesper said in annoyance.
They walked together to Vesper's house. It had two floors and a garage space. Is was surprising that Vesper didn't have a car. Regan knew she had a high income.
They entered inside and Regan got a strange and not so pleasant feeling, but didn't act upon it. They came across the living room which was weirdly furnished. The walls of that room were plain and brown colored. Two couches were in front of each other, in grey color. On general, the furnitures were expensive.
"So, where are we going to watch that movie?" Regan asked.
"Right here," the other replied, pointing at the flat screen TV.
Regan didn't want to stay there and couldn't wait to get out. It wasn't that she didn't want to hang out with her friend, it was just this house having a peculiar aura.
She sat on the couch and eyed the room better. On the corner of the wall there were a lot of shelves, a bookcase and a study table. The study table had a computer on it, while the wooden shelves held weird souvenirs. There were no words that Regan could describe them.
She had never seen them before, most of their materials were made of wood and their shapes were irregular.
"Do you like rom-coms?" Vesper asked, carrying some bags of chips, "Or romance alone?"
"No," Regan replied, rolling her eyes, "They're shit."
"Why?" Vesper asked, a hint of smile playing on her lips.
"They don't match my standards," Regan mumbled. She didn't want to sound like a pick me girl, but she had a very complicated relationship with romance.
Vesper raised an eyebrow, as if in mockery, "Standards, really?" She sat down on the opposite couch, placing the snacks on the coffee table. "So what kind of man would match your 'standards'?"
Regan felt her cheeks warm up. "I didn't say anything about the man," she retorted, getting a little defensive.
"Come on, you can tell me," Vesper teased, popping a chip into her mouth and crunching loudly. "What's your type?"
Regan felt the heat in her cheeks intensify. "It's complicated," she mumbled, not meeting Vesper's gaze. She picked at the hem of her sweater, avoiding the question.
"Okay, let's keep it simple then," Vesper said, leaning back into the couch. "Would you say he has to be good looking?"
Regan felt a lump in her throat. She'd say yes, but the scar she had on her face made her think she was asking for too much. "I want someone who doesn't care about sex, control, isn't a crybaby and....and likes cuddling," she blurted out.
She didn't know why she just opened up to Vesper about that, she hadn't told anyone before, not even her aunt. She knew no one understood, so there wasn't the need.
Vesper burst out into laughter, "You want a saint, don't you?" She stood up, seemingly thinking to do something else than watch movies.
"Is it that much to ask?" Regan said, trying to sound casual, but the image of Sirius's face from the dream flashed through her mind, his icy blue eyes and smirking lips.
Vesper just chuckled, "You're so picky, Reg. You're going to end up alone if you keep that up."
"Well, I'd rather end up alone than be with someone who looks at me like I'm a piece of meat," Regan retorted, a hint of defiance in her voice.
"Oh my God, Regan, you're such a hopeless romantic. Good luck finding your dreams guy," Vesper said, her voice laced with sarcasm.
The words 'dreams guy' echoed in Regan's mind like a mantra, bringing back the image of Sirius, his cold grip and messy black hair.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPIbqm1Tnn
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"Whatever," she mumbled under her breath, trying to shake off the unwanted image in her mind.
"But I'm in no mood for movies either," her friend said, popping another chip in her mouth, "Come, I'll show you my room."
Regan followed, glad for the change of the subject. Vesper's room was upstairs and they entered a white sleek door, revealing a room washed with a blue and purple hue from the lights. It looked like a gaming station and the first thing Regan saw was the modern blue glass desk, with three monitors connected to a high-powered gaming PC.
"I didn't know you were a gamer," Regan said, genuinely surprised. Gaming was her hobby, but she didn't have such an elaborate setup.
"It's a good way to have fun," Vesper said with a shrug, tossing her bag on the bed.
Suddenly, Vesper's phone buzzed with a notification and Regan caught one of the monitor's screen flash with a message, 'LEAVE HER ALONE.'
"Hey, why did your monitor do that?" Regan asked, curiousity filling her voice.
Vesper stopped mid-step on looking at her phone and shoved it back on her pocket. Regan saw as her friend quickly approached the monitor and turned the screen off. "Nothing, just some game I was playing," she said with a smile, one that seemed forced.
The room was cool anyway and Regan nodded, her eyes wandering until they landed on a bookshelf. That one seemed off theme. It was a simple black bookshelf, but the books in it looked old and mysterious. "Quite the books you have here," she commented. She approached the bookshelf, "You read...." Regan's voice trailed off as she realized the books titles weren't even in English. They were in some sort of ancient language that she had never seen before.
Vesper turned to her, "That's my sister's shitty stuff. Don't touch them," she said, a hint of irritation in her voice.
Regan felt a wave of curiosity wash over her but she didn't want to sound too prying. "Okay," she said, taking a step back. The books looked ancient and possibly valuable, but something about them made them eerie.
Vesper's eyes narrowed for a moment, but then she stood up, entering what seemed to be the bathroom, "I'm going to change," she called over her shoulder, and the door closed behind her.
Regan took the opportunity to get a closer look at the books. She grabbed one of them, an old, leather-bound tome that felt heavier than it looked. Just as she was about to open it, something that apparently had been inside, fell on the carpet with a low thud.
It was a necklace, Regan saw as she picked it up. The chain was silver and it had a heart-shaped gem. The gem felt cold on her palm and it was made of a mix of metal and pink crystal. In the middle, there was an initial.
S.
It was scripted in a no common way. The style was gothic, and there was a red line around the contours, that made it look like it was dripping blood.
Regan's heart raced for a moment because it looked like it was cursed. She heard the bathroom's door crack and quickly shoved the book in place, catching a weird script on the book's cover before it was hidden from view. She placed the necklace back somewhere between the books, hoping Vesper wouldn't notice.
"What you doing there?"
Her friend's voice made Regan freeze but then she acted casually, "Just admiring your books."
Vesper stepped out of the bathroom, her hair tied in a high ponytail, wearing a loose t-shirt and shorts. Her eyes were narrowed in suspicion but then she nodded, seemingly nonchalant. "Let's play a board game."
"Okay," Regan said. She liked board games like chess and cards. But she didn't have anyone to play with. Her aunt was busy with work, and Vesper was her only friend.
Vesper was searching through one of the drawers beside her bed and pulled out a piece of dark oak, folded to fit on the drawer. The surface was intricately carved and there were black gems on the edges. She placed it on the floor and unfolded it, revealing a board that was a mess of letters and symbols that didn't make sense to Regan. There was a spinner in a middle with a small pointed arrow.
It was something she had never seen before.
She had seen Ouija boards on the net, this one didn't look like it, but it didn't look normal either. "What's this?" Regan asked, seeing as her friend pulled a pack of cards.
"It's just a game. Come sit," Vesper said, gesturing opposite her. Regan sat with a hint of reluctance, watching as Vesper shuffled the cards. They weren't queen cards, no they weren't even tarot cards. They were cards with a simple white background and a symbol in the middle. Regan caught the symbol of a bow on a card, one that matched another one in the board.
"What's it called?" Regan asked, eyeing the board warily.
"It's called 'The difficulty of honesty,'" Vesper said with a mysterious smile, placing the cards in a neat pile beside the board.
Regan's eyebrows furrowed, she had never heard such a name of a board game. But maybe it was bought at some local game shop, or something that belonged to Vesper's sister.
"Okay, how do we play?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady despite the strange feeling in her gut.
Vesper sat cross-legged opposite her, a smile playing on her lips, "You pick a card and spin the wheel. If it lands on the same symbol, you're going to tell me the first thing that comes in your mind. If you lie or say you don't know, the symbol is going to haunt you for the rest of your life."
Regan felt a cold chill run down her spine, "You're kidding me?"
"It's just a game," Vesper shrugged, "You don't have to be scared. Now if the arrow stops on some letter, you're going to do the same, but based on the letter. Again, if you lie, the spirit of that letter will follow you until you tell the truth."
Regan felt a strange wave of unease wash over her. She didn't want to look like a coward in front of Vesper, so she reached for a card with a trembling hand, failing to play the same nonchalance of her friend.
As if in irony, the card she picked held a symbol of a red thorny rose. Regan's heart raced. It reminded her of the roses in her room, and the roses in her dream.
She spun the wheel and waited in anticipation, only for her heart to flinch when the arrow stopped at the same symbol of her card-a thorny red rose.
Regan couldn't believe her eyes. It looked like some sort of sick joke. How could it happen like that, so coincidentally?
Vesper raised an eyebrow, her eyes narrowing slightly in disbelief, "Okay, so what is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of a thorny red rose?"
The first thing she thought was the creature in her dream, but she didn't want say it. And she didn't want to lie either, because she was afraid from the game. Her belief in supernatural only made her even more cautious.
"Ves, I don't feel good," she said, putting the card down.
Vesper's smile didn't waver, "Come on, it's just a game. I've played it countless times and nothing has ever happened to me. It's just for fun, Reg. You don't have to be such a scaredy-cat."
But Regan knew better. She knew that weird things had a knack for following her and she didn't want to add any more to the pile. "I feel nauseous," she said, her voice shaking a bit. "I need to go to the bathroom."
Vesper's eyes searched hers for a moment before she nodded. "Okay, but we're playing after," she said, with a tone that didn't suggest she was going to take no for an answer.
Regan rushed to the bathroom, her heart racing. She locked the door behind her, but little did she know what awaited with her reflection. As she looked at the mirror, there, painted in red on the glass, was a single word:
MINE.
Regan's eyes widened with fear. The word was written in red, as if the mirror was splattered or even scratched with blood.
"Hey Ves, what's the-the deal with this?" she called out, her voice cracking. She had managed to keep the panic at bay, but the word sent her blood cold. Vesper opened the door, her puzzlement clear.
"What's wrong, Reg?" she asked nonchalantly.
"What's that?" Regan pointed at the mirror, her hand trembling.
Vesper looked at the mirror, her eyes flashing with something that might've been bewilderment or confusion. "I wrote it," she said quickly, "My sister has a habit of using my sink and I don't want her to mess with my stuff," her was voice calm, almost too calm.
Regan stared at the crimson scraw, the word 'MINE' making her heart race. She didn't understand why it affected her so bad. She had a knack for getting triggered by weird things, but this was something else entirely.
Vesper sighed, "Fine, let's just chat, okay? We're not going to play games." She grabbed a towel from the rack and wiped the glass clean without giving it much thought. She stepped back in her room, and Regan followed, the word in the mirror nagging like a curse in her mind.
They sat back down, and Vesper placed a random thriller movie, and then began to speak of school gossip, attempting to ease the tension. But Regan couldn't focus on it. The image of the crimson word 'MINE' was burned into her retina, and she felt watched.
"Hey Vesper, does your sister come here often?" Regan asked, trying to keep her mind off.
Vesper's eyes narrowed slightly, "No, she's away at college. Why?"
"I'm just asking. So you live alone here?"
Vesper nodded, "Yeah, my parents come home once a week, but it's mostly just me. And my sisters, they're so terrible."
"You have other sisters?" Regan asked, her confusion clear.
"Huh, no? Only one," her friend said with a shrug.
"You said something like 'my sisters' earlier. I thought you had more than one."
Vesper laughed nervously, "Just a slip of the tongue. But Reg, don't you think you're being way too paranoid? You're acting like someone's after you or something."
Regan felt a chill run down her spine, recalling all the weird stuff that had been happening lately. "I don't know, I don't feel very good," she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "Maybe I should just go home."
Vesper's expression shifted, a hint of something unreadable flickering across her features. "But the movie isn't even halfway through," she protested.
Regan's hand tightly gripped the edge of the couch, "I know, but I just....my neck hurts, and I think I need to rest," she said, trying to get out as fast as possible from Vesper's house. She felt like the walls were watching her, the sound of the wall's clock like a countdown to something sinister.
Vesper sighed dramatically, "Okay, if you're really that sick, you can go. Your house's the next door anyway," she said, getting up from the couch. Regan felt a wave of relief, but the unease didn't leave her entirely.
She wore her sneakers and said Vesper goodbye, trying to seem casual despite the racing thoughts. The door slammed shut behind her, and let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Vesper's house seemed like an ominous shell, and she didn't want to linger any longer.
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