call out my name [2gether]

CH 4

THE UNKNOWING GHOST.

Sarawat sat on his bed, partly bored and partly vexed, strumming some random melody on his guitar with his deft fingers. A fading cigarette was stuck between his sultry lips, clouding the room with tendrils of white smoke. The ignited cigarette butt was shining like a tiny, red beacon in the dim space.

Sarawat had been spending more time alone in his dorm room, strumming different tunes to bring the ghost back out and catch an elusive glimpse of it once more, but so far it had been rather futile. Sarawat felt like a mad man possessed, grasping at straws that would bring some, any color really, into his otherwise grey-toned life.

The peculiar ghost had his heart racing in excitement like never before, pumping the adrenaline through his veins and making him suddenly feel so alive amidst all the tedious things that had fallen onto his shoulders; being blamed by his brother for trying to steal what Phukong thought was his position, not being enough for his parents that only appreciated him if he brought value to their company and finally, the frankly unexciting relationship with his girlfriend which apparently was not just all smooth sailing.

Sarawat had wanted to escape all of this, there had to be something more to life than obligations forced onto him by other people. That was the whole reason why he had changed his major at the university, even though it was still open for verdict – whether the fine arts really were the light at the end of his tunnel or just a cheap sparkle that was bound to fizzle out soon. Sarawat was drawn to music, so he thought that maybe it could fill the aching void inside his restless soul but so far nothing of the like had happened. Maybe that was why he grasped with such greedy hands at the peculiar ghost mystery that had been dangled right in front of him.

He combed a jerky hand trough his mused hair. Sarawat had probably tried everything by now to lure the ghost out but nothing seemed to work. The ghost was not cooperating with him at all. Shia. What a nuisance.

Sarawat furrowed his angled brows, lips pursuing around the nicotine stick and long fingers drumming restlessly on the wooden body of the guitar. What had he done the first time around? He had addressed the ghost, asking it a direct question. Wait. Sarawat raised a hand to pinch the cigarette butt between his thumb and forefinger, pulling it away from his lips. Could it really be as simple as that? Really?

"Ghost, do you like Scrubb?" He asked the empty room offhandedly, feeling like a crazy person, not even expecting a reply. Nevertheless the strings of the acoustic guitar replied, once again with a clear note of the C-chord, the shrill noise piercing through the quiet room.

Well, that seemed like a 'yes' indeed. So maybe he was not all that crazy. A little satisfied smirk crooked one side of Sarawat's mouth upwards. How old was this ghost even, liking such an old band? It was probably not from the same generation as Sarawat for sure.

"Hm," Sarawat hummed gravely low in his throat, considering his next action. The dying cigarette between his fingers was scorching his skin slightly but he was not paying it any attention. "Can I play any Scrubb song then?"

The C-chord reverberated once again. It was a yes, again.

Sarawat exhaled and quickly stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray on his nightstand. He then sat up straighter on his bed, positioning himself to delicately strum the melody of another Scrubb song that he coincidentally knew the notes for.

This time Sarawat held his head up while playing, eyes gliding over the murky room in search of his unexpected roommate.

The ghost's entrance was maybe not as dramatic this time around since he anticipated it but it was nonetheless incredible to see the progression, how the chill slowly spread along the room and how the stray tendrils of fog seeped into the empty space in front of the bed. Billows of smoke were escaping as if from under the spring of a closed, non-existent door, just before the ghost finally appeared amidst it all, stepping through the curtain of smog and finally fading into existence from a different dimension.