Marbles

While my friends are talking about playing "hide and clap" after watching The Conjuring, I remember of marble game I used to play when I was a child instead. Actually, there's nothing scary about the game. It was an ordinary marble game; children shot the marbles, aiming opponent's marbles. I used to play the game with my friends at my backyard or any wide, open space like field or whatnot. In this story, it was not the game that is scary. It was not the players who are scary. It was the place that is scary.

I remember having played the game with my friends at a friend's backyard. The backyard is located near an old, neglected, unoccupied house. Alas, the backyard does not have any fences or frontiers. In other words, my friend's house and the unoccupied house share the same backyard (you might be able to imagine how the location is like). Making it clear, I'll try to describe the location: my friend's backyard is located between my friend's house and the unoccupied house. Have a clearer image now?

 It was only three of us, and I was the youngest. As the youngest among the group members, I often time got the harder 'duties' such as collecting the marbles after the game, or being the one who is blindfolded in "hide and seek" game, or being frequently defeated in playing certain games since I had not been well-skilled yet. Clouds shrouded us and the house looked so scary. As the sky got darker and darker, the house became more scary as well. Windows were left unveiled, revealing interior of the house. Every time I looked at one of those windows, I saw dark rooms, with spiderwebs on the wall and dusty ceiling. I was simply scared, yet somehow curious; wondering if someone suddenly showed up in the window and blinked at me. At that time, I could not enjoy the game. I felt like someone was watching us from one of those windows.

My friends enjoyed the game. They really had fun. I, who felt uncomfortable with the situation, decided to quit playing the game and ended up watching them playing. I stayed close to a friend, the oldest, and tried not to look at the house. But my eyes seemed to lose control, keeping looking at the house. Realizing that I had been just watching the game, the oldest one asked me to collect the marbles instead of doing nothing but watching. I refused at first because they shot the marbles far, near the neglected house. My friends forced me to collect it, telling me that everything would be fine and they would be there for me if something wrong happened. I doubted it but eventually walked to collect the marbles. As I got closer to the house, I felt like the house was watching me (this part would sound like a children horror story). The windows were the eyes, the door was the mouth. It was really dark inside the house that I could feel the darkness though I stayed outside. My heart beat fast that I dropped the marbles I collected. After collecting all the marbles, I came back quickly and requested my friends not to shoot too far. Fortunately, before they continued the game the rain started falling down so we ended the game and went home.

The house itself; it had been left unoccupied for years. Some occupants who had lived there; a family consisting of a married couple with their little daughter, and a family consisting of an old woman with her granddaughter; they seemed not to live for a long time there. The first family lived there for probably two or three years and then moved out. The old woman and her granddaughter occupied the house for a couple years and then they moved out. The house became unoccupied for years until another family lived there. Unfortunately, the family often times caused trouble for the neighbors that I, personally, hated them. The first two families were good family, and they moved out. When it came time for another family to occupy the house, it was an annoying family who occupied the house. I wonder if the house is somewhat cursed.

Honestly, I've been visited the house, once in my lifetime when the first family occupied the house. It was a big house and had several big rooms. I liked the size of the rooms, but I hated its kitchen; it was dark and dirty. The atmosphere of the house was really cold, and still I wonder why.

So it was not the marble game that is scary. It was the place where we played the game that is scary.