Forums » General Roleplay » Cheap Room For Rent (Closed Rp)

Gyce drifted aimlessly throughout the small, empty dorm. It was furnished to the barest minimum, which gave her very little to occupy her thoughts with. At first it was always interesting when someone moved out, the stains on the carpet left by old dusty furniture, or the reveal of scuff marks they were hiding. But days had become weeks, and weeks had turned into months.

Gyce began to think that she might just be alone forever.

The new tenants next door weren't even noisy enough to listen to through the wall, as a poor replacement for what the little ghost considered company.

___

"You're a very smart man, Mr. Liew," his new Landlord said, shaking John's hand with a grin.

He was a short, stocky man with a round face. Even though he was decently groomed and dressed, the Landlord still managed to look.. 'greasy'.

He slid the newly-signed lease agreement, for dorm 18 back to his side of the desk, and produced a key for John.

"Number 18 is all yours, my friend," he said, sending the young man on his way.

"You've got the office phone number if you need anything."

John smiled politely said "thanks ah, sir." He was glad to be getting on-campus housing at Tembusu Residential College, but he couldn't help but feel that the landlord was swindling him in some way. He opened the door to his assigned dorm room and laid eyes on the transluscent profile of a young woman.

John yelled and his cry echoed through the building. His neighbours quickly responded with angry rebukes of "eh diam la", "shut up" and "walao shout so loud for what".

John had gone noticeably paler, but he shouted a quick apology. He approached the spectre and half-said to himself, "are you real or have I gone kee siao already?"

((translations: diam- malay meaning quiet, la- an exclamation often used at the end of a sentence to denote irritation or matter-of-factness, walao- hokkien for "my father" but usually used in the same way as "oh my god", kee siao- hokkien for crazy))

Gyce was shell-shocked as John approached her. If she had a heart, it likely would have stopped. One moment she'd been alone as usual, and the not only had a (presumably) new tenant waltzed in, but right up to her, and looked her dead in the eye.

The little ghost struggled to find her words, shrinking away from the imposing figure as her throat grew impossibly tight.

"You.. Y-you... Can s-see me..?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

She had a noticeably foreign accent, but hadn't thought about such a thing until that very moment. Conversations were something she observed - usually from afar - not actively participated in.

John blinked as the woman asked if he could see her. What kind of question was that? he thought.

Breathing in a shaky breath, he replied, "yes, it's very difficult to miss a translucent ang mor woman in my dorm. What the hell are you doing here?"

((translation: ang mor- hokkien for "red hair" but used to refer to all caucasians regardless of actual hair colour))

Gyce's mind was reeling. Her mouth opened and closed silently, as she tried to find her words amidst her current shock.

"I....I..." she stammered.

She'd spent so long fantasising about what it might be like to be seen, to talk with one of the students she'd observed from afar. That fantasy was completely shattered now.

"I....Live here..?" she managed.

It wasn't untrue, but she had a sinking feeling that isn't what the man in front of her wanted to hear.

"You... live here?"

John wanted to sit down and forget this woman existed but he couldn't. She was right there.

"You're not some pontianak right? Don't scare me leh, Singapore got a lot of ghost stories one."

((translation: pontianak- malay for a kind of ghostly succubus, leh- comes before a comma or full stop to denote frustration, stress and/or what is essentially a "I'm sick of this shit" attitude.))

Gyce nodded to his first question, "W-well... For as long as I can remember, yeah.."

To John's second, the little ghost finally seemed to find her voice.

"W-what?! No!" She exclaimed with a mix of embarrassment and disgust, crossing her arms over her body.

The mere suggestion of such a thing left her feeling exposed somehow.

"I would never."

Even if she had wanted to, Gyce had never been able to touch anything without phasing through it. The little ghost hadn't felt this horrified since that one tenant who didn't shower for weeks on end.

((I'm aware of that, just wanted to assure no offence was meant. My foot goes into my mouth quite often when confronted with non-hetero orientations and that offends a lot of ppl ))

John blinked. This ghost was weird but his inner scientific curiosity overrode his natural fear of the supernatural.

"You don't look like you're alive... Are you dead?"

((Not to worry, haha! She's offended, but I know we're both writing from a perspective of knowing the characters better than they know each other - I'll let you know if something's upset me, and not Gyce ))

Gyce calmed some at John's next question, taking a moment to consider it thoughtfully.

"I... Don't think I'm alive, no," she said, a finger resting on her chin as she voiced her thoughts.

"Living things can generally be seen by others...And don't pass through things they touch.. But then again, if I was dead.. I feel like my death would be pretty hard to forget about.."

His eyes widened and his brows furrowed. Curiouser and curiouser John thought. He had a thousand questions now, all clawing at his brain in an effort to be free.

"So there's no body? When did you realise you were dead? Why aren't you in the afterlife?"

Gyce was left feeling a little daft as John continued to question her. She hadn't even thought about looking for a body upon waking up in the state she was. Gyce hadn't truly realised she might have been dead until the very first time she passed through a tenant. And even then it took her a while to piece things together.

"I didn't exactly go looking for one - I mean, I don't remember dying, it was like I... Just woke up," she tried to explained, feeling flustered.

"N-nobody comes and gives you a manual or and induction when you die," Gyce continued, gesticulating.

The swift movements of her hands made them appear more transparent than ever.

"My guess is as good as yours why I'm not in the afterlife."

John was experiencing a multitude of emotions, some he had not felt in a long time. Confusion, frustration, curiosity and determination.

"Wait, so how long have you been dead? And why are you still here if you can walk through walls?"

“It’s been a long time since someone hung a calendar up in the room...” Gyce replied sheepishly. “The Place was empty when I first woke up.”

The next question caused the ghost to wilt. Her big, expressive eyes trailed sadly over to the door.

“I don’t know why I can’t,” she said, “But when I do try, it.. Hurts, like, even when I get close to the door, I start to feel it.”

Gyce drifted through the few pieces of furniture in the room, a ratty arm chair and small coffee table, to demonstrate. Then, as she moved closer to the front door, her already see-through form grew even less solid. It was almost, fuzzy, around the edges.

She turned back to John, before actually touching the door. Their was visible discomfort etched on her face.

“It feels like... Very harsh static,” she explained, “ Like when you sit on your foot for too long.”

"Damn I was hoping to get you out of here... " John's eyes widened and he covered his mouth.

"Did I say that aloud?"

"I'm dead, not deaf," Gyce replied sharply, crossing her arms over her chest.

"It's not my fault you can see me," she continued.

And the petite ghost never thought she'd be saying that. Here she was, having her very first, real conversation with someone, and it wasn't anything like she'd spent her time daydreaming about.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." John moved to sit on the couch and put his hands on his face as he leaned back.

"It's not everyday one meets a dead person. In my shock and curiosity I neglected the person part and for that I am terribly sorry."

Gyce's tough demeanour faltered at John's apology. She drifted over to him.

"No, s-sorry. You're right.." she assured him, "It's been a day full of firsts for both of us, it seems."

She sighed deeply, and then gave a shrug.

"I... Guess I'll just try and stay out of your way..." she said with a sheepish smile, "Believe me, if I could leave this dorm, I would. It's hard not to feel a little stir crazy being cooped up in here, believe me."