365 Writing Prompts - Day 8

January 8, 2017 - Whoa! - What’s the most surreal experience you’ve ever had?

In October 2015, my sister Linda and I went on a bus excursion. We left at 8:30 am, drove to Miami, OK, and landed at the Stables Casino first, just around 10:00 am. We stayed there until 2:00 pm, then went on to Indigo Sky Casino in Wyandotte. We got there around 2:15-2:20 pm. Since there were so many of us, it took maybe 10-15 minutes to get checked in. The elevator was broken, so we had to take the stairs to our room. Fortunately, we packed light, and were on the second floor, so that wasn't a huge ordeal. Additionally, we came out of the stairwell into the hall, directly across from our room.

Housekeeping had the room all clean and pretty for us. We unpacked our bags, put clothes in the dresser and on hangers in the closet, had a drink (we took our own liquor) and decided what we were going to do first. I went into the restroom and while I was washing my hands, I noticed a piece of tinsel on the floor. It was a single strand, like the icicles people hang on Christmas trees, but this was bright, shiny blue. I looked at it thinking, 'why did the housekeepers leave that?" I picked it up and put it in the trashcan.

This trashcan is approximately 22-24 inches tall and had a brand new, clean, empty, plastic liner. Remember that.

Linda went into the restroom next, then we fixed another drink to take with us, and went down to the casino. While in the lobby, before we even got to the casino, Linda stopped at the front desk and asked if we could have more coffee packets for our room. The woman laughed and said, "Women after my own heart! Sure, hang on."

The other younger lady laughed and said, "She has a key to the gettin' place, you're so lucky!"

The first woman came back with more coffee and I told Linda I'd walk it back to the room, which I did. As I entered, for some reason, I looked into the bathroom as I walked passed. That blue tinsel strand was on the floor. I walked in to look at it, to make sure I wasn't crazy, but it was there, exactly where it had been ten minutes earlier. I picked it up and threw it away again.

So, we gambled for a while, I was losing badly and decided I'd go back to the room around 6:00 pm. I told Linda that when she was ready to eat dinner, call me and I'd come join her. When I got back to the room, I went to use the restroom and guess what was on the floor... I threw it away, for a third time, into an empty trashcan.

I decided to sit on the bed and play with the computer. The Wi-Fi wouldn't work, so I messed around with it for a few minutes, but when I couldn't get connected, I just turned on the television.

Evidently, I fell asleep. Linda came into the room and shook me awake. She said she'd been calling me but when I didn't answer, she got worried. She actually unlocked the door, called to me twice, and had to touch me before I woke up. I was disoriented and felt anxious, almost scared. I passed it off to sleeping so soundly.

We went to eat dinner, gambled a bit more, both of us started feeling headachy, with upset stomachs, so we decided to call it an early night. When we got back to the room, I went into the restroom, the tinsel was on the floor.

We watched some television, and a few times, the room would... dim. The lights didn't flicker, they didn't get any less bright. The only way I can describe it is as though someone walks in front of the light source - it's a bit dimmer for a second or two. I looked over at Linda to see if she noticed. She didn't, so I didn't say anything.

Around 10:30, we turned off the television and lights and laid down in our beds. I went to sleep very easily. I don't have a clue what time it was, but I woke up to Linda saying, "Can you hear that?" I listened and heard something that sounded like someone dragging something very heavy across a floor. No footsteps, no voices, just a dragging, scraping sound. I went and looked out the Judas Hole, but there wasn't anyone in the hallway.

I finally went back to sleep but then, was suddenly awake. I wasn't disoriented and heard whispering. I couldn't make out the words, but I would hear one set of whispers, it would stop, and then... a response(?). I didn't open my eyes, I didn't move or make any sound, just lie there listening.

Then, I heard my name.

It felt like my heart was frozen, and I had that scared shitless sweat pop out all over my body.

I heard it a second time, but this time, it was "Connie, can you hear that?" and I realized it was Linda. It woke her up, as well.

This wasn't in the hallway, this wasn't in the next room with an adjoining wall. It was in the room with us.

We finally went back to sleep and the sun was shining when we woke up again. I went to the bathroom, and yes, it was there -- on the floor again.

While we were eating breakfast, Linda asked me if I remembered the whispering - if it actually happened or if she'd dreamed it. She passed it off like she was joking, but I could hear the tremor in her voice. When I told her I remembered it, that it really happened, I'm not sure if she was relieved or even more scared. I finally mentioned the tinsel in the bathroom. She'd seen and picked it up, at least three times, herself. We finally gave up and just left it alone since it wanted to be there so badly.

We were both thrilled to get out of there and don't ever plan on going back.