Chapter Three

Hanako The Bathroom Ghost

The following day, I headed downstairs to pay a visit to the land lady. I wanted to ask a little bit more about the apparition that haunted my apartment. She answered the door looking worried,

"Is there a problem dear?" she asked, her thin wispy eyebrows knitted together in a heavily wrinkled frown. I realized immediately that she was worried I was going to leave.

"No, no problem at all, I just wondered if you would like to have some coffee with me, I have some questions about the apartment."

~oOoOoOo~

"Well, I don't know why people think the property is haunted," She delicately dipped her tea bag in her steaming mug of hot water, "I just know that they do and rumors spread like wild fire in this town."

"They must in a town as close knit as this one," I smiled over my cup, there was something she wasn't telling me, but I wasn't going to push her too far, not right away at least. "Do you know anything about the ghost that supposedly haunts the place?"

"Well, from what I've gathered, it's a little girl, rumor has it that she was drowned in the bath tub by her mother, so everyone calls her Hanako, like the bathroom ghost from that urban legend."

"Hanako, huh?"

"The local kids even had a game a while ago, where they would knock three times on the door calling out for the ghost, they thought she would grant them wishes," she laughed, stirring honey into her tea.

"Wishes?" was that why the ghost had been knocking three times? Did she want me to summon her? The thought made my skin crawl, but if I wanted to stay in the apartment, it would be best if we could maybe cooperate? Kind of a roommate situation? And if this ghost girl granted wishes, well that was a huge bonus.

Maybe she could find me the perfect man. My excitement must have shown on my face, because the land lady said, "None of their wishes were ever granted of course, no one has actually seen anything on the property."

No, I imagine they only heard her. I nodded, adopting an expression of quiet consideration, "of course, it would be kind of fun though, a ghost that grants wishes, sort of like a fairy tale."

~oOoOoOo~

I raised my hand hesitantly to knock on the door. What would happen if I actually summoned this spirit? Would it haunt me for the rest of my life? I lowered my hand, nervous, maybe I'd have some sugar first. I turned around and headed for the kitchen. I had mopped up the frosting mess and put the surviving donuts away in the fridge. And right now, they were calling to me. I opened the fridge and found the box...empty. All of the donuts were gone, and I had spent 600 yen on those donuts, sure not a lot, but to not even get one? Now I was mad.

I turned on my heel and marched to the door, hand already raised, and knocked three sharp knocks.

"Hanako-san, Hanako-san, Hanako-san, are you there?" I asked, half convinced, despite everything, that nothing would happen. And for a minute, nothing did happen, but then the door screamed open on it's rusty hinges.

"I'm here~" came a very obviously male voice, I peered into the darkened room and saw a boy lazing casually on my bed. His eyes were large, and luminous as the moon as he looked me over, like a butcher eyeing a freshly killed hog, a thrill of terror traveled up my spine, but the donut he held in his hand, brought me back to matters at hand. He seemed all together too excited. I pointed to the donut he held, almost forgetting him being a ghost.

"That's mine!" I said. He looked at the donut, then gave it a nice long lick, taking off half the icing.

"You still want it?" He asked, holding it out to me with a wicked grin. I gave him a disgusted look and he laughed, taking a big bite of the donut. "These are my favorites, and hey, I'll even make it up to you." Suddenly he was gone, totally vanished off of my bed. I squealed when I felt a hand on my shoulder, and jumped about three feet in the air. "You summoned me for a reason, right? You want a wish."

"Don't do that!" I said, clutching my chest in an attempt to catch my breath.

"Is that your wish?" he popped the rest of the donut in his mouth and grinned at me, "that's too boring!"

"I...I hadn't thought of a wish," I admitted. Hanako frowned,

"What'd you summon me for then?"

"To yell at you about my donuts! I am living on really meager savings, and I'm really stressed out right now, and you're stealing my therapy food!"

"Why not wish for money then? That's easy."

"Because…" I bit the nail of my thumb, thinking, "because I don't want money, I want a man!" Hanako blanched.

"A man, like a servant?"

"No! The perfect man, for me, one who's handsome, and cool, and won't cheat on me with some random girl he meets at the club like a total jerk, who I totally don't even miss anymore."

"I feel like I understand where you're coming from now," he said, pressing his lips together tightly, "Okay, I'll grant you your wish,"

"Really?" I asked, clapping my hands together with excitement.

"Yep, of course, I'll find you your perfect man."

"When?" I asked, peeking around him in case said perfect man had poofed into existence behind him. He hadn't.

"When I find him, of course, provided he comes within 30 meters of the apartment. I can't actually leave." He motioned to the space around us, "I'm a land based spirit, so…"

"So it's hopeless," my head drooped, I could have figured as much, anything that seemed too good to be true, usually was, even if there were supernatural beings involved it turned out. I jumped again when I felt a cold hand patting my head. He gave me a small, apologetic smile.

"It's not hopeless, you'll see, I'll find someone in no time."

"What price will I be paying for this?" I asked, I had read enough ghost stories to know that there was always a price for dabbling in the phantasmal.

"I'll take the donuts as payment for now, I feel kind of bad after your mini freak out."

"It wasn't a freak out,"

"Whatever you call it. If the task requires additional payment, I'll let you know before you decide to proceed."

"I feel like I'm reading a terms and conditions manual." I said, "can I ask questions?"

"Shoot,"

"Why are you a boy?" I asked, he blinked at me for a moment, confused.

"Ah, well, when my parent's had sex…"

"You know that's not what I meant, the person who died here was a girl! Drowned in the bath tub!"

Hanako's expression darkened, "she's not here anymore," he said.