I had already gone through almost every prayer I knew in my head, but my knees were still shaking, especially because I could feel that she was still standing beside me.
"Where are you going? Why don't you get dressed first?" she suddenly said.
"Lord, whatever sin I've committed, please forgive me," I whispered over and over.
"Hey." She poked me. I flinched so badly I even made the sign of the cross, which made the people around me stare.
"Lord, please forgive me. I don't want to die yet," I whispered again.
"Hey, at least talk to me," she said. My grip on the towel tightened even more. I took a deep breath, forcing myself not to think about everything that was happening.
"This is nothing. I'm just dreaming," I told myself. I took another deep breath.
"There's no ghost. I'm just hungry, Carlos. That's right, I'm just hungry," I added. I had to believe everything was normal, or I felt like I was going to lose my mind.
"My husband," the one beside me called. "I know you can hear me. At least talk to me," I heard her say.
It's fine, Carlos. You're just imagining things. Maybe you really are just hungry because you haven't had breakfast yet, so you're seeing and hearing things. But I didn't even feel hungry.
Or maybe…
"Wait," I froze.
"Are you okay?"
I swallowed hard at that thought.
"Could it be…" I swallowed again.
"Am I going crazy?" I shouted, making everyone look at me like I really had lost my mind.
"No!"
I didn't want to go crazy. Panic gripped me at the thought. The elevator suddenly opened, so I rushed out and went straight to the guard.
"Can I borrow a phone?" I asked, breathless. He looked at me and at what I was wearing in confusion.
"Are you alright, Sir Carlos?" he asked.
"A phone," I repeated. He quickly handed one to me. I dialed my fellow officer's number, and thankfully he answered right away.
"Oh? What's wrong, Santiago?" he greeted on the other end.
"Jam, I think I'm losing my mind," I told him.
"What? What are you talking about?"
"I'm seeing a ghost in my apartment. What am I supposed to do, Jam?"
"Are you on drugs or something? You probably just lack sleep."
"I'm serious!"
"Just go eat or something. We'll talk later—Chief is here."
"Wait, Jam—"
"Carlos, if you're being haunted, just ignore it. Pretend you don't see it. It's that simple."
"But Jam, hello? Jam!" I shut my eyes in frustration when he hung up on me.
"Damn it," I muttered as I returned the phone.
"Are you okay, Sir Carlos?" the guard asked again, but I just forced a smile.
My gaze fell on the ring still on my finger. I tried to pull it off, but it wouldn't budge, as if it were stuck to my skin. I scratched my head in irritation. This ring must be what brought that ghost into my home. I took a deep breath and went back to the elevator to return to my apartment. I didn't care if that woman was still there. I just wanted to get dressed and leave so I could have this ring removed.
I couldn't get any more unlucky than this.
Why did I even accept it?
I got dressed quickly and grabbed my motorcycle keys. But before I could step out, I saw the ghost woman sitting on the sofa in the living room.
"Where are you going?" she asked.
"You don't see or hear anything," I reminded myself. I kept walking toward the door. I opened it, but she suddenly appeared right in front of me. I forced myself to pretend she wasn't there, even though my knees were shaking.
"My husband. Hey. Heyyy. Can't you see me? Hello?" She even waved in front of my face, but I kept walking out the door. My skin crawled when my body passed straight through hers.
I really had to get this ring removed—and I was going to hire an exorcist too. I had to get that woman out of my apartment.