Swarag – Ghost story (4)

Thank you all for ur lovely comments. Today my Episode will be short hope u all like it. any suggestions welcome

The Chief’s dark eyes, set in his brown, creased face, regarded the girls. Then he yawned and rubbed his eyes with the backs of his hands.
“I don’t know how anyone can sleep with you girls always coming here and screaming,” he said.
The girls were immobile, their hands covering their faces, peering through the spaces between their fingers. The Chief frowned.
“That’s not quite right,” he said. He took Swara’s hands and placed them over her ears. Then he raised his hands to cover his eyes. “That’s better.”
He lowered his hands and laughed. The girls stared dumbfounded at the Chief, Ragini with her hands covering her mouth, and Swara with her hands covering her ears. The Chief covered his eyes with his hands again.

“I’m see no evil, Swara is hear no evil, and Ragini is speak no evil.” The girls stared blankly back. The Chief sighed. “If I have to explain a joke, it isn’t very funny.”
Swara lowered her hands and extended one finger towards the Chief. He stood watching her as she poked him in the chest. Her finger encountered no resistance and penetrated the Chief’s body. She pulled her hand back in surprise. Where she had touched him, the dust swirled about for a moment before solidifying back into place. He smiled and patted himself.
“Are you real?” Swara asked.
“You can see me,” the Chief said. “So I must be real.”
“You’re a ghost made of dust,” Ragini said, her voice muffled because her hands still covered her mouth. “That’s not real.”
“We are all made of the dust.” The Chief smiled. “A moment ago, you were just clouds of dust. Maybe you are ghosts.”

“We’re not ghosts. We are real,” Swara said. She poked herself in the chest. “See? I’m real.”
The Chief poked himself in the chest. His finger did not penetrate as Swara’s finger had. He reached out and poked Swara in the chest. Where he touched her, she dissolved to dust. He withdrew his finger and the dust swirled in front of her a moment before reforming and becoming solid again. Swara placed her hand over the spot.
“You are also made of dust. Maybe you are the ghosts,” the Chief said.
“But I feel solid to me,” Ragini said, poking herself in the chest. She poked Swara in the arm. “We’re real.”
“And I feel solid to me,” the Chief said. “I am real.”
“Swaarraaa!” Swara’s mother yelled from the house. “Dinner!”
“Oh no,” Swara said. “We have to go now.”

The Chief stepped to one side, and the girls ran for the garage door. Swara stopped at the door and looked back at the chief. He was already swirling back into a dust cloud.
“Will you be here later?” she asked.
“I have always been here,” he said.
Swara smiled. “I’ll see you!”
Swara closed the garage door and ran across the lawn to catch up with Ragini.
“Don’t tell anyone about this, Ragini.”
“No one would believe me anyhow,” Ragini said.