eigh fall the final part

[arnodevos0073]

They walked out into the hallway and after saying goodbye to them, I closed the bedroom door and locked it. I turned on the TV and tried to watch, but I was so nervous, I felt sick to my stomach. Grandma had left some snacks and rice balls for me, but I couldn’t eat them. I felt like I was in prison and I was very depressed and scared. I lay down on the bed and waited. Before I knew it, I was asleep. When I woke up, it was just after 1 AM. All of a sudden, I realized that something was tapping on the window. “Tap, Tap, Tap, Tap, Tap…†I felt the blood draining from my face and my heart skipped a beat. I desperately tried to calm myself down, telling myself it was just the wind playing tricks or maybe the branches of a tree. I turned up the volume on the TV to drown out the tapping noise. Eventually, it stopped altogether. That was when I heard Grandpa calling me. “Are you OK in there?†he asked. “If you’re scared you don’t have to stay in there all alone. I can come in and keep you company.†I smiled and rushed over to open door, but then, I stopped in my tracks. I had goosebumps all over my body. It sounded like Grandpa’s voice, but somehow, it was different. I couldn’t tell what was, but I just knew… “What are you doing?†Grandpa asked. “You can open the door now.†I glanced to my left and a chill went down my spine. The salt in the bowls was slowly turning black. I backed away from the door. My whole body was trembling with fear. I fell to my knees in front of the Buddha statue and clutched the piece of parchment tightly in my hand. I started desperately praying for help. “Please save me from Hachishakusama,†I wailed. Then, I heard the voice outside the door saying: “Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po…†The tapping on the window started up again. I was overcome by fear and I crouched there in front of the statue, half-crying and half-praying for the rest of the night. I felt like it would never end, but eventually it was morning. The salt in all 4 bowls was pitch black. I checked my watch. It was 7:30 AM. I cautiously opened the door. Grandma and K-san were standing outside waiting for me. When she saw my face, Grandma burst into tears. “I’m so glad you’re still alive,†she said. I went downstairs and was surprised to see my father and mother sitting in the kitchen. Grandpa came in and said, “Hurry up! We’ve got to get going.†We went to the front door and there was a large black van waiting in the driveway. Several men from the village were standing around it, pointing at me and whispering, “That’s the boy.†The van was a 9-seater and they put me in the middle, surrounded by eight men. K-san was in the drivers seat. The man on my left, looked down at me and said, “You’ve got yourself in quite a spot of trouble. I know you’re probably worried. Just keep your head down and your eyes shut. We can’t see it, but you can. Don’t open your eyes until we’ve got you safely out of here.†Grandpa drove in front and my dad’s car was following behind. When everyone was ready, our little convoy started moving. We were going fairly slow… around 20km/h or maybe less. After a while, K-san said, “This is where it gets hard,†and started muttering a prayer under her breath. That was when I heard the voice. “Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po…†I clutched the parchment K-san had given me tightly in my hand. I kept my head down, but I peeked outside. I saw a white dress fluttering in the breeze. It was moving along with the van. It was Hachishakusama. She was outside the window, but she was keeping pace with us. Then, suddenly she bent down and peered into the van. “No!†I gasped. The man beside me shouted, “CLOSE YOUR EYES!†I immediately shut my eyes as hard as I could and tightened my grip on the piece of parchment. Then the tapping began. Tap, Tap, Tap, Tap, Tap… The voice became louder. “Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po…†There was tapping on the windows all around us. All of the men in the van were startled and on edge, muttering nervously to themselves. They couldn’t see Eight Feet Tall and they couldn’t hear her voice, but they could hear her tapping on the windows. K-san started praying louder and louder until she was almost shouting. The tension inside the van was unbearable. After a while the tapping stopped and the voice disappeared. K-san looked back at us and said, “I think we’re safe now.†All of the men around me breathed a sigh of relief. The van pulled over to the side of the road and the men got out. They transferred me into my dad’s car. My mother held me close and tears were running down her cheeks. Grandpa and my father bowed to the men and they went on their way. K-san came to the window and asked me to show her the piece of parchment she had given me. When I opened my hand, I saw that it had gone completely black. “I think you will be OK now,†she said. “But just to be sure, hold onto this for a while.†She handed me a new piece of parchment. After that, we drove straight to the airport and Grandpa saw us safely on the plane. When we took off, my parents breathed a sigh of relief. My father told me he had heard about “Eight Feet Tall†before. Years ago, his friend had been liked by her. The boy disappeared and was never seen again. My father said there were other people who had been liked by her and lived to tell about it. They all had to leave Japan and settle down in foreign countries. They were never able to go back to their homeland. She always chooses children as her victims. They say it’s because children are dependant on their parents and family members. This makes them easier to deceive when she poses as their relatives. He said the men in the van were all blood relatives of mine, and that’s why they had been sitting all around me and why my father and Grandpa had been driving in front and in back. It was all done to try and confuse Hachishakusama. It took a while to contact everyone and get them all together, so that was why I had to be confined in room all night. He told me that one of the little Jizo statues (the ones that were meant to keep her trapped) had been broken and that was how she escaped. It gave me the chills. I was glad when we finally got back home. All of this happened more than 10 years ago. I haven’t seen my grandparents since then. I haven’t been able to so much as set foot in the country. Afterwards, I would call them every few weeks and talk to them on the phone. Over the years, I tried to convince myself that it was just an urban legend, that everything that happened was just some elaborate prank. But sometimes, I’m not so sure. My grandfather died two years ago. When he was sick, he wouldn’t allow me to visit him and he left strict instructions in his will that I wasn’t to attend his funeral. It was all very sad. My grandmother called a few days ago. She said that she had been diagnosed with cancer. She missed me terribly and wanted to see me one last time before she died. “Are you sure, Grandma?†I asked. “Is it safe?†“It’s been 10 years,†she said. “All that happened a long time ago. It’s all forgotten. You’re all grown up now. I’m sure there won’t be a problem.†“But… but… what about Hachishakusama?†I said. For a moment, there was silence on the other end of the phone. Then, I heard a deep masculine voice saying: “Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po… Po…†end