The Empty Building
by Raymond Paquette
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Table of Contents parts 1, 2, 3 |
part 1
It’s been a few days since I’ve heard from my friend Chihiro, and I’m a little worried. He doesn’t go to my school, but I’ve known him since we were babies. Our parents would always get together and chat about everything while we played.
He even missed saying goodbye to A-ko when she left yesterday to move to America for junior high. Ignoring her is so totally not like him that I’m positive something’s wrong. I was jealous of those two and thought that they would start dating. He even said so, though she never confirmed it. She’s not coming back for at least five years, so I know she was disappointed. I admit I was kind of happy about it. It’ll give me a chance to get bigger than her. So that’s a win for me.
Chihiro lives in a big apartment building tucked between several older apartments with a path leading to the main road. I like going there because it has a huge play area, and it’s quiet. The revving of the cars and bikers that ride past my apartment late at night wakes me up.
The apartment building is newer than the other ones around it. The tenants are so friendly and willing to have a chat. The kids are always playing, and you can hear laughter coming from every part of the building. I want to go there every day, even if sometimes it feels like someone is watching me.
Today though, the building is different. It’s almost as if its energy has died. The sun is still in the sky, but it’s dark around the building, and nobody is hanging around outside. There’s not even a hint of movement. I know it’s too early for the cram school on the first floor to close, but it’s pitch black, and the fifty or so umbrellas are gone from the stand outside it.
Looking in the school window, it doesn’t seem as inviting as I once thought it was. It used to be packed full of kids studying for the entrance tests to high school and university. It scares me, to tell the truth. There is a thick layer of dust everywhere, on the reception desk and the floor; it coats my hands black, kind of thick. There is no way that this is a week old. This can’t be real. Could they be filming a commercial? I look for cameras, but I don’t see any. The eerie feeling of death hasn’t gone away.
Before I try the front door, I head to the back on a hunch. I look up at the balconies, but I can’t see anything in the windows, including curtains. Usually, I can see a lot of clothes and futons hanging out to dry, but today they’re empty. I walk farther back and stare up. What’s going on here? It’s like an empty skeleton.
I scan the rooms, looking for Chihiro’s apartment on the eighth floor but, like the others, there is still no sign of anyone. There is only one room with curtains still in them. It’s on the ninth floor directly above my friend’s apartment.
A flock of gulls takes off from Chihiro’s balcony. His mother would never have stood for that. She hates birds with a passion. I once saw her scream in terror and run into the bathroom when one touched down on her balcony. We loved talking about that, and Chihiro just couldn’t explain why his mother would react that way.
I run back to the main entrance and open the door, a little out of breath. The lobby is the same. I have a key to his apartment at home, but not the front door. I try his intercom, room 803, expecting he’ll tell me not to worry, but even though I let it ring for several minutes, nobody answers. Getting desperate, I push the buttons for some of the other rooms in the building, hoping for something, anything, but still no answer.
Finally, I push the button for room 903, the one with curtains. It rings and rings like the others. I think it’s just as dead, but suddenly it clicks and there is an open connection. Now, can I find out what’s going on?
“Hello? Is anybody there?” Silence. I don’t know why. I know I heard the click of someone picking up. Maybe they think I’m the TV company harassing them.
“Can you tell me what happened to this place?” I ask. Some white noise, then a click again as it shuts off. I don’t like what’s happening. How can everyone here just disappear so quickly? This place is getting too creepy, and the feeling that someone is watching me is getting stronger. It’s time I get my mother. Maybe she could get in touch with Chihiro’s mother, but I have to pry her away from her game for that.
“Mom, can you call Chihiro? I tried his apartment but there was no answer. It’s like he disappeared!” I shout, flipping off my shoes. My mom is busy playing a video game on her tablet and doesn’t look up as I come in.
“Hi, dear. Did you straighten out your shoes right? Go wash your hands.” She still doesn’t look up from the game. I hate that stupid thing. She cares more for it than me. I swear if she didn’t have to charge it, she would have it with her every second.
“Mom, I’m serious. Can you call Chihiro? I’m really worried about him.”
“Okay, Shin. Go wash your hands; I’ll call him.”
Grumbling, I wash them and come back. “Mom, can you call Chihiro now?” I stand in front of her with my hands on my hips.
“Did you get all the soap off of your hands?” She still hasn’t looked up from her game.
“Yes, of course.” I shove them in her face and drip water on her tablet.
“Hey, they’re still wet! Go dry them off. And don’t forget to gargle.” She jerks her head back and points at the towel. I stomp there, dry them off, gargle, and take a deep breath to relax. When I come back, I ask her again to call Chihiro.
“Sure, dear. Who is he? What’s his number?” she asks me, and my jaw drops.
“Mom. Chihiro, my best friend? We went over there last week for what was supposed to be a few minutes, stayed the whole afternoon and had lunch there. It was great.”
“Sorry, I don’t remember any Chihiro. Where does he live?” Again, with the stupid question.
“Just over there in the new building between the two older ones. The one you can just make out if you stand in the corner of the balcony.”
“That new building?”
“Yes.”
“Nobody lives there. It’s been empty since they finished it a few years ago. I think the bottom dropped out of the market, and nobody wants to move to a place with no parking. It’s too bad. I hear the location is great.”
“That’s crazy. I’ve been inside there many times. We went there just last week.” I go to the front door closet and pull out the key his mother gave us. “See. She gave us a key to the place.” I wave it in her face. She doesn’t look up from her game.
“Last week, let me check my diary.”
I relax a little. She’ll believe me now. She writes everything down in there. Even how many times she poops. I put the key in my pocket.
“What day was it?”
“Wednesday.”
“On Wednesday last week, we went to the video store and rented the new zombie movie. You got the new monster anime. Nope, nothing about meeting this boy. Sorry, dear, but I have to make dinner.” She stood up while I was left with my mouth hanging open.
I followed her. “We went to his house. We had fried rice for dinner, and we’ve been there many times. You can’t just forget something like that.” I stomp my foot and glare at her. “Did those games mess with your brain or are you hiding something?” I refuse to believe this.
“Enough! Go to your room and do your homework. You don’t get to speak to me like that!” She points to my room, and I march in, slamming the door. I’m shaking with rage. This isn’t over.
People don’t just disappear like this.
* * *
I wake up early on Saturday, so I can sneak out and head to Chihiro’s apartment. With how my mother was acting yesterday, I wouldn’t put it past her to forget about me as well, just because I didn’t put my shoes right and left them in a mess. After dinner, she spent so long lecturing me about the proper way to behave that it was almost midnight before I could get to bed. If she does put the game down, she always overcompensates in the other direction.
As I walk up to the tall building, I look at everything. I notice water leaking from the plants around the outside, so I know somebody is taking care of them. Compared to yesterday, the front looks swept, and the lobby just inside the security doors is clear of any dust. It’s almost too normal.
Going inside, I try every room with the intercom, skipping room 903. I’m going to save that one for last. I thought about doing it first, but as I hovered over it, my finger shook, and I couldn’t touch it. I let each room ring ten times, but every time it’s the same static and silence. I even try the door a few times, pounding on the glass to attract the attention of anyone in there, but it’s no use.
It’s time to try 903. Shaking, I ring the room, and just like yesterday, the ringing doesn’t stop until the tenth time, and it connects. This time though, I stand away from the camera and pretend to be the parcel delivery guy.
“Black Cat Delivery. We have a package for you.” I try to use a deeper tone, but it still sounds like a kid’s voice.
I wait for an eternity, but finally, the door buzzes open. I grab it and hurry inside. I’ve made it past the first hurdle. Now it’s time to find my friend.
At the front entrance, it’s quiet. Dead. There doesn’t seem to be a single sound coming from anywhere. And the dust is back. I can see that the lights are still working. There is a light in the manager’s office. However, when I peer inside, there’s nobody there.
I look at the video screens that he has in the office. They show the security camera feeds clearly, but there’s nothing on them either, even though they seem to be working. There is no evidence that anything is moving anywhere. The whole apartment complex feels silent. Not quiet, dead silent. It feels like this whole place is in another world.
There’s dust everywhere. Enough dust to see an outline of my hand where I placed it on the front counter. I draw a happy face, but it comes out kind of lopsided. Looking at it, a nervous chill goes down my back. This isn’t the kind of place you should ever play in.
It’s only been a week since I was last inside. How could this much dust get here in such a short time? I get the feeling that if I let my guard down for even a second, I’m going to die. I wish I could stop shaking. Chihiro always tells me that I’m weak, and right now, I believe him. He says that I should stand up for myself, but it’s so hard. When one of the older kids is trying to take your money, the best thing to do is let them. I know Chihiro would stand up to them, but not me. I just can’t.
Achoo! Achoo!
I start sneezing as I walk to the elevator. I’m going to try Chihiro’s apartment first. I hate this place. From the moment I stepped in, it has been nothing but oddness. This whole place is getting weirder and weirder, and I don’t know how much more I can take.
I take the elevator to the eighth floor with no problem. The power still works, and it goes up smoothly without any jerking. After I step outside, I realize how stupid I was. If there was something here, this kind of noise would have attracted them right away.
At Chihiro’s door, I ring the bell. There’s no sound. Whatever powered the elevator and the lights isn’t working here. I brought the key, but I try the door first, expecting it to be locked. It’s not. Chihiro’s mother would never have left the door unlocked.
I ease the door open like it’s a fragile egg. “Hello, anybody home?” I call, not expecting an answer. Going inside, I take off my shoes and look around, checking each room. The living room is empty. No sofa, no giant TV, no curtains, nothing. Even the new game system that we played here last time is gone. I look around, but there’s nothing except dust. It’s covering the entire floor, and I can see my footprints in it everywhere.
For the first time, I have hope. On the paper sliding door to the bedroom, there is the hole I left last time. I had dropped my controller, and it hit the door, ripping the paper. Mom was so furious. I thought she’d slap me in the face. Chihiro just laughed, while his mother looked like she would rip me in two. It was old paper, and I knew they would replace it soon, so I wasn’t worried, but Mom didn’t like my attitude. She was right.
I apologized, but we left with a cloud over us. This is proof, though. I was here. This is my rip. I take a picture using my smartphone to send to Mom, and I notice it. There’s no signal. I turn off the phone and restart it, but still nothing. It worked the last time I was here. Something must be stopping my signal.
“Damn.”
Getting my shoes on, I leave the empty room. What exactly happened here? I want to get out of this place. It’s giving me the creeps. Other than the elevator, I haven’t heard a single sound. Most of the building is sound-blocking concrete, but there should have been some noise. It’s way too silent.
That’s probably why, when I step outside Chihiro’s apartment, I could hear the noise of the heavy door to the stairs closing as clearly as my breathing. The sound reverberated across the building, driving goosebumps to spread all over my body.
“Wait!” I run to the stairs and yank the door open. On them, I can hear footsteps going down, so I quickly take after them. “Wait! I want to ask you a question.” Following the sound, I jump down as quickly as I could, but the sound had a head start. Where is it? On the third floor, I see the door closing. Sticking my foot in the crack, I yank it open before it shuts. I thrust my head outside the stairwell, but there’s nothing. Whoever was here is gone.
I know they came out on the third floor, though. Maybe they’re still here. I start jiggling all the doors. The first three are locked. The fourth isn’t. Inside, it’s dark. Some sunlight is peeking through the window at the far end of the hallway. It’s weak, but enough to show a pair of shoes are there, tossed in the entrance like someone had kicked them off in a hurry.
I reach down and straighten them. “Still warm. Somebody just took them off. “ Standing up, I look into the gloom of the apartment. “Hello! Anybody here?”
“Go away,” a small voice calls out from within the apartment.
I knew it. “Can you please talk to me? Tell me what happened here?” I can’t keep the pleading out of my voice.
“I don’t want to talk to ghosts.” The voice sounds far away and scared. Maybe a girl. I grit my teeth. If I want any help, I have to get it to trust me.
“I’m not a ghost. I just came here to find my friend. Please!” I’m begging for an answer, but this is the first normal thing I’ve found since coming here.
“Ghosts are useless. They can’t do anything. If you start talking to them, they just steal your breath.” It sounds like a girl. How was she living here in this strange place? Maybe she’s a ghost? I look down at the shoes. No. Ghosts don’t have feet.
Speaking like this was getting nowhere. “I’m coming inside.” I take off my shoes and head to the front. Going to the tatami room, I see her. She’s crouched in the corner in a little nest surrounded by blankets, old school uniforms and some instant food wrappers. It’s piled up behind her like the beginning of one of those garbage houses you see on TV, packed full of useless junk, spilling out onto the street.
Copyright © 2024 by Raymond Paquette
