I shivered from the cold. The sound of the rain pounding down on my raincoat rang in my ears. The puddles on the road splashed with every step, splattering my blue jeans with mud and water. The hood of my raincoat provided a shelter for my face, but some of the rain still reached my cheeks. I kept my head down, looking up every once in a while to see if there were any houses in sight.
No moon shone through the clouds above, no stars twinkling brightly. The only sound was the rain and the crunch of gravel under my feet. A few trees lined the road, but that was all. The cold was unbearable, and I sneezed, taking a mouthful of water in the process. It was cool and refreshing, trickling down my throat.
I heard the sound of rushing water ahead and found that a new river of water now blocked the road. I found a somewhat shallow area and walked through. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as shallow as I had thought, and rainwater seeped over the rims of my boots, soaking my feet thoroughly.
I glanced up--something caught my eye. A darker shape among the black of the night. Hope soared in my heart and I tried to walk faster, the water sloshing in my boots. The mud tried to hold me back, covering my boots to hold me still, but I managed to pull them out and keep going, the mud making indignant sucking sounds as I pulled free. I squinted through the black at the object. Yes. A house. I nearly ran towards it, trying not to soak my clothes any more than they already were. I reached the front door in short time. Despite the foreboding look of the house, I had decided to stay here until the rain let up. I only hoped that whoever lived here was still awake.
I knocked on the door, then glanced through a nearby window. No lights shone out into the night sky. I knocked again. No answer. I sighed and turned around to continue my walk.
“Do you need something?” a voice asked behind me. I turned back around to see an old man standing in the doorway of the house, staying in the shadows and glaring at me.
“Yes, sir. I was wondering if you would let me stay in your house until the rain lets up,” I said, trying to peer past the old man and into the house. His face brightened and he smiled at me.
“Come in, come in! Why, you must be soaked to the bone! I’ll let you stay, just until the rain leaves. Come in, and I’ll get you a nice seat by the fire,” the old man said, his hand gesturing at me to come in with wide sweeping movements. He closed the door behind me.
Inside, the house was even darker, but at least it was dry. I heard a slight click, and a light turned on above my head. The old mad stood by the door, his finger on a light switch.
“Come, this way,” he said cheerfully, leading the way through the house, turning on lights as he went. Most of the rooms we went through were dusty and covered in cobwebs. The few pieces of furniture I could see lay in ruins, boards cracked and splintered, nails sticking up everywhere. A rat ran by my foot, and I screamed, then blushed for acting so foolishly. I have never been scared of animals, and had even had a pet rat at some point in time. I suppose my surroundings were just getting to me. This house seemed the perfect place for a ghost or two to be staying.
Finally we reached a room that was different then the others. It was clean, and well furnished. A pair of comfortable looking armchairs sat in front of a cold, stone fireplace. I was sure there was no fire in the fireplace, but I blinked and saw flames licking the gray stone. I hung my raincoat on a peg on the wall and shook out my long, brown hair, damp from the rain. I set my boots underneath the coat and stood there, not sure what to do. I felt a little awkward as I stood there, as though I wasn’t sure if I should be here or not.
“Please, make yourself comfortable,” the old man said. I gladly obliged, moving to one of the armchairs and finding it quite as comfortable as it looked.
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