“Marvin, are you still seeing apparitions?" asked Doctor Jaimeson.
Marvin's eyes darted to the right and back. Then again. He was trying to ignore the spirit sitting in the corner of the office.
"No. I haven't seen any apparitions for a while," Marvin said in a nervous manner.
Doctor Jaimeson noted the nervousness and eye movement on his note pad. "We'll keep your prescription the same for now. I'll see you in a month."
Marvin walked into the office building for Berks Bookkeepers where he worked as an accountant. As usual he ignored all his coworkers and walked directly to his desk and proceeded to process paperwork.
"Marvin's here," Dave said. "Who wants to walk up behind him and pop a paper bag?"
"We need an air horn for just such an occasion," said Steve.
Dave, Steve, Phil, and John all sat in a bunch between desks as the day began. "Are you going to try to talk football with him again?" Phil asked John.
"Dude doesn't have a TV, doesn't read a paper. I don't know if he surfs the web at home. He makes a recluse look like the life of the party," replied John.
Just then Stacy walked up to the bunch. "You guys should leave Marvin alone. He's just unusual."
"Unusual? Phil here's unusual," said Dave. "Marvin's off the charts weird."
"He's just shy," Stacy said. "And super cute," she said under her breath.
"You gonna try to ask him out again?" asked John.
"Ya know? Today's November 11th. I feel lucky. Marvin and I are gonna have a little talk."
"Oh honey," blurted out Phil, "you know I got what you need, all day long."
"I wouldn't touch any one of your four wands if you guys were the last men on earth. Take a cold shower, jerk."
The four men burst out in laughter as Stacy walked to her desk.
Dan Berks, the current company's boss, approached Marvin's desk.
"How's the Henderson Account coming?"
"All done." Marvin handed a folder to Dan. "I'm starting on the Versailles Account."
"Wow I wasn't expecting this that fast. Great job."
As Dan Berks walked away, the spirit of Hiram Berks, the company's founder approached Marvin's desk.
"You have to listen to Stacy. You have to do what she says," the spirit said.
Marvin repeated "you're not there, you're not there" to himself over and over again. Marvin looked up to see Stacy standing close to him and looking straight at him.
"Hey Marvin. How 'bout you joining me for a drink after work. I'd really like to get to know you better."
"I don't drink."
"You could get a soda or juice. I just wanna talk a bit. You seem like such a sweet guy."
Marvin looked at her with a horrific stare and then backed down at his work. He looked like he was ignoring her and tending to his bookkeeping, but he was trying to distract himself from a reoccurring memory. The memory was of him as a child kneeling in a Church as the priest rambled on in Latin and a demon taunted him right in front at a close distance.
Sad, Stacy made one last comment to Marvin. "I'd really like to know what type of can opener I have to use to open you up."
Marvin turned off the main road to the dirt road that eventually led to his log cabin. The woods were shrouding the road in darkness as they normally do. At his parking spot he exited the car and saw Druantia at the edge of the woods.
"The woods are in balance today, Marvin," said Druantia. Marvin ignored her and entered his cabin and sat in his easy chair.
"Marvin, you can't go on like this," said a shadow on the wall.
"Did you bring my Mommy home?" asked the spirit of a girl sitting in the corner.
"I don't know who your Mommy is," Marvin answered.
"Marvin, Sapphire can't wait forever," said the shadow.
Marvin sat with his head in his hands thinking over and over. They're not real. They're not real. They're all in my head. How do I get them out of my head?
"Marvin? How are you managing at work?" asked Doctor Jaimeson.
"Fine."
"Been socializing at all?"
"I don't know how."
"Are the apparitions still bothering you?"
Shaking nervously Marvin responded, "I haven't seen any," as he stared at the wraith in back of the Doctor.
Doctor Jaimeson scribbled on his note pad and then wrote a script out. "Here. We'll up your dosage. I really wish you would socialize much more."
Marvin walked into Berks Bookkeeping again and as usual went straight to his desk. Dan Berks walked by and smiled at Marvin. He thought to himself how Marvin was his best employee. He had the personality of a damp dishrag but did the best work for the firm.
Hiram Berks approached Marvin's desk. "You made a big mistake, son. She's gone. You two were supposed to be together. There were children waiting."
Marvin held his head in his hands. He's not real. He's not real. How do I get him out of my head?
A half hour later Marvin approached Phil and Dave. "Where's Stacy?" he asked.
"Wow. The zombie speaks," Phil blurted out.
"She quit," replied Dave. "Money issues. She got a better job. She really, really liked you. You two could have been a couple."
"I was just wondering where she went." Marvin turned around and headed back to his desk.
Phil abruptly raised his hands laterally. "That's it?" he yelled.
On the drive home, the road to his cabin was barely passable. Several trees had been toppled as if by a storm. But there was no storm that day. When Marvin managed to get his car all the way to his parking spot, he saw Druantia in a panic at the edge of the woods.
"Something's wrong. All the hunters are gone. The deer are destroying the trees. The woods are out of balance," spoke Druantia.
"What can I do?"
"You already made the mistake. I don't know if there's any turning back."
Inside the cabin Marvin sat in his easy chair. The shadow seemed to be gone. Maybe his increased medication was starting to work. Then the girl spirit appeared.
"Did you bring my Mommy home?"
"I don't know who your Mommy is?"
"DADDY! YOU HAVE TO BRING MOMMY HOME! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE BORN WITHOUT A MOMMY," yelled the girl.
Bio:
Ken Gibbons is a factory worker in upstate New York who is also a published writer, composer, and musician.