SamyukthaSchülerblog: The haunted manor – Samyuktha Sivakumar
Maya, a young woman with a tough life. She’s beautiful but struggles with money and lives in a dorm. Her parents passed away tragically in a car accident when she was just a kid. They moved from Thailand to Manhattan because their families didn’t approve of their marriage. Maya was their only child, and they were a happy family until the accident.
On Maya’s 13th birthday, her parents were supposed to pick her up from school for a special lunch. But they never showed up. Maya waited anxiously, then went to the principal’s office when they didn’t arrive. The school tried calling her parents but got no answer. Eventually, Maya was taken home, only to find out from devastated neighbors that her parents had died in a car explosion. She was heartbroken and ended up in an orphanage. She couldn’t even say a proper goodbye because their bodies were already burned to ashes.
When Maya turned 18, she graduated from high school and got into Yale University. But money was tight, so she worked part-time to get by. One Sunday morning, she got a strange call from someone speaking a language she didn’t understand. It turned out to be an old man, who was apparently her uncle, who explained that Maya had family in Thailand. Her parents had left her some land there, and she needed to go and sign some papers to claim it.
So that coming weekend she flew to Thailand with her “uncle” paying for her flight tickets. As soon as she landed, she felt so “at home”. She couldn’t explain it but it felt right. Or so she hoped it was right. Her so called family was waiting at the gate. They all looked happy. Her grandmother had tears in her eyes and said in Thai: “You look just like your mother!” Her gaze stayed on Maya. After few hours of rest, her uncle brought her to that big, huge manor. Her eyes widened and her jaw fell to the ground. She was so shocked. That Manor was definitely over 20 billion US-Dollars.
She wondered why her parents never mentioned this big Manor because they have always talked about their childhood and how they met, when, where and everything. But they’ve never mentioned the manor nor their families. She wondered why. But anyhow she was now in the office where she had to sign the papers. She scribbled her signature and took a bus to the Manor, leaving her uncle behind.
It was dusty and dark because no one had entered the place for a while. It was a little creepy, but she ignored that fact and continued to walk further inside. It kept getting darker and the lights didn’t work anymore. There were few doors, and she chose the middle one.
As soon as she entered the room the door behind her shut. But she was not scared. For some reason she felt safe. She didn’t even know from where she was that brave, but she just went with the flow. It was dark and cold in that room. She walked even further and suddenly a crusty hand grabbed around her neck and pulled her back. Now Maya was panicking. She couldn’t breathe. She didn’t feel safe anymore. A while later the hand let her go and she turned around and saw her uncle. Her heart pounding faster than ever, she asked why he did that. He said it was an unsafe place to go to. But his face seemed fishy. He was hiding something, but Maya couldn’t tell what. A little later they headed back home with the uncles car.
Maya wondered why they actually called her, instead of just selling the place or keep it to themselves. There would’ve been many illegal ways to do that. Or they could’ve just burned the place. But why her? The next morning came and she said she wanted to go see the town for a bit and left before anyone could accompany her. But obviously she went to the manor which now basically belonged to her. She went through the same door and felt the same comfort that she had felt yesterday. Eventually she came to a big room and saw a trail of dried out red stains. She followed them out of curiosity. Suddenly there was a “bang” as if someone had tripped over something. She looked behind and when she turned back the stains were gone. Chills ran through her blood. And yet she still followed the path which she saw before. And suddenly everything was black, and she felt her legs get wobbly.
As Maya opened her eyes, disbelief washed over her. Confusion, surprise, and sorrow filled her expression. She pinched herself repeatedly, hoping to wake from this surreal nightmare. Tears streamed down her cheeks uncontrollably. Standing before her, bruised and scarred but undeniably real, were her parents. Their presence shattered the illusion of loss that had haunted her for years. In that moment, questions flooded her mind, but one truth remained clear: This incident would deeply transform her understanding of family and identity, leaving an enduring impact on her life.
Text von Samyuktha Sivakumar, 3. Sek Bruderer