Chapter 30 #2
Jesmine opened her mouth and then shut it. “Oh, um. You weren’t there for that.”
Soraya cleared her throat as a sudden blush blossomed on Jesmine’s cheeks.
“Yeah, okay. Anyway, Ahvi—I don’t know what happened to her, and her phone is out of service.
I think we could leave a note explaining everything and telling her where to meet us—or to stay clear of the apartment for a while.
She’s not going to be happy we have to move again, and—what is it? ”
Jesmine was shaking her head. She looked away from Soraya. “Look, Soraya, about Ahvi. She… wait, what’s up with your ears?”
Soraya cocked her head to the side at the sudden change in conversation. “What about my ears?” she asked, just as an image of her reflection flashed through her head.
Slowly, Soraya raised her hand to her ear, hoping for the slim chance that this part of her memories was something she’d dreamt up or hallucinated.
But as her fingers touched her ear and followed the edge of it, instead of tracing the normal curve, they traced a hard, unfamiliar point at the side of her head.
At the same time, Jesmine reached out a hand to touch her other ear, rubbing the point between her fingers, and then pinching it. Hard.
“Ow!” Soraya slapped Jesmine’s hand away. “That hurt!”
Jesmine stepped back in horror. “Eww, it feels real!”
Soraya scowled at her. “You didn’t have to pinch it like that.”
It was Jesmine’s turn to scowl. “Excuse the fuck out of me. How was I supposed to know that was your real ear? It sure as hell didn’t look like that yesterday—or our entire lives, might I add.”
Soraya pinched the bridge of her nose. “Just don’t do that again.”
“Just when you think you know someone,” Jesmine grumbled under her breath. “Are there any other secrets you’d like to tell me? You know, after knowing each other for eighteen years.”
Soraya’s jaw dropped. “Are you seriously butt-hurt right now?” Jesmine crossed her arms and looked away, her face clearly showing her hurt.
“I don’t know what the hell is up with my ears, or why weirdos are after me, Jesmine!
None of this makes any sense, and I’m freaking the fuck out right now. I don’t need this shit from you.”
Jesmine sniffed. “Whatever you say, Soraya—if that’s even your real name.”
Soraya had the real urge to throttle her friend, but they didn’t have time for this. Still, she supposed if she were in Jesmine’s shoes, she might react the same way.
“So, are you and Ahvi best friends now? Are y’all part of some secret organized fairy council or some shit?”
Soraya blinked, once again thrown for a loop by Jesmine’s words. It was one of her many irritating qualities. “I have no idea what that means. We don’t have time for this. Let’s go.”
Before she could continue, a sudden coldness crept into the air, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end and along her arms. Jesmine must have felt it too, as she also went mute.
They both stood still and listened—for what, they weren’t sure.
But after years of survival, they knew something wasn’t right.
It was as if the whole apartment complex had gone eerily quiet, as though the building itself was holding its breath. Soraya and Jesmine locked gazes, an unspoken message passing between them.
Slowly and as quietly as they could, they exited Jesmine’s room and stood in the living room, quieting their own breaths to listen more carefully. The lights flickered overhead, and the electric humming became more distinct in the stillness that surrounded them.
Thud.
Soraya turned her head toward the door as another thud echoed in the hallway. “Did you hear that?” she whispered.
Jesmine shook her head. “I can’t hear anything… but something doesn’t feel right,” she whispered back. “I can’t explain it.”
Soraya knew precisely what she meant. Then she heard the sound of booted footsteps echoing up and down the hallway, growing closer and closer to their door. One unhurried step after another.
Soraya cautiously approached the door, relieved to see it was still locked. The footsteps stopped. A black shadow fell across the peephole, and without a second thought, Soraya held her breath and leaned forward to peer through the fisheye lens.
It took her eyes a moment to adjust—and another moment to comprehend what she was seeing.
A black mass filled her view, the hallway light seeping around its edges. Just as Soraya was about to lean away, she paused. She heard the sound of…sniffing.
Someone—or something—was sniffing heavily at their door. She watched as the black mass swayed this way and that, the sniffing continuing relentlessly.
The bad feeling in the pit of her stomach tripled as she realized the black mass she was looking at was a wide-brimmed hat.
The sniffing cut off abruptly, and the figure on the other side of the door straightened. Blood-red eyes with pitch-black irises stared back at her through the peephole. A jagged smile spread across its decayed lips as the horrifyingly familiar monster’s gaze bore directly into hers.
It was too late to leave.