Reunion

A beautiful desk caught my gaze as I passed an antique shop. But luck was not on my side, for it was snatched by another customer before I could even set foot inside the shop. I posted about it on social media and, three days later, the man who bought the desk reached out to me on my post, saying he would be happy to sell me the desk.

I wondered why he suddenly changed his mind about the desk and asked for photos of it. It was still in good condition, the same as it was three days before. He told me he has to move out of town due to financial issues and will not be able to take the desk with him. I checked the desk again when he brought it over and it was in perfect condition. I was ecstatic.

I moved my old desk to the storage room and placed the new one in my bedroom. When I opened one of the drawers to put some of my files in, however, I noticed something strange. At the back of the drawer was my name carved into the wood. Wondering whether it was done as a joke, I tried to contact the previous owner again, but it seemed that his number was not in use anymore. I shared my weird experience on social media that night and then went to bed, but it was not long before my day grew stranger.

I was woken up by a whisper in the room as the air around me grew cold. I immediately switched on the lampshade next to my bed but found no one there. I grabbed a bat and looked around the house; nothing was unlocked, and nothing was out of place. I must have imagined it, I thought, getting back into bed but keeping the bat with me. Sleep eluded me for the next three hours and I only got two hours of sleep before it was time to get ready for work. I called my boss and asked to work from home; she agreed to it. Later that day, that strange feeling returned while I was seated at my new desk.

Suddenly, there was a tap on my shoulder. I almost jumped out of my chair as the hairs on my back straightened, but yet again, there was no one there. “Am I going crazy? What’s happening?”

I looked around again, covering the entire house. I was alone. I resumed my work, but it was not long before I felt a strange presence in my room once more. “I’m losing my mind, I’m losing my mind.”

“No, you’re not,” a voice echoed from within the desk.

I fell off my chair and crawled away as my entire body began to tremble.

“Don’t be afraid,” the voice said. And then, the drawer with my name carved in it opened. “I’m you.”

I sprang to my feet and scrambled to the room door, but it was locked. I tried to use my phone, but it was blank. I was trapped.

“You don’t understand, Jemma. This is what you wanted. This is what we’ve wanted.”

“Wh-who are you?”

“I just told you, didn’t I?”

“That makes no sense!”

“You’re my reincarnation—the one I’ve waited five hundred years for.”

“What are you?”

“I was a witch, same as you are now. Your powers are dormant right now, but they will emerge once we are united.”

My heart began to race as I realised what she intended to do. I felt my breath grow heavier each second as I tried to fight back, and soon, my entire body grew cold and numb as my vision turned dark. The room seemed to warp around me, folding and winding in waves as I felt my body get pulled towards the desk.