Ouija

"I should have asked my mom before coming over."

"Well, the phone's in the kitchen. You can call her if you're worried."

"Nah she might get mad. I'll just make sure I get home before she gets home I guess. Where's your board?"

"Upstairs."

"Why's it so cold in here?"

"It's an old house."

"I'm glad I don't live in an old house. Sarah's got an old house too and it never gets warm. But I guess it's better to play Ouija in an old house than a new one. This is your room?"

"Yeah."

"Don't you ever clean it?"

"Not really."

"Doesn't your mom get mad?"

"Do you ever stop talking? Jesus Christ."

"I heard the spirits don't like it when you say that."

"Good thing we haven't contacted any yet. Here it is."

"Wow! And it's from the mystical shop of...Walmart."

"Doesn't matter where it's from. A Ouija Board just needs its basic elements so the spirits can communicate."

"Oh, I like this."

"That's the planchette. Here, you put your fingers on this side, I put mine here. Lightly."

"Jared said they used a shot glass."

"That would work too. Okay, close your eyes. Is anybody there? You say it too."

"Is anybody there? Nothing's happening."

"You have to be patient."

"We should play this tomorrow at school. Washington Middle is supposed to be really haunted."

"I bet we'd contact the spirit of asbestos."

"But really, we could play at lunch."

"I'm not letting Miss B take my board."

"We wouldn't need to bring your board. You said Ouija just needs its basic elements. We could make one on a piece of paper. I bet our building used to be an orphanage."

"I bet it used to be a jail."

"Okay, let's start for real. Hello, is anybody there?"

"It's moving!"

"Be quiet!"

"It said yes! I'm not moving it, are you?"

"Shh! What is your name?"

"It landed on 'P'!"

"O"

"S"

"hmm...P-O-S."

"Like...Piece of-?"

"Stop being rude! I'm sorry about her, 'Pos'. How old are you?

"H"

"I"

"L"

"L"

"S"

"Hills. Like...old as the hills. He must be an old spirit."

"How do you know it's a he? Ask if it's a girl or a boy."

"That's rude! Okay, if you don't mind us asking: How did you die?"

"That's way more rude!"

"L"

"O"

"V"

"E"

"That's kind of sad. Maybe he died of unrequited love. Maybe a woman he was into didn't love him back."

"How do you know it was a woman?"

"I don't. All I know is this spirit died of unrequited love."

"Oh, you'd know all about that. If you were a spirit and I asked you why you died you'd spell out J-A-M-E-S."

"I don't even like him that way."

"Sure. I wonder if Pos drowned himself in the river."

"Maybe. That place always feels all wrong."

"Let's ask. Did you die in the river?"

"Yes!"

"I knew it!"

"Once I went to the river by myself at night. It was the creepiest thing."

"Sure you did. I heard you're too scared to even sleep alone at night. I heard you still share a bed with your mom."

"Well I heard you-"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, let's drop it."

"You know if I could play Ouija alone I would, right?"

"What was that? Did you hear that?"

"Of course I heard that!"

"I heard it again!"

"It's coming from the attic!"

"I'm going home!"

"And leave me here alone with the spirit? No way."

"Okay, Miss I-went-to-the-river-by-myself-at-night."

"I did!"

"Then go see what's happening in the attic!"

"Well then you have to come!"

"How do you even get up there?"

"We'd have to pull that string pretty hard. I saw my mom do it once but we had a ladder then."

"Don't anymore?"

"No."

"Well it's now or never. Get on my back."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah. You've got long arms, you'll be able to reach it."

"Okay. Ready?"

"Ready. Ow! No, I'm okay."

"I've got it."

"A-CHOO”

"Bless you."

"How is it so dusty. I can hardly breathe."

"We made it this far."

"Quiet! I heard it again!"

"Yeah. It's like...rustling."

"Maybe we shouldn't do this. I don't want to go up. How do we close it up."

"No, we have to go up."

"Why? Let's call your mom."

"No. It's about how you want to live your life. Do you want to get old and be on your death bed and think you were a coward? Or do you want to know that you were brave? That you could always face whatever was coming?"

"Okay. let's go up."

"Do you hear anything?"

"No."

"Maybe what we heard wasn't even coming from the attic."

"Maybe-"

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

”Shit!”

"What is that! Get back! Down, down, get down."

"Shit!"

"Close the door! Close the door! Don't let it out!"

"I'm going home! I'm done!"

"Wait, wait! We have to say goodbye! It's bad luck if we don't both say goodbye to the spirit!"

--

"My mom was so mad when she saw how dirty my clothes got."

"Yeah, my mom wasn't too happy we opened the attic."

"I was thinking last night. The spirit said his name was P-O-S..."

"I know. Like 'Possum.'"

"So do you think we were talking to the spirit of...the possum in your attic?"

"A possum who died of unrequited love? No, I think it was a very old spirit who maybe wasn't ready to enter the afterlife. So he's possessing the body of a possum."

"You know, that's what I'd do if I were a spirit."

"Of course you would."

"I'm so tired. I wish we didn't have school five days a week. I wish it was two days and then we had a five day weekend."

"Same."

"We've still got seven minutes left for lunch. Let's make a Ouija Board."

"I don't have any paper."

"Then draw it on the table."

"...Okay. Just keep an eye out. Let me know if anyone's coming."