THE STORY OF AN UNFINISHED HOUSE

Picture taken by Daphny

I went on a ride on the far side of the state somewhere around the border along with some of my friends, we were taking nonsense and singing songs along the way but then I started to stare out the window and there I saw a house that caught my attention. It was an unfinished house though the constructions were done, a plain grey house yet still managed to grab one’s attention. Who would build a house in such a place I wondered as I kept staring at it, it was far off the road, through a dried out field somewhere near a small hill among the trees which were oddly very green. I ask my friend to stop the car as I can’t help but know more about that house, it had no proper road to drive in so we parked our car by the road and made our way through the deserted land to get there.

It was a tough path, we had great trouble walking in it which made us wonder why anyone would want to build a house in such an unusual place. We walked approximately for 20-30mins to get there and as we got near it I start to feel something strange, an usual aura so I ask my friends if they felt the same but they all seemed fine. I brushed it off my head as I might’ve been over thinking and began looking around, all the lands where pretty much dried up yet the tress were vibrant, so green and fresh, we ask ourselves why it must’ve been and started making up stories of our own that maybe it was some sort of magical land own by witches. While debating on the many possibilities of the land we finally reached there, it was a long tiresome walk yet we couldn’t help ourselves but look around. It was then we saw a shadow looming around accompanied by a scream and a cry for help. We rushed into the house to see what was going on, all of us a bit shocked as there seem to be no one in that house, not even a single soul was seen when we came through. The place was dark so we lit the touch from our phones, it looks like no one has been around that place for 10 years or so, it was rusted, full of dust and leaves all around, we went on looking around as it started to pique our interest. The house had many rooms, it might’ve been constructed to be a hotel I presume. The owner must have been one rich fellow as the inside was crafted to perfection and the walls were simply admirable even after such a long time, let’s not forget the beautiful chandelier on top looking majestic. We went on up the stairs and we started to notice some very odd smells which at first, we thought was the smell of dirt but then we began to notice some dried out blood along the way, something horrible must’ve happened here for sure. As we went on up the stairs, we started hearing the noises we did before which made us rushed in, it became much louder as we moved forward and suddenly things were thrown across the room, we were terrified and ran out as fast as we could and drove away from there, none of us even dared talking about what we witness.

We were all still shaken up and our skins have paled out of fear, we drove in silence for quite a while till we saw a village and decided to stop by as we were all very hungry by then. They had an inn so we went in to fill our empty stomachs, placing our orders we sat in silence still unable to talk of what we witness, it was then an old guy there started talking to us asking us our whereabouts. He sounded like a nice guy so we went on talking and somewhere along the line we started narrating of the house we saw and ask him if he knew about it, that was when we learned the story of the unfinished house.

According to the old guy that house was constructed about 20 years ago by a guy named Marcel who belong to a different state, it is said that he came here on a holiday trip with his wife Hayley and 8year old daughter June. During their stay he discovered that place and thought it was a perfect spot to build a resort where people can come relax on weekends, it was surrounded by hills and there used to be a stream nearby once upon a time and it was said to be full of life. Marcel’s plans were simple, he wanted to construct a resort that felt like home, a home away from home as one would say. He wanted to hire locals, give them more exposure, a job opportunity, develop the areas to the best he could. He started sorting out all the things required to build the resort, talk to the village chief there regarding land purchase and he easily got it all as no one wanted that land back then as none of them thought anything much can be done there. Marcel started to put his plans to action with the help of architect’s and local help the construction was on full swing, even the dried-out field was filled with various plantations and variety of flowers with vibrant colours along the way. By the end of the year all the interiors of the resort were done, the only thing left were the windows to be fixed and the outside to be painted. Seeing the progress of Marcel greed tempted the village Chief and he wanted the place for himself as he saw how much money the land would bring him. He demands Marcel to hand over the land to him saying he was an outsider and when he couldn’t come to terms with Marcel, he started creating a ruckus, threatening Marcel’s family, he even vowed to destroy them. Days went by Marcel kept on with the construction with a huge support of his family, the chief wasn’t too happy to witness it all. One fateful night the chief along with his goons came fully armed to attack them, it was probably around midnight. Marcel after hearing some noise woke up to see what the commotion was about, as he looked out the window, he saw the chief and his goons approaching. He woke up his wife and daughter as fast as he could, filling them on what was about to happen. He asked his daughter to run as fast as she could along the back door and follow the stream until she reached the next village, there she will find shelter at the house of one of his most trusted workers Darcus. She was young but she understood her father’s order and ran as fast as her legs took her while Marcel and his wife tried their best to keep the goons from entering. It was two against multiple number of people so they were worn out, the chief and his goons made their way in and they were tortured, beaten up to death. It is said that they died a slow painful death and with their last breath they cursed the land, since then it’s been dried out. The trees on the other hand remained green, that part is a mystery to all but rumours has it that Marcel was on nature’s good books and before he died they made a vow to protect the land from evil until the day its rightful owner comes to claim it again. We ask the old man what happened to June and he smile at us saying that was a story for another day, who knows she’s out there somewhere looking for vengeance and with that he left. By that time we were done with our meals so we made our payments and made our way out.

Before we left the place, I looked back one more time and saw the old man, I don’t know why but I had a feeling he was Darcus and he had hidden June away from the world until she was old enough to claim what was hers. I was coming back there for sure I said to myself as I can’t help but wonder how this tale was yet to take its twist.

Hi my amazing friends! Today I decided to post a short story I’ve been working on for quite a while, this story was inspired by a house I saw on my way back home with my friends from a resort and it is my first short story after approximately 10 years. Do let me know how you think it was. ✨🤗

Happy readings 🙃

The introvert writer©2022