The House of Shadows

[PmTick]

Johnny decided he would search the house for anyone else. He figured whoever was shooting at him last night had to be a real person and not one of these ghosts. He began his search on the main floor.

Walking though a heavy oak door, Johnny found himself in the kitchen. To his surprise there were two people sitting at the table, a man and a woman. The man was heavy set, dressed in a staind red t-shirt and ripped jeans. His black hair was trimmed shorter than his thick mustache. The woman had curley red hair and dressed herself in a blue housecoat. The couple seemed to be discussing something rather important. "Listen Leslie what's done is done, he won't have to suffer anymore?" "But Ray he was your brother!" Johnny decided he better interupt before the conversation got much deeper, "Hi my name is John I'm looking for a way out of here do you know where the exit is?"

"Honey he was sick, he deserved to burn in hell!" The woman began crying. Obviously they were ignoring him. "Hello? I just want to get out of here!" Johnny rushed toward the table and waved in between the couple only to see them vanish before his eyes. He ran back into the main hall and began shouting at the top of his lungs. "HELP Any human beings around here?? HELP!!"

 

[Quiet_Cool]

Jack

When the man screamed, the boy turned his head suddenly, loking toward the sound.
I got up and went over to where he stood, obviously freaked by something. here, it could have been anything...
"Calm down," I instructed, holding my hands out as if I intended to tel him to stop. More likely, I was thinking he might rush me, and those hands might stop or at least slow him down.
"It's hard at first," I said, "But it'll be impossible if you don't calm down..."

 

[PmTick]

Johnny stopped screaming. Staring at the man for a minute, he tried to compose his thoughts. He started at the man, and seeing as how the man stared back, he must be a real person and not one of these apparitions. "Who are you and what the hell is going on here? Where is the exit?"

 

[Quiet_Cool]

Jack

An exit?
"How about the door," I replied, pointing to it, just behind him a short distance. Was he blind, or insane?
"Bu it won't do you much good," I added. "If you leave...well, leave, then you'll see..."

 

[PmTick]

OOC: Hey is this still alive?

Johnny answered Jack, "Oh yeah tough guy, take a look at this!" He flung the door open to reveal the wall had disappeared. He turned and looked in disbelief, "..but there were bricks and....nevermind." Johnny ran out of the house and headed back to his apartment.

 

[Quiet_Cool]

Jack

I watched him go, thinking, "Yeah...see you in a few hours, buddy..."

OOC: Dunno...everything was too slow there for a while. Not sure what's going on...I think Lady Violet is out though.

 

[PmTick]

Johnny ran back to his apartment, "Funny though I drove here."

OOC: I'm gonna wait a bit to see if things are still kickin' before posting again. I figure a lot of people are probably on break.

 

[Quiet_Cool]

Jack

Not long after the man was gone, I was sitting on the couch, looking around, noticing that the girl who'd arrived the day before was gone. I didn't concern myself with it. If she'd found the way out, she was better off than I was.
The little boy came hurrying back into the room again, grabbing me by the arm and pulling at me.
"He's got it," the boy whispered. "Hurry, before Dad sees us..."
I just looked at him questioningly.
"C'mon," he insisted, then let go and hurried away by himself. "Too late," he whispered back at me.
I heard footsteps on the stairs then, moving down them, then turning into the kitchen in a hurry. Heavy steps, but not too heavy.
I went into the kitchen to see the teenaged kid I'd seen upstairs, leaning against the counter, one hand held over a lump beneath his shirt near his belt, the other cradling his forehead as though he had a migraine. Tears wet his cheeks, but he wasn't outwardly crying, or sobbing, or making a sound at all save for his heavy breathing, as though he was exhausted.
"You okay?" I asked.
He didn't respond, apparently unable to hear me still. Another try wouldn't hurt anything, I decided.
"I said..."
"I heard you," he said.
I froze, having started across the floor toward him.
"You...did?"
He nodded.
"Could you hear me upstairs, in the...?"
He just looked at me, his eyes blank, his face confused, yet not really caring.
He couldn't then, I decided, or maybe didn't want to be able. to.
"Well," I began, "Are you alright?"
He shrugged, then looked down at his feet.
"My old man," he began, after silence had made us both weary. "He...uh..."He just shook his head.
"I don't know," he said. "I don't know how to say it."
"I don't care about your old man," I replied. "Are you okay?"
He looked me as if just then realizing I was there.
"WHo are you?" He asked. "How'd you get here?"
"That's what I want to know..." I muttered. "I'm Jack, and I don't really remember how I got here..."
He nodded, as if I'd just made sense."Where the FUCK are you?!!" His father's voice came down the stairs, making him jump.
He hand tightly gripped the lump beneath his shirt.
"I have to go," he said, turning and heading toward the back door, which led into a small yard, surrounded by trees.
I stepped over toward the window, seeing him stop near the trees edge, and reach beneath his shirt.
"You were in my study, weren't you, you little shit?" The man shouted from upstairs. Somethng crashed, but I didn't notice, I was watching out the window, wondering what the kid was doing. "You better not have gotten into my desk drawers again!"
Desk drawers? I thought, In the study, where the kid had wanted to show me...
It sank I then, what must have been in there, just as the kid in the yard reached beneath the shirt and brought the revolver into view.
"SHit!" I spat, moving toward the door. I was outside inan instant, heading toward him, sprinting, knowing there wasn't much I could do.

 

[PmTick]

Johnny ran into his apartment, locking the door frantically. Sweat had drenched his sweatshirt as if it were a bar rag. He pushed his couch in front of the door, intent on not letting anyone in. Finally he took a deep breath and walked to his bedroom, crashing on the single bed. "Like to see some fucker try to take me back to that house now!"