The Basement
By Vanya
"I cannot figure out what in the world that is!" I was aggitated, and with good reason. I had just moved into a picture perfect farm house in Maine. About two miles outside of Bangour, I thought I had found a haven from the world, but I have so far found nothing but stress.
"Well, what exactly is going on up there?" my ex-wife asked. I moved the phone to my other shoulder and banged a foot onto the floor. "What was that?"
"Me," I said. "Tryin' to scare away whatever it is down there." The sound in the basement never faltered, no matter what I did. "I don't know what that is down there, but it's about to drive me nuts. All I can hear is this massive stirring, I didn't hear it over the summer."
I had bought the house the summer before just after Claire and I divorced. We'd been married three years, but neither of us had stayed happy, though we had stayed friends. "Did you talk to the man you bought it from?"
"No," I said, fully knowing what would come next. "I didn't think to get his number."
"Charlie!"
Yep, I definitly knew what was coming. "Why didn't you?"
"I'm sorry, I didn't have enough foresight to ask him. I just wanted to buy the place, I wasn't expecting weird noises in the basement."
"Have you gone down there to see what it is?"
"No, but I suppose I'll have to."
"Look," she said, her voice taking on the women's intuition tone. "Please be careful down there, okay?"
Yep, definitly women's intuition. "Claire, what is down there? A squirrel and four rats."
"Big rats." she said glummly.
"Look, I'll be careful, okay?"
"Okay, bye Charlie."
"Bye Claire, I . . ." I almost said I love you, I guess it'll take some time to get used to.
She must have known what I was going to say cause her voice dropped two octaves. "Yeah, bye."
After she'd hung up I sat there on the couch with the blank look of someone who had too much on his mind. I did not want to go down into that basement then and I wish I hadn't now. If I had only known then what I know now.I was so afraid to go down in that basement I could feel my heart thudding in my chest, and my hands began to shake ever so slightly. I put the thought out of my mind and began on the problem at hand.What the devil was in that basement? It was driving me nuts, God how it was driving me nuts. It was a grinding scratching sound that one could ignore for about three and a half seconds. I knew I had to go down there, I just had the thought that perhaps there were more than four rats.
After about an hours debate with myself I finally decided that I had to go down in the basement. I guess I always knew, I just had to gather up the balls (which were peach pits against my thighs, by that time) enough to open the door, and I hardly managed that much.
I found my flashlight, and my .32 rifle, this probably wouldn't help but if I still had my aim I'd be able to get some of the little desease bags. As I pulled the door open and stared into the darkness, I hefted the rifle and thought of all the times my friends and I had gone rat hunting as kids, waiting outside where grain was stored with our rifles. Billy Ranscor would turn on the light when the door was opened, the light would stun the rats just long enough to pick 'em off.
I wanted to wait until I got to the bottom to startle the rats, so I started down in the dark. A few steps down and the sound was louder, almost ear splitting. I had almost reached the bottom when my foot hit something solid, it moved away silently, leaving me to shutter to myself. There were definitly gigantic rats down here.
When I reached the bottom I fumbled for the lightswitch, once that was found I flipped it. I wish now that I hadn't done that. Had I known what I would see, I would have bolted up the stairs then and there, but I didn't, and the light went on.
Now they're everywhere, they're all over the house. I can barely see the floor, or much of anything, my face has swollen to almost the size of a football, I can't figure out how they all got down there, but it doesn't matter, the house is their's now, and they can have it for all I care!
Theres just one thing I never knew.
Did you know they have rattlesnakes in Maine?
By Vanya
"I cannot figure out what in the world that is!" I was aggitated, and with good reason. I had just moved into a picture perfect farm house in Maine. About two miles outside of Bangour, I thought I had found a haven from the world, but I have so far found nothing but stress.
"Well, what exactly is going on up there?" my ex-wife asked. I moved the phone to my other shoulder and banged a foot onto the floor. "What was that?"
"Me," I said. "Tryin' to scare away whatever it is down there." The sound in the basement never faltered, no matter what I did. "I don't know what that is down there, but it's about to drive me nuts. All I can hear is this massive stirring, I didn't hear it over the summer."
I had bought the house the summer before just after Claire and I divorced. We'd been married three years, but neither of us had stayed happy, though we had stayed friends. "Did you talk to the man you bought it from?"
"No," I said, fully knowing what would come next. "I didn't think to get his number."
"Charlie!"
Yep, I definitly knew what was coming. "Why didn't you?"
"I'm sorry, I didn't have enough foresight to ask him. I just wanted to buy the place, I wasn't expecting weird noises in the basement."
"Have you gone down there to see what it is?"
"No, but I suppose I'll have to."
"Look," she said, her voice taking on the women's intuition tone. "Please be careful down there, okay?"
Yep, definitly women's intuition. "Claire, what is down there? A squirrel and four rats."
"Big rats." she said glummly.
"Look, I'll be careful, okay?"
"Okay, bye Charlie."
"Bye Claire, I . . ." I almost said I love you, I guess it'll take some time to get used to.
She must have known what I was going to say cause her voice dropped two octaves. "Yeah, bye."
After she'd hung up I sat there on the couch with the blank look of someone who had too much on his mind. I did not want to go down into that basement then and I wish I hadn't now. If I had only known then what I know now.I was so afraid to go down in that basement I could feel my heart thudding in my chest, and my hands began to shake ever so slightly. I put the thought out of my mind and began on the problem at hand.What the devil was in that basement? It was driving me nuts, God how it was driving me nuts. It was a grinding scratching sound that one could ignore for about three and a half seconds. I knew I had to go down there, I just had the thought that perhaps there were more than four rats.
After about an hours debate with myself I finally decided that I had to go down in the basement. I guess I always knew, I just had to gather up the balls (which were peach pits against my thighs, by that time) enough to open the door, and I hardly managed that much.
I found my flashlight, and my .32 rifle, this probably wouldn't help but if I still had my aim I'd be able to get some of the little desease bags. As I pulled the door open and stared into the darkness, I hefted the rifle and thought of all the times my friends and I had gone rat hunting as kids, waiting outside where grain was stored with our rifles. Billy Ranscor would turn on the light when the door was opened, the light would stun the rats just long enough to pick 'em off.
I wanted to wait until I got to the bottom to startle the rats, so I started down in the dark. A few steps down and the sound was louder, almost ear splitting. I had almost reached the bottom when my foot hit something solid, it moved away silently, leaving me to shutter to myself. There were definitly gigantic rats down here.
When I reached the bottom I fumbled for the lightswitch, once that was found I flipped it. I wish now that I hadn't done that. Had I known what I would see, I would have bolted up the stairs then and there, but I didn't, and the light went on.
Now they're everywhere, they're all over the house. I can barely see the floor, or much of anything, my face has swollen to almost the size of a football, I can't figure out how they all got down there, but it doesn't matter, the house is their's now, and they can have it for all I care!
Theres just one thing I never knew.
Did you know they have rattlesnakes in Maine?