An Unexpected Encounter

Many people have wanted to see her. It is said that on the isle off the coast about a mile or so away; you may see the ghost of Oldport. Many people have tried to find her, but no one has been able to. The only sightings of her have been from the mainland. They all have one thing in common about her appearance. They all saw her emerald, green eyes.

The article continued but I did not continue reading. I had heard that story a million times. Most people would laugh at a story like that, but I wouldn't. After all, my grandfather had seen her.

I, however, never went to search for her. I had more important things to do after all. My job was demanding, and I had friends I would rather hang out with. I believed and continued to wonder.

Well, that was up until May 8th, 2009. It was a fine day. I had just gotten off work when Cecilia spotted me from across the street.

"Hi Eric!" she called, running over.

"Hello," I replied as she came close, "Having a nice day?"

"Of course." she responded in her usual upbeat manner, "You?"

"Same as always." I smiled.

We began to walk down the street. Cecilia was my friend and worked across the street from me at a general goods store. We accompanied each other every day, down to the corner of the street where we separated to go to our homes. As we walked we talked about various things and news we had heard, but once we reached the corner Cecilia turned to me.

"Eric?" she asked.

"What?" I responded.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go on a ferry with me tonight." she said.

"Oh," I said, a bit surprised, "Sure! I'd love to."

"I knew you'd say yes." Cecilia teased, "You take every chance you get to see that island up close."

"No I don't." I sighed.

"Yes you do and you know it!"

"Alright, well what time?" I asked, defeated.

"Here." she said, handing me an envelope, "That has your ticket too. So, don't lose it."

"I won't." I said.

"See ya!" Cecilia said as she began to walk away.

"Catch you later." I waved goodbye.

I entered my two room house and removed my shoes. Sitting down on the couch, I opened the letter.

"Dear Eric,

I arranged for us to go on a ferry together to the old island at six o'clock today. See you there!

-Cecilia"

I found the ticket at the bottom of the envelope which detailed a two way ferry, redeemable until May 12th.

I arrived at the dock at quarter to six. The sea was calm and pristine with a greenish tint to the blue water. The sun cast rays of orange and yellow as it set at the horizon, turning the clouds pink. I scanned the small crowd of mostly passer-byers, looking for Cecilia. In a few minutes I spotted her waiting by the ticket booth and went to join her.

"Hello again." I said as I approached.

"Beautiful isn't it." She responded, gesturing towards the setting sun.

"Yes." I said, "Yes it is."

We redeemed our tickets and boarded the boat. It was a simple brown boat and had a row of seats for people to relax as the journey progressed. It was a pleasant ride and we talked about the setting sun which captured a feeling of stillness, like nothing would ever change this moment. The boat was nearly empty besides a couple crew members. This was the off season after all. No one wanted to ruin the delicate atmosphere of the ride. The boat rocked back and forth gently to the swells, adding to the perfect time.

Before I knew it we docked at the island. The island was mostly covered in various plants that you might find near the beach. Several outcroppings of rock adorned the left side of the dock fringing the shoulder of the island. About five hundred feet down near the other side of the island stood a small shed next to the beach area of the island.

The two crew members docked the boat, and we began to walk down the path. The walk was overall pleasant. We passed various bushes and small trees. Eventually we made it to the beach area.

“Let's go over there.” Cecilia said, gesturing towards the left.

I looked and similar outcroppings of rocks were visible off to the left.

“Sure,” I said, “That sounds fun.”

We set off. We were about a hundred feet away when I was her. She was standing in the clearing at the top of the rock with her back to us.

“The ghost!” I exclaimed.

“What?” Cecilia asked, alarmed.

We approached it quickly but as we got closer we realized it was just a statue. The statue was worn and old. It resembled a person but was so worn that most of the details were gone.

“Oh,” I said, “It's just a rock.”

“Well,” said Cecilia, “Maybe this is her.”

“It can't be!” I said.

I rounded the side of the rock and found where her eyes would be. Where her eyes were, I saw two perfectly shaped gems that cast a green glow when the light shown on them.

We rushed back to the boat and the crew. We wanted to show them what we had found.

“Did you know that the ghost is just a statue?” I blurted out as soon as I saw them.

“Yes,” The crew member replied, giving me a weird look, “everyone knows that. What, your parents never told you it wasn't real?”

“Oh.” I said, feeling quite embarrassed.

Looking back on it now, I feel quite dumb for believing in ghosts. After all, there is always an explanation.

The, End.