In an Unseen Lens

“Hey, is this thing on?” Michael tested his lavalier near the zip of his hoodie, casting a glance at the analog camera pointed at him. 

“Yeah, you’re good to go, Mike.” His camera guy, Cameron, chimed from the seat beside him.

“Yeah? Okay, sweet.” Micheal rubbed his hands together looking up expectantly at the camera and waited.

“Um, it’s recording–”

“What’s up, guys?” Michael sprang up. “It’s your boy, Michael, and welcome back to CitySeekersTV! So, my girlfriend, Lily, is driving us to this creepy forest, and… it’s actually 6:00 PM right now because somebody was too chicken to go for a nighttime exploration. We’ve stumbled upon this abandoned house and nobody’s dared to enter! Let’s go!”

Cameron stopped recording, placing his camera on his lap. “You really didn’t have to call me out like that, man.”

Lily sighed from behind the wheel. “Yeah, Mike. Not everyone has the guts like you, or hear ghosts like me, but here I am, tagging along.” Cameron knew Lily as the creepy girl at school who can sense the spiritual world. But, he thought she was nice enough.

As they drove deeper into the woods, its trees casting lengthening shadows, a large, rotten branch crashed down their car. Lily cursed, and cried  “Oh my God!” as she failed to swerve and felt the dent of the car the tree made above her head. 

Lily hopped out to inspect the damage, worried about her parents' reaction.

“My parents are going to kill me!” The car was now a crushed tuna can.

Michael joined her, but Cameron felt unnoticed as he crawled out beneath the crushed car. "Are you guys alright?" he muttered under his breath. 

“Hey Cameron,” Micheal called out, panting, “Is all of our equipment okay?”

"The equipment's fine," Cameron finally replied, feeling a bit left out. Lily fretted, "What are we going to do?"

Micheal pointed to the looming white colonial-style mansion with tattered pink curtains. The facade was decaying with peeling paint and weathered wood. Overgrown bushes covered it all the way to the second floor. "Well, we're here now. Let's get this over with."

"Yeah," Lily agreed, shivering slightly. "It's getting cold."

“Does no one have common sense anymore?” Cameron, meanwhile, pondered.

As Michael led the way, his steps echoing on the creaky floorboards, Cameron struggled with the analog camera, which now emitted an unusual static whenever he touched it. Lily followed, her flashlight illuminating the darkness beyond them.

"Okay, we're totally gonna start upstairs and make our way down," Michael whispered into his mic. He turned to Lily. "Ready?"

"Y-yeah," she stammered, her flashlight quivering in her hand. Suddenly, she flinched, dropping the flashlight and gripping her temples. "Wait! I sense a disturbance…"

A loud clang echoed behind them, causing Cameron to scream and jump toward the front door, expecting a ghostly apparition. Impatiently, Michael picked up the fallen doorknob. "You were scared of a fallen doorknob."

"Oh…right," Cameron laughed weakly, but his eyes betrayed his terror. He felt dead inside at that moment.

Their laughter died when they turned back. Inches from their faces floated a transparent dog with hollow eyes. It barked eerily before darting upstairs.

"Cam, that's footage! Go after it!" Michael pushed him and huffed into the mic while he chased after the spectral creature. "Did you get it?"

Cameron kept shaking and hitting his malfunctioning camera. "It's not working!" he gasped. 

"You just bought that piece of crap!"

"Seriously, guys, wait up!" Lily's voice echoed from the bottom, her fear palpable.

They sprinted down the hallway, their footsteps echoing, and glimpsed a transparent figure darting into a room glowing pink. Breathless, they stood there, taking in the eerie sight. The room, covered in a layer of dust, resembled a Victorian-era bedroom meant for a little girl. In the center sat a little old woman on a pink tufted chaise, crocheting a vibrant daisy square blanket. She looked up, her deep eyes serene.

"I have been expecting you," she said calmly.

The kids screamed in unison. Cameron's camera fell from his hands as they hurriedly retreated, escaping the grasp of an inhabitant of this forbidden domain. Suddenly, a full-sized mirror floated before them, pulling them in. They tumbled out onto the same creepy bedroom, landing on a daisy square spread couch. A transparent woman, reminiscent of the 1950s, entered the room, carrying the mirror. The camera glowed, shifting onto Cameron's lap. “Thank you, Betty.” The old woman, who was very much solid, said. Betty nodded, silent and efficient. She snapped her ghostly fingers, and a pink tea set with strange liquid materialized on the table in front of them and the old woman. They looked at it suspiciously. Micheal glanced back from behind them

“Okay, what the hell is going on?!” Michael exclaimed.

"Nothing. You were just in time for afternoon tea, albeit a bit late, but tea nonetheless. Go ahead, we are having their favorite." 

"Who are you?" Lily asked cautiously. “And who are they?”

"They is what they call me Ms. Winthrop. I live part time here, you know"

"Oh, uh, well–this tea's good," Lily remarked, trying to lighten the tension.

"Why, of course!" Ms. Winthrop said. "Did you really think this house is all about spooks? We intentionally made this house scary to keep trespassers out."

"We?" Michael questioned. 

"The ghosts that reside here.” 

Suddenly, all the eyes in the portraits lining the room seemed to focus on them, making them acutely aware they were not alone anymore.

“But don’t worry,” Ms. Winthrop continued, “They’re friendly." She took another sip of the only cup of earl grey. “And have lots of interesting stories to tell.”

"So, is that why I've been sensing a high level like never before?" Lily inquired, her voice a mix of curiosity and unease. 

"Yes," Ms. Winthrop replied, her voice as calm as ever. "I take care of them, accompany them. This place is like a second home to me. They are all very curious about you three."

Lily shivered, feeling the temperature drop dramatically. "We appreciate the tea, but we really must go." She began to have a horrible migraine. “Good idea.” Said Cameron as he hastily dashed out of the room. 

Outside the house, under the soft glow of the moon, the trio shuffled together as they headed back to the damaged car. While walking, Michael decided to rewound the footage, but he had discovered something strange.

“Wha…guys, come check this out.

As the video flickered on the camera screen, their eyes widened in disbelief. The footage revealed them exploring the house, but there was something peculiar. They saw themselves as transparent figures, their hands passing through objects, their footsteps soundless.

"No... this can't be right," Lily murmured, her voice trembling.

"But... we felt everything. The chill, the fear," Cameron added, his eyes fixed on the screen.

Michael paused the footage and looked at his friends, and then at the car, realization dawning on him. No person could have survived being crushed like that.

 "We were ghosts all along. That tree branch killed us. That’s why Ms. Winthrop was…weird.”

“And why I’ve felt strange!” Lily said.

As they slowly turned back, the ghostly residents of the house stared back at them through the many windows, with Ms. Winthrop at the front proch holding out her hand, all ready to welcome them to their new ghostly home.