CH. 1 The Move
(Liam POV)
I get it; everyone thinks I'm crazy for doing this, but I want to do it.
I want a fresh start. No, I need a fresh start. For myself, for my mental state.
This is what I need.
This is why I packed everything, sold the house I was living in, purchased another home for a price, and why I am moving.
Everyone keeps telling me that there are other ways of healing, that I don't need to do this.
I've heard it all; I know that there are other ways of healing, but this is what I want, and this is the way I will choose to heal.
After being in a relationship for three years, it ended a month ago.
A relationship that I didn't see ending the way it did, my girlfriend sleeping with our neighbor.
Our married neighbor who had a wife and kids.
I say "had" because that neighbor's wife has started the divorce process right after I told her and showed her proof of the affair that my girlfriend, well ex-girlfriend, was having with her husband.
Not only that, our very loving neighbors in the neighborhood all spread the story of my cheating girlfriend finally being caught by me.
Almost everyone in the neighborhood knew about the affair that was going on with those two, except the neighbor's wife and me at the time.
And none of them thought to tell us.
I suppose it would ruin their entertainment if they did, but it seems me finally catching my ex-girlfriend in the act just brought more entertainment to the neighborhood.
This explains why I am moving; I couldn't live in that neighborhood anymore, not the area filled with neighbors that I would invite to barbecues and gatherings but had not let me know that I was with a woman sleeping with another man.
Not neighbors who continued to entertain themselves on an affair plot, not caring that there were real people involved, that these real people had feelings and would be hurt.
I couldn't do it; I couldn't continue living next door to a mother who was going through a divorce because her husband slept with my ex-girlfriend, and neither of us knew. We were two idiots of the neighborhood.
I couldn't bear myself to look at those kids in that home, finally coming to the knowledge that their dad cheated on their mom with Ivy from next door.
Yes, I know I wasn't the one who cheated, but it still bothered me, it still upset me, and I just couldn't do it.
So, when I kicked Ivy out of my house, I put it up for sale, and of course, I caught glances from the neighbors, but I didn't care because where I was going, no one was going to know my story, no one was going to know what I went through in that neighborhood.
The thing that blows my mind is when you're finally out of a relationship that wasn't good for you is when you realize everything.
The signs that you would missed before, becoming clear once you were out, Ivy most likely never really loved me.
She liked the success that came with me, the family name, the ins in gatherings she couldn't get into before she met me. Before she started hanging around my family. This is what came with being from a prosperous family in name and fortune.
No one in my family liked her.
No one but me, even my family pets, didn't like her, and I suppose I should have taken it as a sign.
"Ugh, fuck Liam. Just stop thinking about it; a fresh start. You're going to have a fresh start." I said to myself. I looked out the window of my car and looked at the new area I would be living in.
My phone started ringing, and I looked at the screen and saw it was my dad calling me.
I let out a sigh and answered.
"Hey, Dad," I said on the phone.
"Liam, son. Are you sure about this move?" My dad asked me again. He's been asking me about it since the moment I put my old house up for sale.
"Yes, Dad, I've already purchased my new home and have things moved in already. I am sure about the move." I said to him, even throwing a fake chuckle in there.
I truly wanted my dad to buy it, but him being my dad, of course, didn't buy that fake chuckle of mine.
"Liam, listen. Son, I know you're going through a lot right now, and I know what happened was horrible.-" My dad who was speaking to me with a soft understanding voice didn't even get the chance to finish his sentence; my mother's voice cut in with curse words.
"Horrible? that dirty two-timing slut cheated on my fucking son, my fucking flesh, the best fucking flesh she would have ever had! Cheated on my son and had the nerves to live in that house, to sleep with that man in my son's house!" My mother yelled, causing me to wince.
That was another reason why I moved and bought new furniture, and sold the old ones, including my mattress.
"Kat, don't- He's on the phone, and you're not the only one upset about this, he is too, and he's hurt." My dad said softly to my mom.
"I'll fucking ruin that hoe; I'll ruin her completely; she messed with my blood." My mother said.
I could hear my dad moving away from her. My mother was someone that could go on with her rants for hours.
My dad probably moved into another room as I didn't hear my mother anymore, He said my name and let out another sigh on the phone.
"Son, sorry about that. I know it isn't something you need to hear now; you know your mom is just... expressing her anger." My dad said.
"I know; she sounds angrier than me," I said, letting out another fake laugh.
My dad sighed again. My father was someone that sighed a lot when he didn't know what else to say.
"So, how is the area looking like?" He asked; I knew what my dad was doing. He was changing the subject.
He knew I was still angry about this, but he didn't want me to discuss it or think about it anymore.
"The area is really nice; I like it a lot. There are some stores that I want to check out as well." I said to him.
"That's good; I'm sure your mother and I will like it when we come down for a trip. How far are you away from home?" My dad asked me.
"About five minutes," I told him.
"Okay, I'll talk to you till you get to the driveway; sounds good?" He asked.
I smiled; it was a real one.
"Yes, dad, sounds good," I said, and that is precisely what we did; we talked about anything that came to mind until I got to the driveway.
"Alright, Dad, I'm here. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Love you and tell mom I love her too." I told my dad.
"Will do son, love you and stay safe." My dad said, ending the call.
I got out of my car and heard someone called out to me.
"Mr. Remington."
I turned around and saw a blonde woman by the entrance of my house.
I walked towards her.
"Yes?" I asked.
"Hi, I'm Pam. We never met directly or spoke, but I am the one who sold you the house through the real estate agent." She said.
As I stared at her, she didn't look happy but sad about it.
Did she not want to sell the house?
"Is there something wrong?" I asked her.
"No." She said softly.
"No. I just didn't get the chance to clear out everything in the house. The attic still has a lot of things in there, and uh-" She said, letting out a sigh.
"This was my best friend's house, and she loves this house. She saved up for years for this house, and I wasn't going to sell it, but the renovation on the shop that she started won't be able to be done without more income, and I needed more income because the shop is also her dream and-" She started to say but stopped.
I supposed she noticed the confused look on my face and let out a fake chuckle and scoff.
"I'll get the things out of the attic out soon; I just wanted to ask you if it's okay." She said.
I tilted my head on the side; I was told that everything in the house would be cleared away.
"Is it just the attic?" I asked her.
"Yes, just the attic." She said to me.
"Okay, that's fine," I said; relief immediately filled her face, and she gave me a small smile; it looked forced.
"Thank you. I appreciate it, honestly. I hope you treasure this house." She said with emotions being heard in her voice.
"I will, it was an excellent deal, and it looks beautiful," I said.
"Yeah... It was nice meeting, you Mr. Remington. I'll leave you to your unpacking; thank you again." She said, giving me a nod and a small smile before she walked away.
Something tells me that this woman didn't want to sell this house.
I had so many questions but decided not to ask them; she didn't seem to want to talk about anything else anymore.
I looked at the house and smiled.
It is a beautiful house, it's too big for one person, but I'll manage and this house was now mine.
I took the key out of my pocket, walked to the front door, and unlocked it.
The movers had placed everything in my house already; the new furniture and the boxes I needed to unpack were downstairs.
It was my first time seeing the house in person.
A wild card I played, everything I saw about the house was from pictures and videos my lawyer sent me, plus the facetime video I had with him while he was standing in the house.
The house looked as breathtaking inside as it did outside.
I also had my lawyer do some grocery shopping and stacked up my fridge for me.
I walked towards the kitchen and went into the fridge.
"Thank God, I had the fridge stacked. I don't feel like going grocery shopping today." I said as I took out a bottle of water.
I took a couple of sips and stopped when I heard a noise.
I looked around me.
"What was that?" I asked myself.
Another thud came.
I walked towards the stairs and stayed silent.
"I could be one of those people you see in those movies who yell out 'Hello, is there anyone up there?' or I could just go up there quietly and see for myself," I said.
I quietly walked up the stairs and heard another thud.
My eyes widened.
It was coming from the attic.
The same attic that the woman said she still needed to move things from.
Was there something that slipped and fell?
The metal string attached to the Attic latch was hanging, I pulled it open, and the ladder fell.
I climbed the ladder and got into the attic.
It was a pretty big attic; it wasn't those small crampy ones; this one was one where I could fully stand and move around in; I could even potentially turn it into a room later on.
I turned on the lights in the attic, and I looked around surprised; there were many cool-looking things in the attic, some amazing-looking antiques as well.
"Wow, this is beautiful," I said, walking towards this old-looking clock.
"Gosh, look at the details on this thing, wow," I said, touching it. I turned my attention to this record player, which caused my eyes to widened.
"Oh my gosh, this is the Stanly 1895 class record player," I said.
"Fuck, I'm scared to touch it," I said, staring at it.
What are all these things doing here? These things are worth a lot of money; why did this woman not have time to move them all? Does she even know how much they're worth?
I moved myself to look at something else, and it was covered; when I pulled the cover down, it was an ancient antique-looking mirror.
"Wow, it's like everything here has a story. I wonder when she's coming here to get all this stuff." I said as I looked at the mirror.
I stilled, the small smile on my face dropped, looking at my reflection in the mirror showed me that someone was standing eight feet away from me.
My heart was slamming against my chest.
Who the fuck?
When the fuck?
There was no one in here, no one that I could see that is.
"Who the fuck are you?" I said, turning around, and the person who was standing behind me wasn't there.
Chills ran through my body, and I knew goosebumps were starting to form on my arms.
I know I saw someone there. There was someone behind me when I looked in the mirror.
I turned to face the mirror again to see if the person's reflection would be there, but they weren't.
I need to leave the attic.
I turned around and came face to face with a woman.
I yelled and fell back.
"who, who are you?" I asked the woman.
"You can see me?" She asked.
When I saw her clearly, she had on a flower crown with red and grey roses on; she was a black woman, she was beautiful. Breathtaking, but this whole thing was scary, she was in my house and I had no idea who she was.
She needs to go.
"Of course I can see you; how did you get into my house?" I said.
Her facial expression turned into an angry one.
"Get out." She said.
"Excuse me? Woman, I am going to call the cops on you." I said, getting up and going down the ladder that led me out of the attic.
I quickly rushed downstairs and went into the kitchen where I left my phone, I turned around, and she was standing face to face with me, which caused me to jump back.
"How the fuck did you get down here so-" I started to say, but she cut me off.
"Get out now." She said.
"What?! You get out, this is my house, and I am calling the police on you." I said.
She tilted her head; a smile appeared on her face.
"Okay, call them. I'll wait right here." She said.
I raised a brow.
"You think I won't call them?" I said to her.
"You should start running because they will arrest you for trespassing," I said to her.
"No, I know you will call the cops, and I'll be right here when they come. I won't leave. I won't be leaving at all." She said.
Her serious tone cause chills to run down my back again, this woman was crazy. She's definitely a threat, I need to be careful around her.
I dialed 911 on my phone.
I stared at her as I reported to the dispatcher that an insane woman was in my house and she refuses to leave.
"Insane?" She said after I ended the call.
Her facial expression looked pissed.
"Insane? You haven't seen insane yet." She said in a low tone.
"They are on their way, and when they come, I want you out," I said to her; she let out a loud laugh.
It was almost like she didn't think the cops would kick her out.
"How did you even get in here?!" I asked her.
"I live here." She said in a calm voice.
"You what? Live here? No, listen, lady-" I started to say, but she raised her hand.
"My name is Faith." She said, looking at me.
"I think we should be on terms of knowing each other names." She said, tilting her head and analyzing me.
"What's your name?" She asked.
Faith? Her name is Faith. It was a nice name, and oddly it fit her, but I didn't want to be in a friendly mood.
"My name is Liam, although this will be our last time seeing each other," I said.
"No, considering that we'll be living together, I don't think it will be." She said.
"You said what now?" I said to her.
Living together? Has she gone mad? Does she think I'm going to let her live here? I came here to live alone, not with anyone. Especially a stranger who broke into my new house somehow.
As soon as she's out, I'm calling a security company and getting cameras with a security alarm.
A knock came from the front door.
"That's the police, Faith. I suggest you get your pretty self ready to leave." I said, walking towards the front door.
She got up as well and walked behind me.
I opened the door to two police officers.
"Sir, you reported that someone was in your house?" The officer asked.
"Yes, she won't leave, and I have no idea how she got in here," I said, moving to the side so they could see her.
"Is she still in the house?" The officers ask.
I turned to look at them with a confused expression.
"Yes, she's right there," I said, nodding my head towards Faith, who was directly behind me, standing in perfect view.
"Where?" The other officer asked.
"Right here," I said, pointing to Faith. Was this man blind? Why the fuck did they send a blind fucking cop to my house?!
"Sir... There's no one there." The other officer said.
"What?" I said, almost breathlessly. Still pointing at Faith. Who was smiling?
"There's no one there from where you're pointing. You're pointing at no one. Is she somewhere else?" The officer asked me.
"What?" I asked in disbelief.
"Isn't this the house that the Antique shop owner used to live in?" The other officer asked the officer next to him.
"Yeah, it is." The other officer said.
"And I guess, he just bought it and move in." The officer said.
"Sir, if there's no one in your house, we are going to go." The officer said.
I stood there, not being able to do anything or even say anything.
They stood there staring at me for a couple of minutes and shook their heads.
"Welcome to town, sir." The officer said.
"Please call us for any real emergencies." He said, and they both turned around to leave.
A whisper came into my ear.
"Who's house did you say this was again." Her voice said as I turned around and faced her.
She was still a good amount of feet away from me. How was it that I heard her whisper in my ear? How come the officers didn't see her? What the hell is going on?
(*Kassandra Speaks*)
Happy Halloween Month! Yayyy!!!! This story will be updated every day till the last day of October! Are you already! Just like what I did with "Handcuffed During The Holidays," I will be doing it with this story!
Give this chapter a VOTE & COMMENT!!! Because this story is about to get scary, interesting, good, with some humor, of course. It won't be too frightening, as it's a fun Halloween story after all :)
See you all in the next chapter.
-Kassandra Vivu
P.S interesting details. The clock picture is 2M, the Record Player is 2,999.00, and the mirror is from the renaissance.