A Spirit's Touch

The first night was becoming quite an unsettling one. The mattress was nowhere near the comfort she was forced to leave behind with the ex.

10:33pm- Fuck this, Judith lasted thirty-three minutes of rolling around on the bed before sitting up and turning on the iPad and reaching for her glasses.

She immediately pressed on Safari and typed, online bed store into the search bar.

While waiting for the tablet to load Judith glanced down at the side table and smiled when she spotted some leftover wine begging to be drunk.

Twenty minutes later and a mattress with a good mixture of memory foam and pocket springs was ordered.

Judith collapsed backwards and stared at the ceiling while addressing the current bed, "Two weeks and you're out of here. Let's try and get along, shall we?"

Another five minutes brought the realisation that sleep would not be possible just yet; Judith adjusted her glasses and reached for her phone next to the empty wine glass and began flicking through Instagram.

She snorted at pictures of a woman she vaguely knew posing on a beach, "You won't see this one without layers of filters," she joked to the wine bottle.

Judith sighed loudly, I need more friends. She was usually with someone, this was the beginning of long stints of a solitary life. A fact she knew she would struggle with.

A loud clang from the other side of the room jolted her into a shock. Tense and frightened, she stared into the darkness, searching for the source.

"Who's there?" She spoke nervously. No response.

Judith pulled the quilt up closer to her body, unsure whether to ignore the noise or investigate.

It better not be a rat, she thought bravely as she built up some courage and stepped out of the bed.

The room was too dark to make anything out. Luckily, Judith had not started unpacking yet and she knew the floor was clear aside from the boxes piled up near the far window.

"Spook yourself on the first night, Judith," she whispered loudly.

She stopped suddenly when she saw a familiar shape on the floor, "Flops?" Judith picked up the soft rabbit plush. "But you didn't make that noise?"

Further investigating found a cardboard box on its side and her hair straighteners and rollers strewn across the carpet.

"For goodness sake," Judith whispered harshly before bending down to put them back in the box.

She cradled Flops back to the bed and pulled the covers over herself while still hugging the soft toy and resumed looking at her phone.

"No more late horror movies for us now," she whispered softly to the rabbit.

After scrolling through a few more posts Judith lowered the device and decided sleep would have to be forced.

She was still a little startled by the noise but found some comfort with Flops. She closed her eyes and pretended she was already on her new mattress.

***

The sun shone through a slit in the curtain landing right across Judith's face. She scrunched her nose up at the intruding light and grimaced at the poorly performing curtains.

She glanced over at the side table and could almost feel Flops laughing at her from his seated position.

Judith was a little confused as to how he got there, watching her sleep from his position. That was not a thought for the morning though.

She reached for her phone to check the time. 7:22am, not bad she thought but after eight would have been preferable.

Judith sat up and instantly felt the cold as her buttoned pyjama top was suddenly pulled open by the gravity of her shifting.

Judith was alarmed to see herself exposing all to the room and quickly pulled her top together and redid the buttons.

"Was I rolling around that much, Flops? These are new," she asked the silent soft toy who continued the imaginary laugh.

"Yea, yea. Enjoy it now, furball. You're going on the shelf with all the other teddies later."

Judith rolled her eyes, but it was more at herself than anything for talking to inanimate objects. She got out of bed and headed for the toilet.

After another pointless half hour scrolling session through Instagram, Judith pushed herself out of bed and pulled on a dressing gown before leaving the room.

"A day of unpacking, lucky me," she said sarcastically as she descended the stairs. But first, the kettle, she thought with a smile.

She was at least grateful she unpacked the kitchen the day before. Not that there was much to unpack as the ex kept most of the appliances.

Judith frowned as she brought her freshly made coffee into the living area. She was accustomed to there being a TV waiting for her and her morning coffee, now there was just an empty unit and a layer of dust.

She pulled out her phone again, this in turn annoyed her. She was sure she read somewhere that sitting alone, staring at one's phone was an early sign of depression. 

She was certain she would be angry with herself if she allowed herself to feel depressed after that bastard's actions.

A shiver came across her as the room suddenly felt colder. Judith pulled her dressing gown tighter and reached for her penguin-patterned blanket from the back of the sofa.

Throwing herself down into a sloth-like position, Judith unlocked her phone and told herself to do something useful on it. Talking to a friend was always a great idea.

She opened WhatsApp and clicked on the name titled, 'Work Wife.'

Hey Rose, how's work without me? Chilling in my new pad.

Judith hated the word 'Chilling' in this context but she was not about to tell anyone that she was yet to get fully comfortable in her new surroundings.

A reply came quickly.

Glad you're settling in. We miss you already, babe.

Judith smiled at the text. She had been working in a call centre with a group of men and women, some who were now deemed friends for life. Rose being the BFF of the group.

Judith wondered for a moment if BFF was a term a woman in her mid-twenties should be using, but they had been best friends since eighteen so she let it slide.

Can't wait to see you all again.

Judith typed back. She shuffled in her seat to get more comfortable as she awaited the expected, and very needed, reply.

I'm coming over Saturday. Easy on the wine this week, you better save me some.

Judith laughed out loud, I may need to buy more, she thought.

Relaxation was at the forefront of Judith's mind as she put the phone down lay her head back. However that was quickly wiped away as yet another clang from above seized her attention.

Anxiety gripped her soul as Judith jumped to her feet and approached the stairway in the hall.

Despite the layers she could feel goosebumps tingle her skin and a cold sweat coat her body. Nerves took over and the anxiousness was full in control.

Someone or something was in her bedroom. This time Judith hoped it to be a rat. If a burglar was in her home she would not know what to do except cry and accept whatever fate fell upon her or her possessions.

Judith, full of fear, cautiously took a step up... Then another... Then two more.

She reached the top much quicker than she would have liked and then fear came over in a new wave.

Her bedroom door was shut. The door she had left open not thirty minutes before.

"What is happening?" She said nervously. She knew the windows were shut, this was not the work of the wind.

She rocked unsteadily on the spot, shaking her hands and breathing heavily. She wanted to hide under the blanket back in the front room.

She wanted a lot of things rather than to be in this position. "Oh god, oh god," she whispered repeatedly as she reached for the handle.

She pulled down on the handle, still shaking nervously, and pushed the do

or open, refusing to enter straightaway.

Judith sighed heavily and against better judgement, stepped into the room.

***