Chapter 3 The Board

Tim sat on the couch in his dim apartment with the television casting pale light across the walls. Pumpkin lay curled beside him like a warm orange loaf, his tail twitching occasionally as if he were chasing something in his dreams. On the television, a woman crept slowly down a dark hallway, clutching a flickering candle while ominous music hummed in the background.

Tim watched with quiet interest, leaning back into the couch cushions. Old horror movies had become one of his favorite nighttime rituals. They were familiar, predictable, and strangely comforting. In those movies, at least, the loneliness always had a reason.

Outside the apartment window, the sky had darkened hours earlier. Heavy clouds rolled overhead, swallowing the last hints of sunset. The air had grown thick and restless, and now rain tapped steadily against the glass. A low rumble of thunder echoed in the distance. Pumpkin lifted his head slightly, ears twitching.

"You hear that?" Tim muttered, glancing toward the window. The cat blinked slowly and settled back down.

The storm had been building all evening. Occasionally flashes of lightning lit the clouds beyond the buildings, followed by the deep growl of thunder rolling through the city streets. Tim barely noticed. He took another bite of sesame chicken and watched the movie.

Onscreen, the woman reached the end of the hallway. The music grew louder, more intense. Her candle flickered wildly as she slowly pushed open a door.

Tim leaned forward slightly. Then the room exploded with white light. A bolt of lightning cracked across the sky so bright it briefly turned the apartment into daylight. A split second later..... BOOM. Thunder crashed overhead like a cannon. Pumpkin sprang off the couch with a startled yowl, disappearing down the hallway. "Whoa!" Tim said, sitting upright.

The television flickered once.....twice. Then everything went black. The room fell into total silence.

For a moment Tim sat perfectly still, blinking into the sudden darkness. The low hum of electronics had vanished. The refrigerator stopped running. Even the street outside seemed quieter somehow. Only the rain remained, tapping against the windows. Tim sighed.

"Of course."

He fumbled for his phone on the coffee table and tapped the screen. The glow of the flashlight cut a narrow beam through the dark apartment.

Eighteen percent battery. "Fantastic," he muttered. Another rumble of thunder rolled through the sky outside.

Tim stood and slowly moved around the living room, the light from his phone bouncing across familiar objects. The television screen reflected his flashlight like a black mirror. Shadows stretched across the walls. Pumpkin appeared at the end of the hallway, crouched low with his tail puffed up slightly.

"It's just thunder," Tim said. "Relax." The cat didn't look convinced.

Tim walked into the kitchen and opened a drawer. After rummaging around for a moment he found a small box of candles and a lighter. A minute later a single candle burned on the coffee table, its tiny flame dancing gently. The apartment took on a completely different feeling in the candlelight.

The corners of the room deepened into shadow while the walls flickered with soft orange light. The storm outside rattled the windows again as another gust of wind swept through the street. Tim sat back down on the couch. Without the television or internet, the apartment suddenly felt much quieter than usual.

He picked up his phone and checked the signal, no internet.

"Guess that's it for entertainment tonight," he murmured.

Pumpkin hopped back onto the couch cautiously, settling beside him but keeping his eyes on the dark hallway. Tim leaned back and stared around the room.

There wasn't much to do without power. He considered going to bed early but the storm was loud enough that he doubted sleep would come easily.

Another flash of lightning lit the apartment windows. For a moment the brief light revealed something he hadn't noticed before. The hallway closet door stood slightly open. Tim frowned. He didn't remember leaving it like that. Pumpkin noticed it too. The cat's ears flattened as he stared directly at the closet.

"Alright," Tim said quietly, standing again.

He grabbed his phone and walked toward the hallway. The beam of light slid across the walls until it reached the partially open door. The closet creaked softly when he pulled it open. Inside was the usual clutter, boxes, an old lamp, extra blankets, and several items left behind by whoever had lived in the apartment before him. Tim had never bothered going through most of it, until tonight.

"Well," he said to himself, "let's see what we've got."

He crouched down and began pulling things out. A dusty Monopoly box. An old chess set missing several pieces. A stack of playing cards still wrapped in plastic. Tim chuckled quietly.

"Didn't know this place came with an entire game closet."

He brushed dust off the top of another box and lifted it out. The cardboard looked older than the others, worn and slightly faded with age.

He set it on the coffee table and wiped the dust away with his sleeve. Underneath the dust, strange letters appeared across the lid.

OUIJA Tim raised an eyebrow.

"Well... that's fitting."

Outside, thunder rumbled again as rain continued beating against the windows. Tim opened the box. Inside was a dark wooden board covered in letters of the alphabet, numbers, and the familiar words printed at the corners. YES..NO..GOODBYE

Resting on top of the board was a small triangular piece of wood the planchette. Tim picked it up and turned it in his fingers. He had seen Ouija boards in movies plenty of times. Usually they were involved in ghosts, demons, or someone making a terrible mistake they regretted later. Sitting alone in the candlelight during a storm, the idea felt strangely entertaining. He looked around the quiet apartment. Pumpkin watched him from the couch with cautious yellow eyes.

Tim smiled faintly.

"Well," he said to the empty room, setting the board down on the table.

"Let's see if anyone's listening."

Outside, lightning flashed again. And somewhere deep within the silent apartment, something waited.