Faye's Diary

Chapter 6: Remembering

I am eight years old. I am sleeping in my bed. I am dreaming that someone is breaking in to my room. I am scared. Then I wake up and find that it is true. A girl is in my room, looking at all of my things. I freeze, not wanting to move, not wanting to alert the girl’s attention.

I wanted my Mum but I was too scared to get out of bed.

“Hello,” I tried to say, but my voice had cracked and was now nothing more than a whisper. But apparently, a whisper was enough because the girl whirled around and gave me a penetrating stare.

“Faye. Faye, it’s me Charlotte; your sister.” The girl’s eyes welled up with tears but I just stared at her. “You’re so pretty Faye.”

I thought she was pretty too. In fact she looked just like me, but older. Secretly, I hoped I would look like her when I was older. But at that moment all I could say was, “Are you a ghost?”

She looked at me and leaned forward slightly. “A ghost?”

“Yes. My sister Charlotte is dead. She died when I was three. My Mummy told me.” I had said to her.

The girl began to tremble, “Dead? Dead! She has told you that I am dead?” The girl was shouting at me now, and crying.

“Mummy!” I screamed and screamed and screamed that night, unable to comprehend the information that this strange girl was giving me. “Mum, Mum!” I cried and screamed for what seemed like forever.

“No, please don’t do that! Stop, shush now, don’t cry.” But soon, we heard my Mum running down the corridor towards my room. That was the point when the girl swung her legs up to the window and flung herself down. She must have climbed down the ivy consuming the wall of our house, but I never saw her again.

Then my door flung open.

“Faye, Faye! Don’t worry, Mummy’s here now, shush, Mummy is here. Calm down, I’m here now. What happened darling?” She was stroking my hair and patting my back and I leaned into her and smelled her lavender scent. I cried into her shoulder as she picked me up and put me down on her bed.

“I love you Faye,” Mum said to me. And that was the last thing I remember before I slipped back into sleep...

“Mum!” I shot up, screaming hysterically. “You lied, you lied, Mum, you lied. Mum!”

“Faye? Faye, I am coming for you Faye. Faye, don’t worry, I’m here now.” My door burst open but by now I was past listening.

“Stay away from me! Leave me alone, get off me! You lied to me, I hate you!” I screamed and cried, just like in my dream Just like on that night. I had always thought that I had been dreaming but now I knew that I had not been.

I jumped out of bed and ran over to the window. With some difficultly I opened it.

“No,” Mum screamed, obviously thinking I was going to jump out of it. “Faye, listen to me, I love you, you are my little girl and I will always love you.”

I leaned out of the window and screamed, “Charlotte! Charlotte! Please, Charlotte!”

“She’s gone, she’s gone Faye. Please, she’s gone,” Mum pulled me inside and I sank to the floor sobbing.

Mum shut the window and pulled me into her room. She lay me down on her bed and hugged me tightly. It was only then that I saw that she was crying too. Maybe she had been crying when I was eight as well but I just didn’t see.

“I love you Faye,” Mum said to me. And that was the last thing I remember before I slipped back into sleep...