(connect)

          I live all alone in a small, New York apartment. Well, it’s just me and my cat Rainbow. She was here when I moved in. She’s orange with a white colored nose. I love her. She keeps me company.

          ​Anyways, one night I heard a knock at the door, but no one was there when I opened it. There was nothing but a cold breeze that came through. It spooked me out, so I immediately closed and locked the door.

          “Rainbow!” I called out. “Where are you kitty?”

          ​I couldn't find my cat, but I’m sure she’s around here somewhere. I sat down on the couch and tried to find my remote for the T.V. That’s when I heard a glass shatter on the floor. I figured it was Rainbow, so I checked it out, but she wasn't there. It was just a shattered glass on the floor.
​

          This cat had some nerve. So, here I was cleaning up Rainbows mess, when I heard my bedroom door screech.

          “Rainbow! Is that you girl?” I was still a little spooked out from earlier when I got a knock at the door, and no one was there.

          How come Rainbow was hiding from me? I decided to try and find her, when the remote fell from the couch, onto the floor.

          What the hell is going on in my house? First, the glass, now the remote, and Rainbow, nowhere in sight.

          I shouted out, “who is in my house?! Who are you?! Show yourself!”

          Nothing happened.

          ​I figured I must be thinking too hard or something. I worked two extra hours at work today, so maybe, that could be it. It has to be Rainbow, knocking down all of these things.

          ​I decided to call it a night. I’m not going to watch my usual show on Get Your Money TV. I’m just going to take a shower, go to bed, and prepare for the next day tomorrow.

          ​I took a pretty long shower, so the entire bathroom was filled up with steam. When I got out of the shower, I opened the window, so that some of the steam would get out. That’s when I saw the creepiest thing.

          ​It was something on my bathroom glass mirror that said, “DON’T BE AFRAID.” Immediately, I knew someone was in my apartment. I was terrified.

          ​After I dried up, and put a robe on, I grabbed the heaviest thing I could find, which was my blow dryer, and carefully opened my bathroom door. The lights were still on, and I could see that there was no one there.
​

          ​I was extremely afraid and felt like I should make my way to the kitchen to get a better weapon than my blow dryer, but what if this maniac was waiting for me in the living room? My apartment’s not that big, so all it takes is a flick of the switch, and I’ll be able to see everything in the room, including my kitchen. I’m so afraid, my heartbeat feels like it’s about to pop out of my chest. I just have to be strong and try my best to attack this bastard.

          “I’m not a burglar” I heard a man’s voice say.

          “Oh my goodness! Who are you?!” I yelled. “How did you know what I was thinking?”

          “I’m dead. A lot of things happen when you die.”

          “What? Is this some kind of a joke?”

          “No.”

          “Why are you talking to me? What do you want?”

          “I just wanted to talk to someone. Usually, nobody pays attention to me.”

          ​I couldn't believe what was happening right now. Was I dreaming?

          “No. You’re not dreaming.” He replied.

          ​“Why do you keep reading my mind? Get out of my head!”

          “Okay, but only if you stop yelling at me.”

          “Okay.” I said. I couldn’t believe I was agreeing with a ghost. “So what do you want to talk about?” I asked him.

          “I use to live here in this apartment around 30 years ago.”

          “Did you die here?!” I interrupted him.

          “No.” He said. “Just let me tell you the story.”

          Wow. This was crazy. I still can’t believe I’m talking to a ghost. He’s sort of invisible looking. He’s not all white like in the movies. He’s like this watery looking figure, blending in between two worlds. I can’t really make out his facial features, but I can see the shape of his head and his body pretty well.

          “My girlfriend use to live here. We were very much in love, and were planning on getting married, but I got into some trouble.”

          How sad, I thought.
​
          “She’s an old woman now and has a family. She’s real happy.” I think he was smiling. “I don’t want to mess up what she has. All I want to do is find her cat that died here. That will be the only thing I need to be able to cope, and move on.”

          “Well, there’s only my cat here, and her name is Rainbow.”

          “You see,” he said. “Your cat Rainbow is actually my girlfriend’s cat Mylo.”

          “What?! What do you mean? Rainbow’s not dead. I can see her perfectly fine!”

          “Animals are different when they pass on and for some reason, easier to see to those who are sensible to it.”

          “Are you saying, other people think I’m talking to myself when I’m talking to my cat?”

          “Umm. Yes.”

          Wow. A freighting and also humiliating experience. “So, what are you going to do? Are you going to take her away from me forever?”

          He answered, “If that would be okay with you.”

          I thought about it for a moment, and ended up coming to the conclusion that she must belong in a better place. This man went out of his way to come and find her. So, I told him, “Yes. It’s okay.”
​

          ​I was sad to see her go, but at least I know she’s okay.

          The two of them walked away into a shiny light, and disappeared from out of my living room. I never seen either one of them again.

          ...So far.



​THE END