Flat No. 007

Mr and Mrs Patel had recently shifted to Mumbai and the first task for them was to find a flat for them. For the first week, Mr And Mrs Patel with their little daughter stayed in a lodge and then a real estate agent told them about a flat available in 'High Flying Apartments' in one of the busiest streets of Mumbai.

Mr Patel was shocked as he wasn't expecting that locality in his budget, rather he was expecting an outskirts area apartment, so to double-check he asked the agent If he knows his budget or not but the agent confirmed with a yes.

With surprised and equally happy faces the family went to check the flat, and it was absolutely beautiful. The registration process took place as fast as it could. Mr Patel couldn't believe everything was happening so quickly. 

When they were all set to move in, the other members of the society looked at them with an expression of fear.

First few days in the flat were normal. But one fine evening, when Mr Patel was all set to leave for home from the office, his boss assigned him an urgent task. When he completed the task it was already 11 so then he hurriedly left for home. When he reached his apartments, the dim night light was showering all over. As the flat was on the second floor Mr Patel preferred stairs rather than the elevator because he was a health freak. 

But when he was climbing upstairs he saw a little boy standing on the stairs. He looked at the time in his watch and it was already 45 minutes past 11. Mr Patel asked the boy what he is doing there at this time. The boy just stood there numb. With no response from the boy, he asked another question, 'which one is your flat, my child?'

But when he didn't respond Mr Patel took the boy's hand and started climbing up the stairs. He reached his flat and rang the doorbell. Mrs Patel was up waiting for her husband. The door opened and Mr Patel said this little boy was standing on the stairs so I brought him with me. Surprised, his wife asked who? Which boy? And when Mr Patel looked at his hands, he was grabbing nothing.

He ignored that incident thinking that it was the hallucination due to overwork. But then things weren't too limited here.

He was tired so he slept even without eating. It was late in the night when he heard the footsteps. His eyes opened from the sound of footsteps moving frequently, it seemed like someone was calling him. He opened his eyes and started hearing the sounds of footsteps and reached his daughter's room. After realising the sound was from inside the room, he pushed the door and saw his daughter had cut marks all over her face, bloodstreams flowing from everywhere, dressed roughly and an unknown pair of boots which Mr Patel never saw at their house in her wardrobe. Scared Mr Patel after retaining to his senses, screened and quickly called his wife's name.

His wife ran towards him and saw her husband standing and screaming for no reason. When Mr Patel opened his eyes he saw his wife holding onto his hand and his daughter standing near him and there was a doctor who was checking for his heartbeat. The doctor also stated that it's hallucination due to the lack of sleep and overload of work but somewhere in mind, Mr Patel was confused whether it was actually hallucination or what he saw was actually happening.

The next time Mr Patel decided to have the CCTV camera all over his flat. At the same time of night, he heard the same sound of those boots. It was again from his daughter's room. He was more nervous and scared this time. 

Yet with all the courage he had, he pushed the door. And his daughter was with the same dress and the same boots. This time before he could call his wife, everything went to normal and he saw his daughter sleeping on her bed.

He ran to check the CCTV footage. And to all his surprise he saw that he never went to his daughter's room. When he realised that he was on his bed all the time, he still believed that there was something wrong without cameras. 

As the doctor had suggested, he was on leave from the office. The next night Mr Patel asked his wife to tie him to the bed. But then nothing happened for a few days. Everything was getting normal again. 

Mr Patel had already taken a long leave. So he decided to go to the office. It was obvious he had a huge burden of work pending while he was on leave. He worked till the late night. The clock was running and it was half-past 11. Mr Patel had to hurry. He quickly arranged the files without any order just randomly picking and banged up on the table. 

Hurriedly he left the office and drove his car to the apartment. He was so tired and weak this time he wasn't able to climb up the stairs so he entered the lift and as soon as he pushed the button he saw the same boy standing in front of him but this time it wasn't that innocent face, the cut marks all over the face, palm and wrist, those pair of boots he saw in his daughter's room and the hands longer than the normal hand almost below the knees. And those blood flowing out darkest it could be almost blackish red in colour. 

Those 2 mins in the lift with the scariest shadow, Mr Patel continuously chanting prayers. And as soon as the lift door opened, Mr Patel dragged himself to reach his flat. And the boy called this time. 

"Mr Patel, won't you take me to your flat like you did the last time?"

Mr Patel lying on the floor looking at that moving shadow and pushing himself back trying hard to reach his doors. This time Mr Patel was numb.

The boy called again, "Mr Patel, your daughter is waiting for me, take me with you". And by this time Patel had reached to his doorsteps and had a stand with shaking legs. 

He continuously rang the doorbell and Mrs Patel opened the door. He entered in and quickly closed the door back. After closing the doors he then ran towards his daughter's room and saw her missing. 

Screaming the name of his wife he called her and informed her that their daughter is missing. Mrs Patel ran into the room and saw her sleeping peacefully on her bed. 

Things were getting bad. Mr Patel lost his consciousness and when he regained it he was lying on bed and his wife and daughter standing near him, worried face. The doctor said that his hallucination has taken an extreme level. But Mr Patel wasn't ready to accept that it was a hallucination and not a reality.

The other day in the morning when he was better this time, he decided to meet the watchman regarding the boy in the stairs and lift. 

"Raju", he called. "You're working in this building from when?" "It's been 5 months since I'm working here." "5 months? Why were you appointed? I mean why was the last watchman fired?" 

Mr Patel was continuously having questions blast.

"Sir, nobody in this building works for more than a month. Even me, I don't want to work here, but it's my compulsion. "

"Compulsion? What kind of compulsion?" Raju standing numb, Mr Patel thought to change the topic. "Ok Raju, tell me have you ever seen a boy late at night here in the building?" 

Raju's expression changed and in, cracking voice he replied, "N.....No Sir." 

Mr Patel could figure out that something was wrong but Raju was in no mood to answer, so he left.

With no clarification and much more doubts, Mr Patel decided to have a talk with society members and nearby neighbours. He asked many of them about whether the same incident had taken place before or not.

Everyone said no. Mr Patel while going back to his flat saw the door of flat no. 008 nearing Mr Patel's flat was open. He thought of enquiring about the incident and rang the doorbell. 

The door opened and there stands a tall, clean shaved, clear skin, well-built body and a very decent man. As this was the first time Mr Patel was meeting him, he introduced himself and the man asked to come inside.

Mr Patel sat on the couch and the man went to get some water for his guest. When the man came back, Patel asked the same question that he was seeking the answer from the morning. The man replied. 

"Yes, I know about the boy." Hearing this, Mr Patel with curiosity gulped his water and said finally someone's there who saw him too. I knew this wasn't the hallucination. 

 

The man further continued, "the story is of 10 years ago, Mr And Mrs Datta along with their son had shifted to this building." (A pause) Mr Patel's curiosity was at its peak, "yes after then?" He said. "The boy was always bullied by his friends he had in the building", the man replied. 

Mr Patel continuously looked at the man while he was narrating. 

One day the boy and his neighbour friend had an ugly fight. Their parents went to complain about each other and kid-fight became the ugliest as it could be because it now involved Mr Datta and their neighbour too. The neighbour was very egoistic, so he decided to take revenge from Mr Dutta. Making an excuse of asking for a sorry the neighbour entered Datta's flat. He killed Mr And Mrs Datta with the knife and the boy was standing there, looking, all this. The neighbour saw the boy and he had a grip over his arms and limbs. 

The boy was begging for life screaming, Help! Help! Help! But no one was there to hear his cries. The neighbour scratched all his face, every corner of the face, was cut into the pieces. 

Mr Patel interrupted, "Yes when I saw him for the second time I saw those cut marks on his face", And before the man could continue Mr Patel asked what about those boots. 

Those boots are the neighbour's boot and when he was leaving the flat after murders, and the sound of boots frequently kept striking in the boy's ears, so those boots remind him of how he was killed and always use those boots when he kills someone.

Mr Patel stopped him, " Wait, what? What did you say? He kills someone?" And now Mr Patel realized how come this man knows about the whole story in so much detail.

The man before further continuing started shrinking. The complexion that was clear before now was changing into that nightmare of Mr Patel, that face with the cut marks all over the hand with blood marks all over them and all this while Mr Patel never saw that the man was wearing the same boots. 

He was so scared now, he ran towards the door and tried opening it but couldn't open. Hurriedly he ran towards the balcony, all this while the boy continuously calling his name in a heavy voice "Mr Patel, Mr Patel, the story isn't over yet." Mr Patel broke the glass of the window and through balcony he went to his balcony and ran towards the watchman to inform about the man in flat no. 008.

Raju replied, "Sir, calm down sir, please calm down, it's your misunderstanding sir, flat no. 008, is, vacant for many years, in fact, the whole floor of the apartment is vacant. How can you meet a man at 008?"

Mr Patel called the police. When police arrived Mr Patel informed, about the breaking of the window glass of 008. When they all went to check the flat there was nothing, it was empty and the windows were sealed and the spider web was all over the window with no traces of breaking up of the glass.

After the police found nothing in flat 008 Mr Patel was sent to a psychiatrist and was kept away from interacting with other people. But, Mr Patel knew that he was all good. He didn't want to leave his wife and daughter. But he had no other option left, and also he thought it was only him who saw that boy. So, maybe keeping himself away from everyone can help. 

So now Mr Patel was sent to the asylum for a month. First 2 weeks were going normal as Mrs Patel and their daughter used to have a talk with Mr Patel over call every day. 

The doctor observed Mr Patel is all right, So he suggested some medicines and decided to discharge him. Mr Patel returned to his family and was very happy to meet them and was much more relaxed this time.

That night he slept peacefully, after, long time. But, just after a day, the other night when Mr Patel woke up for washroom and when he reached the hall, he heard a heavy voice calling him.

"Mr Patel... Hello Mr Patel...So you're back, welcome back My dear neighbour. Hahaha, I must appreciate your bravery, even after me, warning you that I love neighbours (being sarcastic ironically), you still have the courage to live in this flat."

Mr Patel by now was shivering and had no courage to take a single step towards the sound. 

Sound vibrates again, "Mr Patel...Come here, come near me."

Mr Patel didn't move at all, 

"Ok Mr Patel, so you don't care for your daughter, right? "

And this was when Mr Patel ran towards his daughter's room realising that the sound was from there. 

When he banged the door he saw his daughter holding the knife in hand.

"No...wait", Mr Patel screamed, 

But his daughter kept the tip of the knife on the skin between her ear and eyes, and then pulled the knife up to her chin. The blood was dripping off her chin to her neck. 

Mr Patel crying there and his daughter continuously cutting her own face. And then a voice called again,

"Mr Patel this is how that neighbour cut my face, I was screaming and no neighbour helped me, That's the reason I hate anyone on my floor. But you didn't hear to me and now you have to pay for it."

Mr Patel (crying)- "But.....but what's the mistake of my daughter here please leave us we will go.... please..."

By this time Mrs Patel woke up and saw that her husband wasn't there, so she ran to the hall and saw Mr Patel on his knees outside their daughter's room and crying. When she reached there she heard;

"Now it's too late Mr Patel. Your daughter...I hate kids, they bullied me every time. I hate kids."

And after making the marks like that on the boy's face on Mr Patel's daughter, the boy's spirit inside Mr Patel's daughter pulled her body close to Mr Patel and stabbed him exactly like Mr Datta's neighbour stabbed him. Mrs Patel tried stopping her own daughter from stabbing her dad, but her daughter was already dead and it was the spirit using her body and she can't stop a spirit. She too was killed the exact same way, Mrs Datta was. 

The history was repeating, the only difference this time was the kid was the first target, the spirit was burning in the fire of revenge, every family at this floor will have to face the same condition as the boy's family did and the spirit left the body.

Still, that floor of 'High Flying Apartments' in the busiest street of Mumbai is vacant.