The toilet


Rebecca

         People are afraid of the dark as well as closed spaces. That is why toilets are usually connected with the eeriness and the supernatural. In fact, lots of fearsome stories happened in the toilets.

This was a true experience of mine. When I was a five-year-old girl with two pigtails, one day, I followed my mother to shop at a magnificent department store. I was quite excited because it was always interesting for a child to fool around, being attracted by all kinds of toys and candies in the display windows. After finishing a whole bottle of juice, I asked Mom to take me to the toilet. It was located at the basement and Mom waited for me outside.

When I first stepped into the stall, I felt strangely cold. Beside, there was not a single person around and the lights were especially feeble. However, I was in such a big hurry to relieve myself that I paid little attention to it. I hurriedly pulled down my trousers and began relieving myself.

Half way through it, I felt a few drops of water falling on my head. My hair got wet soon. 「Stop!」 I shouted, quite angry about this kind of prank behavior, but water continued to fall on my head from above. Reluctant to put up with it any further, I looked up to see where the water was coming from.

There was nothing but just a 「hand」 hanging on the wall of the stall, dropping water on top of me. Although I was just five at that time, I knew it was impossible for an ordinary-sized woman to be able to lay her hand over the top of this uncommonly high wall. I did not know what to think. In my panic, I cried out, pulled up my trousers, and fled from the toilet right way.  

In tears, I told my Mom what had happened, but she did not believe me. 「You watched too much TV」, she said.

「You just don』t understand!」 Being angry at her attitude, I decided to prove my case. 「Wait a minute,」 I rushed back to the toilet and checked if there was any 「person」 in the stall next to mine. I knocked on the door and said:」 is somebody there?」  There was only silence. I braced myself to open the door—and there was nothing.  And I distinctly remember seeing nobody leaving the toilet after I rushed out.

     I have dreamed of that mysterious 「hand」 for several times. What』s worse, from then on, I had been afraid to go to the toilet by myself until I entered elementary school. However, I still believe what happened to me was a mysterious thing which is beyond human understanding. And in regard to the unknown, I would rather not speculate.

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