Dream: Phantasm

My own family thinks I’m dead.

The evidence is there, I admit,

But nobody ever found my body;

The police report only says I’m missing.

–

I’m still here. Why can’t they see?

I follow them around, shouting their name.

But all they feel is a stiff breeze.

They’re indoors, don’t they find it strange?

–

My cries fall on deaf ears.

Each time, it feeds my growing fears.

My waving arms are wasted on blind eyes.

Nothing will convince them I’ve not died.

–

I’m following my family through the mall.

I’ve given up on trying to talk to them.

But as I walk around, hand dragging against the clothes rack,

I hear a yelp behind me, I turn to look as a man steps back.

–

Pointing at the rack of clothes he stutters,

Incoherent words, his pale face, he stares.

I wrack my head to try to comprehend

Why he is looking in my direction.

–

It’s been so long since anyone has given me attention.

Despite asking for it, I find myself nervous.

I step back to hide in the clothes rack,

But the clothes part around me, my movement he tracks.

–

“A ghost!” He says, surprised by how loud his voice is.

My family starts walking away, scared by his noises.

I am conflicted for a moment, should I stay with my family?

No, I’ll follow this man who will notice me.

–

He side-steps out of line of sight and I sneak up behind him.

His face becomes impassive as I am again forgotten.

So I stomp on the ground and am rewarded by a flinch.

He heard that sound, I wonder if he can hear my speech?

–

“Hello, can you hear me?” I say hopefully.

The man freezes in his tracks before turning to face me.

“Who’s there?” He cries out, eyes wandering wildly.

But as I am about to answer his face loses intensity.

–

I don’t give him time to forget.

“I’m your eldritch spirit,”

“If you don’t heed my action then you’ll learn to fear it.”

“Please don’t haunt me!” He begs, “I’ve got a wife and children.”

–

Well this is just getting better, maybe his family also has his talent.

I follow him home; I scare him every few minutes.

I must be persistent, lest he forget my existence.

I follow him inside, and to the ground I throw dishes.

–

To my dismay, the children don’t look up from their notebooks.

The wife, busy cooking, doesn't note the broken glass.

The man, however, puts his hands to his head.

“Oh no! It followed me home!” He says, voice shaking with dread.

–

“What’d you say honey?” The wife looks up from her bowl.

But the man has forgotten, “Oh, nothing at all.”

Memory of me so ephemeral, a feather in the wind.

A droplet in the current of a never ending stream.

–

I follow him around the house, but there is something odd.

When he goes to the basement, he grows really old.

His hair turns grey and short, and eyes lose their sight.

His hearing grows deaf, so I’m silent in his mind.

–

But when he enters the living room, he becomes a kid.

He’s as young as a child, and shorter than the rest.

His family is affected in the same manner too.

It seems they don’t notice the magic of these rooms.

–

I no longer find this family as interesting.

The man can hear me, but he forgets instantly.

And the wildness of the house is unpredictable.

So I decide to leave and find others to trouble.

–

–

–

I run out through the walls, they forget I’m there too.

I run down the street, my muscles don’t burn when I move.

I know I’m not a ghost because phantoms are dead.

But maybe I was never alive, just part of their imagination?

–

As fast as a car, I speed down the highway.

I’d actually be happy if a police car stopped me.

To burn off frustration and melt anxiety.

To prove my existence and forge my own identity.

–

I don’t need recognition from others,

I’m independent. I’ve got the powers

To be self-sufficient. Who cares if mother,

Doesn’t remember my name or see my struggles?

–

I’ve burnt off steam, time to take action.

Families I don’t need, but it would be pleasant.

So I make my way to the right lane, to take the nearest exit.

Then I wander into the suburbs, looking for a house to break-in.

–

But I’m no criminal, I’m just a wraith.

A specter in the night, invading your personal space.

To wake you in with fright to the sound of disaster.

The mess on the floor made by an expert thrasher.

–

In case no one has noticed, I’m a slob.

And I get great satisfaction when the family wakes up.

They see the mess on the ground, and the furniture rearranged.

They decide it’s time for spring cleaning to spruce up the place.

–

But they have no clue that they have an intruder.

But don’t mistake my intentions, I don’t mean them hurt.

I’ll protect this house, robbers can taste dirt.

I’ll make them a grave, no one else haunts my turf.

–

This family has a great big swimming pool.

And the house has multiple stories, it totally rules.

I imagine they must be wealthy to have such great residence.

I wonder what their job is blessed with eminence.

–

These do not hear me, but all of them can see.

Not my form, but my outline.

A silhouette in the light, a shadow on the wall.

My displacement in the dust, my footprints in carpet.

–

They’ve given me a name, a shade of the house.

Sometimes we play games, like hide-n-seek in the pool.

But I never hide, that would be too easy.

I’m the seeker, I hunt. The children love it.

–

But something is wrong, it just doesn’t feel right.

In the dark of the night, they drained the water.

I climb a ladder to the balcony, and they follow.

It’s dark so how can they possibly see me?

–

I’m displacement, the void, the absence, the shade.

Why am I afraid? I’m the ghost!

Yet such a generous host, this family is to me.

Aren’t they scared, why do they enjoy this haunt?

–

Uneasy, disquiet, unnerved, on edge.

I leave that same night, knives dull with age.

And if I am a blade, I’m shiny and sharp.

Only two houses have suffered my art.

–

So I roam the streets again, I stick to the sidewalk.

I don’t feel like myself, so I don’t want the company of traffic.

Strange, every house on the streets has their lights off.

I hurry until I find a well-lit street I can relax on.

–

“Sir, are you alright?” I hear a voice in the distance.

I ignore it, since it’s none of my business.

“Can you hear me?” It says, which triggers my mind.

I’ve often asked the same question to no avail many times.

–

I look up to see the silhouette of a man approaching.

But as he enters the light, he proves to be human.

It takes me some time, but then I realize.

That man over there is talking to me.