MLS Property Listing: 195 NE Gregory Rd | Condemned

4:53 p.m.

“Griffin, there’s a child.”

“What?”

“There’s a child sitting on the front porch.”

“Let me see.”

“Don’t push—”

“...Hm...”

“Well?”

“...There’s a child.”

“Yes. Okay. So, since we’re agreed to there being a child, can we move on to the next question?”

“What question?”

“What are we going to do with said child on said front porch?”

“Hm.”

“We’ve done this part already, Griffin!”

“Let me think a minute.”

“Oh no, the child is moving. It’s standing up. Griffin, it’s looking right at us.”

“Impossible.”

“It’s saying something. Can you hear?”

“No, it’s muffled. This glass is too thick. Is it saying words?”

“I think it’s saying it knows we’re in here.”

“How could it know that? No one knows we’re here. This house is abandoned.”

“Well, that’s what it said.”

“You said you think it said that.”

“Griffin, so help me, I will kill you all over again.”

“And how’d the first time work out for you?”

5:02 p.m.

“Should we open the door?”

“No, Em, we should not open the fucking door. Are you insane? Opening the door is our one thing, the thing we’re not supposed to do. And anyway, are you even able to?”

“I...think so?”

“Hm. Regardless, even if you could, why would we open it? We shouldn’t open it. If we open it, it’ll know we’re in here.”

“It already knows.”

“Well...but then it’ll definitely know, and it’ll come inside and start snooping and find us. No child should have to go through that, right?”

“Oh. Right. Okay. Let’s just...wait until it goes away.”

5:42 p.m.

“Is it still out there, Griffin?”

“Yes.”

“Shit. It’s been almost an hour. Why hasn’t it gotten bored or hungry?”

“Well, apparently the child brought snacks. It’s leaving crumbs and wrappers all over the porch.”

“Rude.”

“Mm-hm.”

“What do we do? What if it stays out there? What if it dies? Will it have to stay here with us?”

“It won’t die, Em.”

“It could die.”

“It’ll leave when it gets dark. It’ll get scared and go home.”

“But what if it doesn’t leave? Oh, Griff, what if she finds it?”

6:05 p.m.

“I think it’s a boy. Look, see his hair?”

“Girls can have short hair, Griffin.”

“Oh, right. Well, it won’t matter anyway if he doesn’t get off this porch by sundown.”

“That’s not funny, Griff.”

“I wasn’t trying to be funny.”

“We should open the door.”

“Now who’s making jokes?”

6:49 p.m.

“Em, don’t you even think about opening that door.”

“We can’t just let him die out there, Griffin!”

“Why not? People die every day. Look at us: dead! And we’re fine in spite of it.”

“What are you talking about? We’re stuck in this house, haunting nothing but dust motes and each other, too terrified to move on because of what? A fucking dream you had that we’ll be able to wiggle ourselves back into our corpses if we wait long enough.”

“It wasn’t a dream. It was a vision. I had it as I died. That part should sound familiar. It was right after you stabbed me.”

“Oh, we’re doing this again? Fantastic. Fine. Out with it, then. Tell me it wasn’t justified.”

“It wasn’t.”

“You were going to carve out my heart and put it in a fucking jar, Griff.”

“Just until I put it in another body. You were sick—”

“I had made my peace with dying—”

“Exactly! So why would it have mattered if I took your heart? I was trying to find a way to save you, Em.”

“Unbelievable. And I suppose you’re the only victim here? Or do we actually get to talk about how you strangled me? No? Convenient how you only want to talk about the stabbing and your ‘slow, agonizing final moments’ as you bled out. On top of my corpse, by the way.”

“Well, I—”

“You what? Hm? Speak up, Griff.”

“I was angry at you for stabbing me—”

“With. The knife. You. Were. Going. To. Use. To. Kill. Me.”

“I was going to save you! I had the spell all ready! I just needed to keep your heart safe while I brought in the body. If you had just let me finish, we’d both be alive and you’d be healthy. You’d be whole. And with me. I just—Christ, how many times do I have to tell you this, Em? I just wanted you to stay with me.”

“Well, you got what you wanted, didn’t you? “

7:01 p.m.

“He’s definitely not leaving, Griffin.”

“No, I suppose not.”

“Maybe she won’t come here.”

“You know she will. She comes every night, looking for that heart I was supposed to give her.”

“I can’t believe you were going to put me in that thing.”

“It wasn’t a thing before you ruined the spell. It was an inanimate, perfectly fine female body.”

“’Perfectly fine?’ Good to hear you worked so hard to find my replacement.”

“That’s not what I meant. And besides, how could you doubt my devotion to you? I studied the occult for you, Em. The fucking dark arts.”

“I don’t doubt your devotion, Griff. Just your methods. Now, is the boy still there?”

“Unfortunately for him, yes.”

“The sun is setting soon. We have to open the door.”

“No, we don’t, Emily. We open that door and we’ll be dust. The spell stays in stasis as long as we’re contained. Our bodies haven’t even decomposed upstairs. There’s still a chance that—”

“Griffin—”

“—that we could reanimate and then I’ll do the spell right next time. Your heart is still in your chest. I can get another body. I can do it. I can save you.”

“You’re wrong, Griffin. You wanted to save me and you failed. I’m dead. And if you let that boy out there die, too, you’ll have failed again, and I will never forgive you.”

7:19 p.m.

“Griffin—do you feel that? I didn’t know that fresh air could feel like this.”

“Emily, don’t go.”

“Something...I think something is happening. Are you with me, Griff? I can’t see you.”

“Wait—Em, please...”

“...Griff?”

“I'm sorry, Em.”

"I know."

7:22 p.m.

“Hello? The door, um, it’s open and I think there’s something out here so...I’m just going to come in now, okay?...Okay.”

“Hurry up!”

“Oh! Hi—so um, I think I lost my ball in your yard? I was playing baseball—well, maybe it’s not baseball if you’re playing by yourself. Anyway, my ball went over your fence and I was going to try and get it but then I saw the no-trespassing sign? With like a picture of a gun under it? I’m so, so sorry, but I really need to get my ball back ‘cause it’s not technically my ball. It’s my brother’s but he’s at college and he doesn’t go in his room anymore—”

“Shut the door, for fuck’s sake!”

“Oh, sorry. Okay. Um, should I lock it too? I’ll just lock it.”

“Thank you.”

“Um, so I can hear you? But I can’t see you? Is there like a speaker somewhere or something?”

“No, I’m right here.”

“Where?”

“In front of you.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Yes, I am. I’m dead. I’m a ghost.”

“No way.”

“Listen, you can keep saying no but I’ll keep being dead and being a ghost. So, how about we do something productive instead, hm? Look out the window and tell me what you see.”

“You can't see for yourself? I mean, that would make sense ‘cause you don’t have eyes. But wait, you don’t have a mouth and you’re talking—”

“Please. Please shut up and look out the window.”

“Okay. Uh...oh, there’s a lady.”

“A lady?”

“I think so? I mean, she’s all green and flaky...oh, she’s falling down. Um. I think she’s on fire?”

“What do you mean, you think she’s on fire?”

“Okay, sorry. She’s definitely on fire. We should help her—”

“No! Keep the door closed. She’s burning because the spell is broken. Em is...well, there’s no reason for that thing to stay around anymore.”

“She looks scary. Was she the thing I heard moving around outside?”

“Yes.”

“Was she going to hurt me?”

“Among other things, yes, I believe so.”

“Oh."

“She can’t hurt you now, but you should stay here until dawn, just in case. Don’t open the door before then for any reason.”

“Okay.”

“...That’s it? Just ‘okay’?”

“Um, yeah. Is there...should I say something else?”

“No. I’m just used to more...banter, I guess.”

“Oh.”

“There’s a sofa over there. You should try to get some sleep.”

“What’s upstairs?”

“Nothing. There’s nothing there anymore.”

“Oh, okay. Well, thanks, I guess. Will you be here in the morning?”

“Hm. I don’t suppose so. Don’t forget your baseball when you leave.”

“Oh, it’s not mine.”

“Fine. Anyway, good night.”

“Hey, you sound funny. Are you still here? Or like, are you in a different room?”

“Please stop talking so I can fade in peace.”

“Okay...Oh! My name’s Nathan, by the way.”

“I don’t care.”