ENDS

Third person p. o. v.

The little girl blinked at least twice to be sure she was awake and not still dreaming, but the environment still looked the same.

An old creaked sofa directly opposite her line of sight, a few wooden stools scattered here and there, torn curtains and dusty shelves.

Louisa could swear that this was a set for a movie, and the shadow cast nature of the room wasn’t helping matters.

She used her hands to elevate herself from the cushion she was placed upon, and she may have used a little too much force because the moment her tiny hands came in contact with the plushy surface, she raised a blinding array of dust.

And she couldn’t help but sneeze. Twice actually.

That was when she began to hear shuffling from the other side of the four cornered enclosure.

“I think she’s awake” a voice whispered ever so loudly like it was shushing something.

” Why you telling me? You’re the one who’s good with kids” another distinct voice managed to whisper too.

Needless to say, Louisa was already scared to her bones but she had no intentions of lying there while two ghosts contemplated on who should eat her first.

To her, she was braver than that.

So as they kept arguing, she got down from where she was laid. Using the thing she later realized was a bed as a support whilst she tried getting down from it’s height.

” You suggested we bring her!”

” I suggested no such thing. I just couldn’t stand letting her get killed!”

” So I was having an auditory malfunction last night?”

” Possibly!… I mean when do you not?”

The two kept on debating meanwhile Louisa had landed safely on the ground.

Without hesitation, she began heading in the direction of the voices. Even though her feet were trembling, she had the urge to just do it.

So she did. Walking slowly yet swiftly so they wouldn’t hear her soft platter of steps approaching. In a tiny way, she was eager to see what ghosts looked like.

” Dude, I can’t let that girl see me”

” Why can’t you?”

” Have you forgotten!?? Seriously??”

” Oh!.. shit! Now I get you.. leave. I’ll go check up on her” he shushed his partner who in turn didn’t waste a second to run out of the room.

  But before the man who was left could step out of his hiding place, a tiny girl dressed in a blue night gown appeared before him and almost gave him a fright.

” I can see you” Louie said, fully confused on why she could see a ghost in polychrome and why he has feet.

Definitely different from the floating white sheet she had expected to see.

” Yes. Errr… Yes you can” the young man responded, like he had been caught.

” You have feet” she commented again. Now having doubts that she’s really awake.

” Yes.. I do” now the man was confused, the girl was scaring him a bit. According to him, just a bit.

” Can you fly?”

If his facial expressions could spell out words, it would be utmost shock.

“No. I can’t fly” he replied, using his side view to confirm if his partner had really left him alone with a strange child. He could have at least given him a warning.

” What type of ghosts can’t fly? Am I still dreaming?” She questions and then uses the back of her palms to rub her eyes properly.

Now he understood her current behavior. She had assumed he was a ghost.

But that doesn’t make her any less strange, I mean what kind of a kid hears ghosts and begins to communicate with them.

” I’m not a ghost hun” he responded to her previous question and took a step forward in her direction.

” Then why were you whispering?”

” Honestly, I don’t know” he replied again with a smile on his face that the baby girl didn’t fail to reciprocate.

” Okay, Mr not ghost. My name is Louisa. What’s yours?” She asked as she finally closed the huge gap between them with seven steps and extended her little right hand for a shake.

He didn’t even know when a chuckle had escaped his lips at her words, all he knew was he saw himself returning her handshake with an intent of replying her question.

“I’m Santiago”

“I know a place called Santiago too!” Louisa said with glee and a very bright smile on her face.

” I think you’re talking about San Diego”

” San ..?”

Santiago shook his head in disbelief that he was actually going to be a babysitter for the meantime. At least till they decide what to do with her.

But first there are other things to be taken care of.

” Are you hungry?” He asked but it was only to be formal, he knew she’d definitely say yes.

He’s being formal with a three year old.. today couldn’t get any funnier.

Just as expected, she nodded to his question and he was glad to leave the room for a while.

” I’ll be right back, go sit over there” he said to her as he pointed out the only chair in the area that wasn’t covered completely in dust.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

” You’re gonna leave me?” She quietly asked with confusion and somewhat fear in her eyes. She didn’t want to be left alone in such a scary atmosphere.

” I’ll be right back okay? Here” Santiago says as his hands run against the wall to switch on the lights.

Immediately, the florescent bulb illuminates the entire room and it didn’t feel so scary to Louie anymore.

Santiago inserts his hands into his back pockets and fishes out a laser pointer he had carried along with him for the mission of yesterday.

At least it was harmless, the most it could do was to show a red light. So he handed it over to the girl, to serve as a little distraction and also keep her busy while he gets her breakfast.

And it worked, as soon as she pressed the button and the red light came shining through, her fascination got the better over her fear and she slowly walked towards the directed chair.

That gave him the opportunity to slip out without her noticing.