The Séance Revival is another attempt at a series of seven short stories that I wrote a while ago. This is part 1/7. Each part is one of the seven character's POV.
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The Ouija Board
Jimmy
It was my sixteenth birthday, and my friend Sam had given me a Ouija board. I didn’t know what it was. By the looks of it, it was probably just another one of those board games he gives me every year. He knows I don’t play board games, yet he still buys me one every year because he knows it’ll piss me off. I gave him a joking death stare and glanced down at the box. It was black, except for the ghostly green letters that spelled out ‘Ouija Board’ in the center. I flipped it over to see what was on the bottom, but there was nothing. I set it aside and flipped Sam off, who cracked his witty smile and laughed.
“What was it?” Brianne asked, sitting on the couch in front of me. “I didn’t see what it said.”
“It’s a Ouija board,” Lillian replied. “It’s just a game.”
“It’s not just a game,” Sam said, adjusting his glasses. He took them off his nose and wiped them clean on his shirt.
“It’s a game that tells you your future. And it glows in the dark. So, I think we should play it tonight.”
Roger sat next to Brianne on the couch. He asked, “Hey, Jimmy, can I see the game for a second?” I threw the game onto his lap and reached for another present.
“That’s from Jen and I,” Steve said, clutching a football between his hands. Jen nodded and smiled. “I hope you like it,” she said.
I ripped open the bag and a package of gum slid out. I reached inside and pulled out a scented candle and a gift card to the movies.
“Thanks guys,” I said, smiling. “Lil, it looks like we’re going on a date to the movies.” Lillian smiled and resumed to look at the board game that was in Roger’s lap.
“Well, that’s it. Thanks everyone. I really like all the gifts,” I said.
Everyone chimed in a ‘happy birthday’ while I sat there looking like an idiot. My presents were scattered on the floor, and I skimmed through them once again. A T-shirt, an iTunes gift card, the latest book in a series I was reading, the board game and Steve and Jen’s gifts.
“Can we play the game?” Sam asked, standing up from the couch. The others followed suit.
“Uh, sure. I don’t care. What do you guys want to do?” I asked, and the vote was unanimous. I wasn’t too particularly thrilled about the idea of sitting down to play a board game, but what else was there to do? It was the middle of October, and it looked like it was about to rain. My parents were out, leaving my friends and I alone in the house.
Roger, who had the board game, slit open the plastic that surrounded the box and set it on the kitchen table. We all grabbed a seat as Roger lifted the cover off. I stole a glance at Lillian, who was seated to my right. I gave her an inconspicuous wink. Roger took the board out of the box and set it on the table. I had never seen a Ouija board before, and the moment I glanced at it, I frowned. The board was a rectangle. In the middle, the alphabet was strewn across in a half circle in two rows. In the top left corner was the word YES, and in the top right, NO. At the bottom were the numbers zero through nine.
“This doesn’t look like a board game,” I said as Roger pulled out a white, heart shaped plastic marker and set it on the board.
“Well,” Jen said, “it’s not really a board game. Haven’t you ever seen a Ouija board?”
I shook my head and watched Roger sit down in his chair with the instructions in his hand.
“A Ouija board is used to talk to the dead.”
Everyone stared at Jen. My mouth hung open a bit, and then I cleared my throat.
“So, Sam? I thought you bought me a board game? Apparently, you’ve now purchased a real life telephone to hell,” I said and smiled when the tension was cut by laughter.
“I’m not joking,” Jen said, raising her eyebrows. “This stuff’s real. My uncle has one and plays with it a lot. Some scary shit can happen. It’s not a toy.”
“Yeah, guys?” Roger piped in, sliding his thick glasses up his nose. “I’ve heard a lot about Ouija boards. They’re like, evil. I don’t know if we should be messing with it.”
“Dude,” Sam said pointedly. “It’s sold by the Parker Brothers.” He pointed to the side of the box, where the Parker Brother’s logo was. “It’s a toy. Believe me.”
“I don’t know,” Roger whimpered. “It seems pretty real to me. I don’t feel comfortable playing with it.”
“Alright, listen, guys. We’ll play it once. Let’s just test it out before we jump to any conclusions, okay?” I said. “Is everyone okay with that? Honestly, I don’t believe in this stuff. I mean, what could even happen? How does this thing work?”
“I’m not sure. I know we’re supposed to call on a ghost, or something,” Jen replied, slipping her fingers in-between Steve’s. “But I’m not sure how it all works. Roger? What do the instructions say?”
“I’ve heard about these,” Lillian whispered. “They’re Satanic, aren’t they?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “It’s just a game. Believe me. We’ll be fine.”
“The instructions are pretty vague. It says we’re supposed to place the planchette (which I’m guessing is this),” Roger pointed to the heart shaped plastic marker, “in the center of the board. We’re supposed to sit in a circle, light some candles and turn out the lights. It says two people put their finger on the planchette and the rest hold hands and ask questions. But it doesn’t say what to ask . Guys, I don’t know. It seems really dark. I don’t want to do it.”
“Oh, grow some balls, Rog,” Steve grumbled. “It’s not real. Let’s just play. Hurry, I need to get home soon. I have football practice in the morning.”
“Hey!” Brianne said. “Don’t talk to him like that. He can do whatever he wants to do.”
“Guys,” I reminded. “Tempers. But Brianne’s right. Roger, if you don’t want to play—”
“I’ll play,” Roger said. Something dark was in his tone. I knew Roger hated to be bossed around by Steve, but there wasn’t much I could do about it. Steve was like that. He was a jock. And Roger? Well, Roger wasn’t.
“Okay. We need candles? Is that what you said?” I asked. I glanced over to my pile of gifts and saw the scented candles that Steve and Jen had given me. Roger muttered something, and I stood up and retrieved them. I took the plastic wrapping off it, set it on a plate and slid it in the middle of the table, beside the board. Grabbing the matches from the kitchen drawer, I lit one and lit the wick on the candle. It grabbed the flame and held it there, like some Olympic torch.
“I’ll get the lights,” Lillian said. She flicked the switch, and the room was sent into darkness, save the one candle that was lit.
“Wow, that’s like, really creepy. Can we turn the lights on?” Brianne asked, but Steven replied with a curt, “No! Just shut up and let’s play.”
“Be nice,” Jen whispered.
“Who wants to put their fingers on the marker?” I asked. “I’ll do it, but I need someone else.”
“I will,” Lillian replied, sliding her hands up to mine. Her hands were warm and soft and smelled like lotion.
The rest of the group held hands and we sat in silence for a moment.
“What do we do?” Lillian asked. I shrugged.
“Is there, uh, anything here with us?” I asked, my voice faltering a little bit.
The room was completely silent. We didn’t even breathe.
“When will I die?” Steve sneered and laughed.
“Steve, don’t,” Roger whispered.
“Shut up, Roger. This stuff isn’t real. Nothing’s gonna happen. And if something does happen, it’ll be because Jimmy and Lil push the stupid marker. There won’t be any ghosts talking to us.”
“Will you shut up?” I asked. I hope the sound of annoyance in my tone would shut Steve up, but it didn’t.
“No! I can say what I want to say. I don’t believe in this crap. Nothing’s gonna happen!”
Right then, I heard something.
“Shut up!” I urged, but he kept talking. “Steve, shut the hell up! I heard something!”
Our group fell silent. My eyes stared into the candle, which was as steady as ever. What had I heard? It came from the other room.
“Jimmy? What’d you hear?” Lillian asked.
“Shush. Just listen.”
We listened.
Nothing.
After a while, I placed my hand on the planchette again, and said, “You have our attention. If that was you, can you do it again? Can you make a sound?”
There was more of that earsplitting silence for a few moments, but then I heard something across the table. It was Brianne breathing loud and deep.
“Brianne, cut it out. Stop breathing like that!” I said.
“Guys,” she whimpered, but her voice died out.
“What?”
“I feel really cold all of a sudden.”
I didn’t speak. I couldn’t. Goosebumps traveled up and down my back.
“Are you in this room with us?” Lillian asked, resuming the séance.
Silence.
“I want to go home—” Roger began but something caught his eye.
The candle blew out, throwing the room into utter darkness. Not even the moon was shining through the windows. Brianne uttered a small cry.
I let go of the planchette and leaned back in my chair in shock. I could feel Lillian stiffen in her seat.
“I’ll get the lights,” I whispered. I rose from my chair and walked to the light switch. I flicked it on.
As I turned around, my eyes glanced at the board and the planchette. The hair on the back of my neck stood up.
The marker was resting on the word YES.
