THE SILK SCARF

I opened my eyes for some reason and turned my head to the left to look at the digital bedside clock.

It was two o'clock in the morning.

I heard the sound of something moving in my bedroom.

I could not see much in the dark, and I did not want to put the light on top of my head. All I could see was a shameless person standing still. I stayed gazing for some time, and the next thing I heard was the alarm clock buzzing loudly to inform me that it was seven o'clock in the morning.

 

I opened my tired eyes. I looked around and saw nothing except the gab of the curtains. I could see it was already light outside. I must have dreamt.

 

A week later, I went to bed earlier than usual, I had a migraine,  and I wanted to sleep it off. I woke up suddenly because I felt freezing. I did not hear anything. I sat up, and as I glanced at the alarm clock,  I  realised again that it was two o'clock. I scrutinised the room quickly and saw nothing except that  I  felt colder. Then, by the window, by the curtain, I saw it again. This time the figure was much closer to me, and although I could not make up clearly who it was, I noticed that it was tall and had long hair.  I  could not make out the sex.  I  kept staring at it with apprehension. I did not know if I was hallucinating,  dreaming or wide awake;  all  I knew was that  I  did not feel the migraine anymore.  I stayed sitting up longer this time, much longer, only to wake up with my back against the headboard. I remember what I saw that night,  but  I  was unsure;  I  was still confused whether this latest episode was actual or not. I started to get worried a bit, although I do not remember if I ever had slept without having a dream or sometimes even a nightmare.

 

The next night, I slept with my headlight on, and I slept like a baby. The following night, I did the same, only to find that the light was off. At first, I thought maybe the bulb ran out, but it lit when I switched it back on. The weird thing was that I didn't remember switching it off. Perhaps I did.

 

I kept sleeping with the light on for a long time, and I had no visitations in my dreams or reality. One Saturday night, I met some friends whom I hadn't seen for some time,  and we spent the evening together,  and  I  ended up very drunk. When the taxi took me home, I went to sleep with my clothes, forgetting to switch the light on top of my head.

 

I opened my eyes, but my hangover was terrible. I managed to squint at the clock, and I wasn't surprised to find it was two o'clock precisely. with a blurred vision,  I  could see the figure sitting at the edge of my bed, and I was sure that

if I had stretched my hand far enough, I would have been able to touch it. All I could see was a silhouette of a woman. I saw the shape of her breast. I did not move an inch, and although I was petrified, I did not scream. The woman did not move either,  and  I  kept observing her for some time.  We stood there like two bronze statues on a podium for all to see.

Who and what was this figure?  How did she enter my room?

All these questions in my mind remained unanswered. I must have shut my eyes for a few minutes only because the figure vanished from my sight. I got up quickly and went where it was sitting, but there were no creases on the sheet, or something was lying on it. This time I was sure that I didn,t hallucinate. I didn,t dream about the vision. I saw it with my eyes! The next question I asked was, what was I supposed to do? One thing for sure was that I was not going to mention it to anybody because if I did, they would either think it's the alcohol or that I take drugs or, much worse, that I lost my mind.

 

I’ve decided to wait and see what happens, and if it reappears, I will approach it.  If I  continue with this tale,  it means that  I came to no harm.

 

I prepared myself for the worst. I did not go out at all.  Instead,  I  stayed watching some  DVDs, choosing adventure films and comedies. I did not want to look at any scary movies. When the first film, “Where Eagles Dare”, ended two hours and thirty-eight minutes later, I got up from the couch, took out a bottle of whisky,  and half-filled a glass.  I  went to the  DVD  player and changed the disc for   “Soft   Beds and   Hard Battles”, a spoof war film starring Peter Sellers who played six different parts. When I switched it on, it was half-past eleven.

 

When I woke up, I realised that I had not watched the film and the television screen was blank except for the snow effect. The lounge was dark, and the only dimmed light came from the television. Sitting next to me was a woman with long black hair,  quite tall and slim, wearing a very light see-through dress and a fine red scarf around her neck. She was sitting sideways, and her face was facing me. I froze instantly, but for whatever reason,  I  was not afraid.  What am  I supposed to do to talk to her? I did not have to answer!

 

She stretched out her hand and touched my face smoothly.  It was surprisingly warm.  I  didn’t make a move and held my breath because I did not know what would happen next.  Then she moved her hand from my face and took my hand in hers, and started to feel my fingers.

“It's a habit of mine,” she said while moving her body a little bit closer to mine. When I saw her face, I saw how beautiful it was, except for her eyes, which were insipid.

 

“Who are you?” I asked naturally.

 

“I don't know. I have been in here for years, but nobody has been able to see me.”

 

“Are you a ghost?” asked cautiously.

​

“If I am, I’m not aware of it,” she kept feeling my fingers as she talked. “All I know is that you are the only one who could see me.” I did not know what to answer. “I have been watching you since you came to live here!” she told me.

 

“Three years! Why now?” I said curiously.

 

“I don’t know that either, but it was not long ago when I realised you started to notice me.”

 

“When you were at the corner of the room?”

 

“Yes.  I  wasn’t  sure  because  you did not see me  for  the  next  few days.”

“I saw you again by the curtain and last night on the  bed.”   I   explained,   “why   did   you   keep switching off the light?”

 

“I wanted you to notice me, and you did,” she smiled, melancholy.

Then it hit me. About a month ago, I went to my doctor because I was feeling down; he thought I was getting depressed,  and he prescribed me sertraline, which I was taking with alcohol. That must have been the reason; the pills mixed with alcohol must have triggered something  I don’t entirely understand.

Why do you keep fidgeting with my fingers?” I asked.

“I think because, for a long time, I was blind.”

 

“Was?”

 

“Yes, I was blind. I never saw anything, but one particular day, I had full vision.”

 

“That was great.”

 

“No, it wasn,t because as soon as I started to see, nobody else could see me!”

“I understand. You mean you were blind until you died!”

 

“Died?”

​

“Yes!”  I  tried to explain,  but  I  did not know where to start. “You must have died; otherwise, why is it that only  I  can see you.  Don’t  you remember anything before you could see?”

 

She went quiet but kept touching my fingers and my hand. She did not say another word. I thought she was trying to remember, and I could see she did.

 

“I was sleeping in my bed. I got fatigued. It was my twenty-seventh birthday, and my parents took me to the beach. They knew I liked the smell of the seawater and the breeze; even though that day was cold, I had enjoyed it. That is why I was tired. All of a sudden, I woke up choking. I could smell burning things,  and I heard a loud noise.” She stopped and looked at me.   “That   is   all   I remember before I started to see.”

 

“I understand. Your home must have caught fire, and you did not survive.  You died,  and that's why you started to have visions. There is no other explanation.” I said as I put my other hand on hers.  Seeing this,  she moved her hand,  gently pulled my head and placed it on her chest. I felt secure and euphoric and closed my eyes.

 

The following day, I woke to feel unsettled and tense. I was still on the couch, but she was gone. I thought I was going mad. I thought it must have been the whisky mixed with the two tablets that made me hallucinate. I wasn't comfortable. When I tried to open the top buttons of my shirt, I felt something around my neck. I pulled it off, and to my surprise and joy, it was the silk scarf my ghost was wearing that night.