THE JOURNEY OF SHEIRA HART

18 | How About A Creepy Nursery Rhyme?

I never knew ghosts could feel pain. Not until now. Not until I landed after Monica slammed me with something invisible causing me to fly out of the bathroom. I groaned and muttered a curse Mr. Grim probably wouldn’t be happy to hear. I concentrated and felt myself. I tilted my neck. 

Good. Nothing’s broken. Not that I was expecting there would be. 

Monica is strong. I didn’t know she got that strong when once, I could barely flip a few pages of my journal. I stood up, still muttering curses because one, I am scared. Very scared. Two, Mikhael is inside and he might Monica’s next target. 

She kills humans. She’s like us but bad news. I stormed inside the bathroom again where I saw her spreading her arms and singing something I couldn’t make up. She was facing Mikhael as she sang a song. At first, I couldn’t make up what it was. But then as I listened closely, I started to understand the words. 

There was a boy and a girl, 

Wandering the hall. 

They didn’t know, they didn’t know. 

Somebody’s playing with the ball. 

The ball hit the girl, she cried and hit her head.

A thud echoed across the hall

As I used the red ink to write her name on the board. 

She sang and I felt goosebumps everywhere. She was caressing Mikhael’s face as she continued,

The boy wailed, oh what a sound,

He didn’t know what happened, oh what a sound.

He took the second hit and he fell to the ground,

I wrote his name using his scattered brain,

Oh what a scene, what a scene. 

She then started combing her hair as she faced Mikhael di Angelo. I was unable to move. It felt like my feet was nailed on the ground. I stood frozen, listening to the song she’s singing. It was very, very disturbing. True to Jacob’s words, she really sings it. The words were about how those two innocent people died. How she killed them. 

And just when I thought she was done, she repeated the song, and the longer I stare at her, the more I realized, her hair was getting longer than normal. 

And then there was a ghost! 

Her voice became high pitched. 

He wants to end the toast. 

He doesn’t know what’s fun,

They all don’t know what’s fun.

So I ended the lives of everyone. 

She hummed it again and I swallowed hard as I saw her hair creeping on the floor. Like black, black snakes. 

And then came a handsome man. She caressed Mikhael’s face. 

Bright as the sun, oh bright as the sun. 

I wish you’d stay with me 

I wish you didn’t fight. 

It would be a shame, oh it would be shame.

To see you end up like e-ve-ry-one. 

My blood froze as she continued humming the song from the top. What am I supposed to do? What should I do? I looked around and saw a trash bin. Willing all my strength to my hands. And with one flick of my wrists, I sent it flying towards her. It hit her head. I must have placed a lot of force there that it went straight to her. Or was her presence too strong that she’s almost no invisible that’s why the bin hit her? It’s dreadful to think of the latter so I focused on the former. 

She stopped humming. And I swallowed hard. Ever so slowly, she looked behind her. Her hair was moving on their own and it covered almost all of her face. But I could clearly see her empty eye sockets. 

But I stood my ground, ignoring the creeping hair on the floor. I stared her down, fighting nausea that’s starting to build. Damn it. How on earth am I—a ghost—feeling nauseous? 

I forced my hand to move and pointed at her. “You,” I said, breathing hard, “are not touching my partner.” 

Monica’s lips curled into a cruel smile as she tilted her head. “Partner?” She chuckled. “You don’t leave your partner behind, to chase your boyfriend. I wonder if he’s still here at this hour.” 

I furrowed my brows. And then I realized she was talking about Jacob. 

“Don’t ever drag him into this, Monica.” 

She pouted. “Aww. So protective of her boyfriend.” 

“He is not my boyfriend why do you keep saying that?” I clenched my fist, putting all my strength on it, readying myself to throw my force towards the trash bin so I can hit her face with it this time but then I heard her chuckle. 

Her chuckle then turned into a laugh. 

“What’s so funny?” I asked and she continued laughing. I looked at Mikhael and he was still unconscious. How long are you going to stay unconscious, you bastard?

Monica stopped laughing and looked at me condescendingly. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember him?” 

I stared at her, slowly digesting everything. 

The painful sobs, the regret, the tears…Jacob Paulo…was he really my boyfriend? I couldn’t remember I had a boyfriend. I couldn’t remember him until I saw him. I didn’t know what our relationship exactly was. I couldn’t remember. A boyfriend? I had a boyfriend? 

Another shrieking laugh from Monica. I winced as the sound seem to have penetrated the deepest parts of my ears. 

“Poor Jacob. His girlfriend doesn’t even remember him,” she crooned and walked closer. I stepped back as I saw her long-ass hair on the bathroom floor. They were moving on their own but most disturbingly, they’re soaked with water from the bathroom floor. I grimaced. 

I stared at Monica. Now that I’ve seen her like this, I could feel her very strong presence. She’s someone who shouldn’t be here. She’s someone who shouldn’t be roaming around this world. I can’t let her hurt other people. I can’t let her hurt Jacob. Now that I know who he really is in my life, I am more than driven to protect him at any cost. 

“You are not going to touch Mikhael or Jacob. You will leave them alone,” I said with enough bite on my words. But then everything went so fast and the next thing I know, my feet weren’t on the ground and I was choking. I felt the cold water running down my neck as her hair wrapped around it. It wrapped tighter around my neck and I was gasping for air. I don’t know what she is anymore. How could she turn into something like this? This isn’t normal. A ghost with long hair that doesn’t seem to stop growing is one thing. But using that hair to choke another ghost is another. This is something I’ve only seen in movies before. And I couldn’t believe it’s happening to me. 

I clawed on to her hair but the more I claw on it, the tighter it got. I was gasping for air and I couldn’t breathe. Am I going to die again? Is that even possible? But I continued clawing it, trying to unwrap it around my neck. But her hair was strong. As if it has its own mind. I felt myself getting lifted higher and higher. 

“You sure are a resistant, little girl,” she said, smirking as her hair got tighter around my throat. And it was dreadful to think that perhaps I wouldn’t be able to die the second time and I’ll just be suffering from being choked by a goddamned hair. 

I couldn’t even mutter a single word. I felt something creeping on my legs and judging from its awfully similar texture to the ones that are on my neck, I’m guessing it was another thick strand of hair. It made its way to my legs, wrapping around up to my knees, stopping it from moving. And as if it wasn’t enough, another strand wrapped around my wrists, pulling it away from clawing the hair wrapping around my neck. 

And when she succeeded, her screeching laugh echoed inside the bathroom. I couldn’t even feel myself losing consciousness. I was just choking. I couldn’t die. Ghosts can’t possibly die again. But then I remember she once killed her companion. 

I couldn’t move. My arms and legs were immobilized. I looked at Mikhael and he was still unconscious. Damn it. I didn’t even find out the whole truth about my death. But I couldn’t do anything. Monica is someone so strong. Someone I couldn’t possibly handle.

I closed my eyes. Damn, dying this way sucks. 

It was as if on cue that the bathroom door opened. I don’t know who it was but then I had a feeling. 

“Monica,” the newcomer called. I felt her hair strands loosened a bit on my neck. I took that as a chance to breathe. I looked at the man who just entered the bathroom. 

“Jacob,” I said and looked at him, horrified. What on earth is he doing here? 

“Run, Jacob!” I screamed but he couldn’t hear me. The only one he could see was Monica. Just how strong is her presence? 

Then I felt Monica’s hair around my legs and wrist loosened until it eventually unwrapped itself around me. I fell to the ground, coughing, gasping for air. I looked at Monica and she was already in front of Jacob, caressing his face. Jacob remained unmoving, letting Monica touch him. 

“Jacob,” I rasped but his eyes remained on Monica. 

“Oh, Jacob. What brings you here?” She gasped. “Perhaps you have decided to be with me? Do you want to be with me?” Her voice was excited as she held Jacob’s arms. Her hair started going back to normal. She looked like how she looked before she went berserk. 

“I don’t want to be with you, Monica. I am not a dead person just like you. You are someone dead. Someone who shouldn’t be here.” Jacob removed Monica’s hands from his arms. “I’m sorry, Monica but I came here to tell you to stop. Stop hurting Sheira. Stop hurting other people.” 

Monica went silent and I don’t like it. “Jacob, run! Please!” I begged but of course, he couldn’t hear me. Monica’s hair started to move. I was about to stand, to shove Jacob out of the bathroom using my remaining strength when a piece of the metal bar hit Monica at the back of her head. She fell face-first to the ground. 

Before I could even digest what just happened, Mikhael grabbed me by my hand and dragged me out of the bathroom. Jacob was wise enough to the same. But the moment we got out of the bathroom was the moment when we heard Monica’s shriek inside the bathroom. We ran as fast as we could and we found ourselves in the middle of the auditorium. Me and Mikhael stood in front of Jacob. 

“Who’s that?” Mikhael asked as he jerked his thumb behind him. I looked at the bathroom and saw the strands of hair coming out. 

“My boyfriend,” I answered. 

He looked at me, as if unable to believe what I just claimed. And then he chuckled. 

I gave him a look. “What are you laughing about?” 

“Who would have thought you got yourself a boyfriend in the past?” 

“Shut up, di Angelo. If we get to live after this, I’m going to shove your head down the toilet.” 

“We should start working about living now,” he said and head to get down as a thick strand of Monica’s hair passed above our heads. 

“Seriously, what’s wrong with this psycho?” Mikhael complained. 

I looked behind me and saw Jacob ducking from it too. He could really see Monica. 

“We have to get Monica out of here, Mikhael,” I said and He just gave me a bland look. 

“And how are we supposed to do that?” 

“She likes you. You’ll be the bait. Lure her out.” 

“Are you kidding me?” 

“Do you think I can afford to be kidding around in this situation, you crackhead?” 

“Fine,” he grunted and walked to the side, away from Jacob. I stood in front of Jacob as I watched the bathroom door opening. I swallowed hard as I saw Monica coming out. She looked bad earlier as she went on a choke-Sheira-extravaganza but now, she looked worse. Her hair was longer than earlier and it was darker than ever. Her face was filled with black veins and her mouth was open, showing black teeth and a black tongue. 

Her open mouth turned into a smile. And then she started humming. It was the same creepy song she was singing earlier but this time, it’s creepier. The auditorium was quiet and her voice was so cold I got goosebumps. I looked at Jacob and he was frozen on his feet as he beheld Monica. Any human would freak out when they saw Monica. Even ghosts would be frightened of her. Her eyes sockets were both empty as she stared at us. She was walking slowly as if taking her time. 

I swallowed hard. 

“Eyes here you disgusting ugly freak!” Mikhael yelled and Monica’s head whipped in his direction. The next thing I heard was Monica’s shriek, as she opened her arms wide and her hair rose in the hair as if forming spikes. Spikes that could definitely penetrate if it wishes to. 

And what’s worse is that they’re all pointed towards Mikhael di Angelo. 

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