GHOST

GHOST STORY

The incident happened on a winter night in 2012, late December or early January. I was working at an ISP call center at the time. It was noon when I woke up, so I was a common sinner of the 5:00 PM to 1:00 AM shift. Like other days, it was 1:50 AM when the office car dropped me off in front of my house. My grandparents have heart disease, and making any noise at night is forbidden. Almost as silently as a cat, I opened the collapsible gate on the ground floor and went up to the fourth floor to my attic. Rice was covered on the table, frozen beef and thick peanuts. I finished the rice in two minutes, took off my clothes and shoes, and sipped some water. It was 2:06 AM, midnight for many and the beginning of night for me. As soon as I got out of the car, I noticed a moon in the sky, sparkling like an overturned silver plate. Wrapped in a sheet, I stood on the roof, lighting a fire on the head of a goldleaf. Next to the house is the vast sand field of ASEAN City, sparkling in the moonlight, and as a bonus, a random northerly wind. With a flutter of happiness in my chest, it's on a night like this that people post on Facebook, "Life is Beautiful. I was so lost in myself, I came to my senses with the flick of a cigarette on my finger. After pinching myself a few times, my head cooled down a bit. I turned around and walked home.

I stepped forward in the darkness, cautiously, and looked at the door, and froze like ice. I have been afraid a lot in my life, and I have seen that even in life and death situations, my head remains clear. I have always seen how in dire situations or when my back is against the wall, the fear inside me evaporates, and the decisions taken at that time are the best in all aspects. But this time, it is the opposite story, along with my body, my head also froze when I saw the scene in front of me.

I know that I have a problem with my eyes, and my glasses have been a witness to that problem for eleven years now. When someone says, “Eyes, you are seeing wrong,” I smile softly and say every time, “Man is only wrong... Man is mortal.” But what I saw that night was absolutely 100% correct, I saw it clearly in the moonlight and the light that came through the door. What did I see? Before I started writing this article, I thought for a long time about how to describe “the thing.” Well, before I start describing it, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I was born in Comilla CMH. When I was eleven months old, due to the outbreak of malaria around, my father sent me and my mother to my grandmother in Dhaka, and since then I have been in Dhaka. My pulse was measured in this place near the airport. Darkness is not unfamiliar to me, but I have never felt comfortable in the dark. My attitude towards ghosts and spirits has always been such that I have never laughed them off, but I have never defended their existence either. In response to my friends' questions, I have said with a smile, "If ghosts and spirits exist, if not, they do not exist, and if not, then it is not a problem, the case is dismissed. If they do, don't let them come in front of me, my heart is weak."

That day I got the answer to my question. I have no idea what the thing was. Maybe it was an evil genie in the language of Muslims, maybe a ghost from my childhood, a scolding or an unsatisfied spirit. No f*cking idea and trust me I don’t give a f*ck about that things name! He will be a hand taller than me. In the moonlight, his body wrapped in a white shroud is clearly visible. He is wrapped from head to toe, it seems that he has just been put on the shroud after taking a bath. The hair on the back of his head stands up for the first time in his life. I am looking at him with my two eyes full of disbelief. It would be wrong to say which way his head is working.

At that time, 80 percent of my thoughts are fear, the remaining 20 percent are mixed thoughts of death and questions about the kingdom and a desperate attempt to remember any one, any prayer. And like ten Jumma-Muslims, I have memorized all twenty surahs, and the auto comes in the middle of the prayers; I never needed the slightest effort to remember. But that day, let alone any surah, I could not remember the name of the surah or even a single Arabic letter. A train of empty thoughts ran through my head, "What is this! Oh God, what is this??? What am I going to do? What am I going to do? Jump from the roof? The building on the east side is two-story, if I jump with my eyes closed, I will break my arms and legs, and not die. Oh God, what is this? Look the other way, my eyes, why are you looking at that, you idiot. Look the other way, brother, don't look down. There's something wrong with your eyes.

I know what that song was about, damn it, damn it. Why can't you still go? I'm scared. What the hell... What the hell is this? Is this a chicken like you that goes to the slaughterhouse? Oh God, what am I going to do? Why can't you go!!!" I couldn't get a single word out of my mouth. Not a single word. Suddenly, I felt like the thing was floating towards me. I didn't even think to look down at that one, I was staring at the head like a mesmerized person. It felt clear that the figure was coming towards me again!!! "Oh my God" I wanted to scream through the air, swearing to God! But in reality I was losing consciousness after making a loud noise. After regaining consciousness, I opened my eyes once and saw pitch darkness, then closed them again in fear. The left side of my head was throbbing with pain. Brazilian samba and Indian drums were playing in my chest. I took a deep breath and decided not to open my eyes.

No matter what, I couldn't open my eyes. My left hand was buried under my body, and after moving it a couple of inches, I felt that there was a pack of cigarettes in my pocket. The presence of the match increased my confidence even more. Please believe me, I can light a cigarette sitting in a moving rickshaw even in the pouring rain. But that day, as if an eternity had passed, the smell of burnt gunpowder hit my nose, and after a little bit of shaking, nicotine entered my lungs. I felt like I was standing up with joy. My head was getting cold now, the logic was clear. I remembered the Ayatul Kursi, “Allahu la ilaha illa huwal hayyul...” After reciting it twice in my mind, after gaining some courage, I recited it once a little louder.

I took another drag on my cigarette and decided that this time I would get up. First, I would light a match and look in the direction where the thing was. If it was still there, I would run two steps and jump onto the east-facing roof. If it wasn't, I would run along the house. Even though I had a cigarette in my hand, I would still light the match. There was no point in taking a chance. Fear is such a thing, Dad! Huhu... Lighting the match, opening my eyes, getting up and rushing into the room and closing the door all took five seconds, trust me, only five seconds.

I turned around and saw that my mobile phone on the table was spinning. Before I lost consciousness due to fear, I remembered that there is a thing called vibration mode. As soon as I received the call, a barrage of threats and insults and questions came from the other side... After two more cigarettes and a lot of stuttering, after telling my lover the whole story, when she said in a clouded voice, "How much more nonsense are you going to talk, I know the boys of Dhaka very well. Who else are you talking to on another phone, you bastard?" Then I was consumed with sadness, "After loving Hala for so long, if I can't make my girlfriend believe me, then I will believe in other people!" I know how many oaths I had to take, how many thousands of words I had to spend until the call to prayer was given, keep that story to myself. There is no pressure on you. Whether you believe it or not, I don't care. But I am telling you from the bottom of my heart, if you don't believe it, come back to this blog post and rot me, then I will pray until I die so that you three can visit you even once. So you will understand, how much rice for how much rice! Huh!

P.S.: I glanced at the clock while talking to my girlfriend. It was ten past three in the morning.