One Helluva Shiner
As I walked into the house’s expansive coastal kitchen, I was hit by the cold air of the air conditioner and I shivered myself aware of how much I needed to pee. I looked around for a door, but was paused by my view. I could see through a row of massive picture windows that dwarfed the room and all its contents. Out those majestic windows was the ocean darkened like a secret being kept, green pulled down into bruised indigo, silvered only where the wind’s hand raked the surface. It felt like a moment that I dare not look away from, but while I respected the sky’s right to anger, my bladder and poetry had its own plans. Plus, tonight was not for worrying over the tide.
“Beautiful,” I finally mumbled before turning to look once more for a bathroom door.
“I know,” Spencer collapsed on the chaise lounge section of the couch seductively. His muscles tested the limits of his shirt as he stretched and flexed for more compliments. We all knew he loved his physique. He’s naturally fit, but only I knew why he didn’t have to work hard to be that strong. Our secret.
Bounding from the chair, Spencer snatched my bags and begged me to follow. He led me across the room to a door that had a fishing net that looked like it prevented the door from actually closing. I assumed, since we were going together, that it was a bedroom or another great view or both.
Luckily it was the bedroom and I could see at least two doors that could be a bathroom. The panoramic view continued into the bedroom, but the urgency that guided me across the room was increasing significantly as Spencer started to explain, “I’d call it picturesque or… romantic when you write the review.” He placed my bag next to Erin’s on one of the two beds. I checked a door and it was a spacious closet. I closed the door and grinned as I held my knees closer together casually, as I hoped, and I asked, “Bathroom?”
Spencer quirked his head like a confused puppy and pointed behind me.
“Thank you,” I said calmly and in no way urgently. Then I turned around and sighted the door. It was also ajar, but as I walked I noticed that Lizzie and Zora had already spread their stuff on the other side, the same side. I smiled and closed myself into the bathroom.
The nautical them had continued from the living space to the bedroom and now the bathroom. There were a lot of tchotchkes and shells, but it was the manila rope around that brought it all home. They had thought of everything, and it was tasteful.
With my bladder satisfied, I stood in front of the mirror to check my appearance and wash my hands. I had missed the seashell shaped sinks. They looked real, but I didn’t think shells that big exist in nature. I turned on the water and grabbed the soap, but my hand slipped. I knocked the bar off the bowl as my hands began to shake. I steadied myself on the sink.
I had a chill, but I was starting to sweat. I blamed perimenopause so I splashed my face with some water. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. I couldn’t blame a hormonal imbalance on what I saw next. There beside me, in the mirror, was a woman that I didn’t know.
The woman looked up and our eyes met. They were dark with little flecks of light, like stars and I felt an overwhelming sense of anger. Her body looked like a hologram, a projection that I could see thru. She stretched her arm out toward me and I watched. Only then did I turn away from the mirror. I whirled and met sharply with a very pointy corner. I collided with the shelf, sending bottles and shells all over the floor.
I cursed and looked around, but she was gone. No one was there. I searched the room despite my face pulsing like a heartbeat had started in my cheek. No one was there. It had to be a trick.
“You okay in there?” The door hand jiggled as Spencer called through. I had locked it behind me, but now I wish I hadn’t. My cheek was throbbing and I was certain that I was bleeding. I could feel something dripping down my face when I went for the door. I pulled it open and I knew I looked crazed, but no one was in the bathroom with me. No one.
“What the fuck Spencer?!” Spencer was shocked, I’m not normally this aggressive, but I was scared. “Who was that?!”
He held up his hands defensively, but I walked by him. I didn’t want to be in that bathroom anymore. I paced, ignoring my face for now.
“Who is who Dani? What happened to your face?” He looked into the bathroom, but followed quickly behind me.
Erin took that moment to walk in, “What’s going on in here? Oh, Dani, your face.” She came toward me, but I held my hands up. I didn’t want anyone to touch me.
“See if there’s a first aid kit in there.” Spencer pointed toward the bathroom and Erin hurried.
“Let me see,” Spencer asked, his hands out. He was trying to help so I stopped pacing and sat on the bed.
Erin returned with the kit, but she paused in the doorway to the bathroom and looked back over her shoulder.
“Do you see something?!” My voice wasn’t calm.
Erin shook her head and brought us the first aid kit. It was mostly bandaids, but Spencer found some gauze and started cleaning me up. I let him as I watched for Erin to respond, my eyes were welling up with tears. This shook me and I was angry if it was a joke, but I trusted my friends not to do this.
“I don’t see anything. What did you see?” Erin stood over us, trying to help Spencer. He smacked her hand and she stepped back offended but more curious.
Spencer turned my face towards him, “Hold still. What happened in there?”
I looked at Spencer’s kind brown eyes and noticed he had a golden ring around the pupil, but even distracting myself with that wouldn’t keep Erin from hearing this, “I saw someone in the mirror and when I turned to see if it was real my face found the corner of the shelf.”
“You saw a ghost!” Erin’s eyes lit up like gasoline on a bonfire and reproached the bathroom carefully. She held her hands out as if she were sensing the air around the bathroom, but as she crept into the bathroom I found myself wishing I were less clumsy. Spencer and I looked at each other, our anxiety ratcheting up with each second we left her to it.
Spencer fussed with the bandaids, hurrying to care for me, but it was too late. Erin came back from the bathroom and hurried to her bag. He tried to grab her shirttail but missed as we both yelled, “No magic!”
We were all familiar with Erin’s abilities. She comes from a long line of witches who could trace their lineage “across oceans of time” according to her grandmother. Despite her pedigree, Erin was clumsy at best. She would try rudimentary spells and incantations, but her results were often iffy.
I sighed accepting our new challenge and checked to see how much blood was being wiped off my face, but with bad timing. Zora and Lizzie, curious of our delay had walked into the bedroom. Zora bumped into Lizzie who had stopped moving just inside the doorway. Her eyes were on me and she swallowed hard, “Why is Dani bleeding?” She covered her mouth and turned away.
Zora pushed forward around Lizzie, “Oh, Dani. What happened?” Her gentle eyes settled on my face, but she comforted Lizzie by wrapping an arm around her. Lizzie didn’t breathe until Spencer put the bandage on my face.
“I hit my cheek on the shelf in the bathroom.” I offered hoping that it wouldn’t grow the moment Erin spoke, but I would be wrong.
Erin spoke up quickly, “After she saw a ghost!”
Zora’s eyes shot to me, as did Lizzie’s, “A what?”
Erin grabbed her bag and started rummaging around, “Yes, a ghost.” She seemed to happy about it. Damn near giddy.
I winced and nodded my head giving in early with the hope it would help things move quicker later. Zora was still confused, but she was quiet watching the situation. Lizzie wasn’t satisfied to wait for more information, “What kind of ghost? Casper or Bloody Mary?”
I frowned and laughed at the same time. It hurt my face to do anything right now, but I watched Spencer step away to distract Erin, “Maybe a ghost? We don’t know yet.”
Erin looked up and confidently shook her head, “No, we definitely have a ghost. I confirmed it.”
“Yeah, but your magic doesn’t always work. I mean…” Spencer started but looked around quickly for support. He had said the wrong thing.
Erin whirled on him, but I stood up and got between them before words were exchanged, “Erin. You promised.”
She looked down at me her eyebrows furrowed and her jaw set, but remained silent. Erin wouldn’t be quiet for long, but she was giving me a little respect. It was far more than I expected so I didn’t ignore it. “Thank you, I just want to weed through this logically before we resort to magic. Okay?”
Erin strolled to the center of the room and all eyes were on her, “I want it noted that dealing with a ghost in the mirror is definitely my kind of thing.”
I agreed with her, “I promise, if I see her again I will…”
“But you did already, didn’t you? Was it the same person you saw on the porch.” Lizzie was concerned, but some of the color had returned to her face now.
Zora helped her stand but Lizzie didn’t let go of her hand. I saw a look, it was quick, but it brought a smile to Zora’s face when she realized Lizzie held on. She was always glad to be close to Lizzie. Their crush on each other had spanned years, but they had never acted on it.
“Well, Dani,” Lizzie got my attention, but Erin answered.
“You can’t ignore this.” Erin added, putting her hand on her hip as she dropped her bag back on the floor and pouted.
I took a deep breath and looked back at the bathroom. Spencer stepped ahead of me and we went back inside. I heard everyone behind me shift, but they waited. No one was in the bathroom, but I did see the big bruise starting to spread from under the bandage in the mirror. I sighed and we picked up everything, placing what was broken onto the counter. I promised to replace them.
Seeing my stress, Spencer tried to lighten the mood, “Since Bex is going to blame me for this, I’ll take care of it.” We both laughed, but it died to quick silence. Bex was going to kill us both.
Spencer and I were notorious for causing trouble, getting in trouble, and generally finding all the trouble. He hugged me, and I smiled. Spencer gives the best hugs. Like everything he does, he goes all in. That sort of tenacity is hard to find and I appreciate it.
We waked back into the bedroom where everyone stood waiting. “No more ghost,” Spencer offered as walked back to stand with everyone by the beds.
Erin was still pouting when we returned, “You’re not going to just see the ghost when YOU want to.”
I shrugged, “Maybe not, but right now I’m more concerned about this blossoming shiner.” Everyone’s eyes fell on my face.
“I can to fix that too,” Erin said under her breath.
Everyone echoed me in that moment, “No magic!”
Erin looked up angrier than before. I stepped towards her and gently offered, “Its the best I’m going to be able to do tonight. Okay?”
“It’s an easy spell. Think about it Dani. You know Rebecca’s going to be mad. Do you really want to stand in front of her mother with a black eye at her daughter’s only wedding?” She tried to reason with me, but it wasn’t going to happen. Erin didn’t grasp the concept.
“Yes, that’s likely to happen, but for now I want to go have fun.” I wanted very much to leave this alone. “This isn’t our house. This isn’t our ghost.” It didn’t matter than she showed herself to me, but I left that part out.
I stepped closer and wrapped my arms around her in a hug, “Erin, I am begging you to have fun.”
I stepped back and shook her once. It was the kind of shake that said, I love you, but I want to shake you violently sometimes. Erin understood what it meant, I learned it from her grandmother. She does it all the time.
Then I tried to wiggle my eyebrows. Erin alway said I looked like a cartoon character when I tried, so I hoped for a smile.
It worked, but when she hugged back I felt more arms close around us.
Zora and Lizzie had joined us. Spencer was approached with arms wide. He squeezed the tangle of limbs and we parted in a giggle when he started pinching butts. Group hugs and giggles had melted the tension, but at least the woman in the mirror was forgotten for the moment.
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