Disclaimer:
All characters in this fictional story are 18 years old or older.
House Rules - Pt.1
Mikes back was aching. He had been carrying boxes all morning and was now lying on his bed, trying to stretch and ease the pain. He looked up at the ceiling of his new room and wondered about the strangeness off it all.
A few months ago, his mother had gotten a letter in the mail notifying her, that her great uncle had died and that she was the sole heir to his estate. Something about her being the only remaining next of kin alive.
Mike hadn't really cared as, they all thought it a joke at the time. His mum had never even heard of a great uncle. But then, a month ago, the notary had actually visited them in person and indeed confirmed the truthfulness of the letter.
The estate had consisted of several assets and some amount of money, most of which had gone to charities and taxes. But the biggest item on the list had been the house itself. It was very old and must have been in the family for many generations.
The will of his mother's great uncle had stated that if there were any remaining family members to be found that the only condition to inherit was that the beneficiary had to move into the house. Otherwise, it was to be demolished and the property, using the remaining funds, to be turned into a nature reserve.
They had discussed it as a family. Neither Mike nor his twin sister Jessica had been eager to move state and more or less into the wilderness. But in the end their mother Monica had put her foot down and soon they all had packed their belongings and moved to the middle of nowhere.
They had arrived yesterday, and a few hours later the moving company had called. Their truck had had a flat tire and it had taken another day for their stuff to arrive. So, they had had to make do with bare necessities and whatever furniture had already been in the house.
This morning Jessica had declared at the breakfast table, that she didn't much like their new home. She had said it was creepy and old, and that she had heard strange noises at night. But thinking back on it now, Mike had actually enjoyed his first night.
Sure, the noises were creepy but he had soon discovered, that it was just the old wood settling when there was a strong breeze. Also, he thought it was cool living in a house with an actual entrance hall and a dining room, instead of the cramped apartment they had been living in for most of his life.
Mike closed his eyes and tried to relax his back but was suddenly interrupted by his mother's voice. "Mike, come down here. You're not done yet. I want you to carry these boxes up to the attic."
Mike sighed. "Can't Jessi do it" he yelled, not moving from the bed.
"Fuck off!"
"Language, Jessica!" he heard his mother scold his sister. "No Mike, they are too heavy. Please don't make me come up there and get you."
"Fine," Mike mumbled and made his way downstairs. He spent the next hour lugging the remaining boxes from the moving van up the stairs and into the attic.
When the last one was in place, he took a moment to catch his breath and sat down on one of them. Looking around he wasn't too impressed with what he saw. Nobody had been up here in years, decades maybe. The floor was covered in a thick layer of dust and Mike could see his own footprints leading to the trapdoor.
Apart from the boxes he had carried up here, there wasn't much else. Only a broken floor lamp and a desk missing one leg, lying tilted on the floor. He got up and wanted to go back down the ladder when he noticed a case on the underside of the desk. Had the leg not been missing and the desk not been tilted he would have missed it.
His curiosity getting the better of him Mike decided to investigate. He took a closer look at the case and ascertained that it was crudely nailed to the desk. With a solid yank Mike managed to pry it loose and discovered a small book with a black cover and golden letters on the front, reading
House rules,
on the inside of the case.
Flipping through the pages Mike found that most of them were empty except or the first two. He pinched his eyes together, tying to read the letters, but the lighting was very poor and he had a hard time deciphering what was written inside.
He closed the book shut and climbed down the latter, wanting to find a better spot to read it. In his room Mike sat down at his own desk and opened the first page of the book. It read as follows:
"These are the house rules of Pearson Manor
Anyone, be they guest or resident, is obliged to follow these rules or the duration of their stay or be swiftly removed from the premises."
Following this there were a number of passages which were unreadable apart from the first cypher of every paragraph, which always was a number beginning at 1 and ending at 11. The rest was crossed out with ink.
Mike sighed with disappointment. Someone had apparently crossed out the actual house rules and there was no way for him to recover what was struck. Annoyed he dropped the book laid back down on his bed to relax his still sore back.
Just when he had found a comfortable position, he heard a creaking noise and his sister's head peaked in through the door. "What's wrong Mike, already spent?" She gave her brother a wicked smile. "Mom says you should stop lazing about and carry my boxes to my room too."
Mike gave her a hard look. "Is that right?" he asked. "And what else, should I maybe clean your room as well?"
"If you don't mind, sure. Actually... yes, she totally said that. Come, on. No time to idle."
Mike tossed his pillow at her face but she ducked out of the room, narrowly avoiding being hit. He heard her giggling and her swift footsteps quieting with distance, then a door opened and closed. For a moment he just laid there thinking about how to get back at his sister. As nothing came to mind, he groaned and got up to recover his pillow.
Then his eyes fell on the book on his desk and he made an exasperated noise. Was that really the best he could come up with? "Whatever, maybe it'll be funny for the next person who reads it when they find it in 100 years," he thought. He sat down at his desk, grabbed a pen and opened up the book. Beneath the last paragraph he wrote:
Jessica can only walk on one leg.
He smiled for a moment at the thought of his sister hopping through the house on one leg. A twinge in his back muscle sharply reminded him of his days labors and he closed the book again to lay down on his bed, and finally take the nap he had yearned or all day. His last thoughts were of his sister, stumbling and falling into a heap of mud. A grin spread across his face.
A giant bunny was chasing him. Thump-thump-thump. He was running, but he couldn't shake it. Thump-thump-thump. Panic rose in Mikes stomach. He was breathing heavily. Thump-thump-thump. The bunny was huge. Each time it jumped the floor shook beneath him. Thump-thump-thump. He looked over his shoulder. The bunny was right behind him. Mike screamed as it jumped and-
"Wake up, dumbass, dinner is ready!" Mike almost jumped out of his bed. Suddenly he was wide awake and his heart was thumping. His sister looked at him with a raised eyebrow but or once said nothing.
As he looked around, he saw that it was almost dark outside the window. Apparently, he had slept a lot longer than just the quick nap he had wanted to take. Yawning and closing his eyes he carefully stretched but to his relief not pain shot through his body.
When he opened his eyes again, he caught a glance of his sister leaving his room and... "Wait, that ain't right," the thought to himself and rushed after her.
Thump-thump-thump. There she was, jumping on one leg towards the stairs. Mike gaped at her. Had she read the book, he wondered. There was no way this had actually worked. But there was one way to find out. He rushed back to his desk, opened the book and hastily scribbled:
Jessica can only refer to herself in the 3
rd
person.
Then, he stuffed the book and the pen into his pocket and went downstairs. When he entered the kitchen, a wonderful smell caught his attention. His mom was cooking dinner and stood with her back to him. He couldn't help but stare at her firm bum for a moment, then taring his eyes of his mother behind he went to the cupboard and began taking out dishes to set the table.
"There you are honey. Did you get a good rest?" his mother asked. "I didn't want to wake you, you seemed quite exhausted. But I also couldn't let you miss dinner."
"I'm fine, thanks mom." He gave her a warm smile. Then he took the dishes and made his way to the dining room. His sister was already there, lounging in one of the chairs, typing franticly on her mobile phone. "You wanna help, maybe, Jess?" he asked as he began placing plates and cutlery in their places.
"Nah, Jessica is good," his sister replied, not even looking up, as if nothing was odd about the way she had said it. Mike stopped and just stared at her. After a moment his sister looked up and asked "Why are you gaping at Jessica like that, weirdo?"
"Oh, nothing," Mike replied, trying to suppress a laugh. "I can't wait until mom hears her," he thought to himself, and kept on setting the table.
After some moments he heard footsteps behind him and his mom entered the room, carrying a steaming pot. She set it on the table and, with a big smile, exclaimed, "Well, dig in!"