Going back to the time when I was studying in elementary school, I attended a primary school in a province in the central-western region. I didn't live with my parents because they worked in Bangkok and entrusted me to my grandmother, who sent me to study there.
On a Saturday morning of a certain year when I was in third grade, my uncle and aunt, along with about four or five of their friends, gathered at our house to help move some belongings from my grandmother's house to theirs. I went along that day because I had nothing else to do.
Uncle and Aunt's new house was not far from Grandma's house. It only took about ten minutes to walk there. When we arrived, the adults helped with moving the belongings inside, while I stayed outside playing in front of the house since I had nothing else to do.
Around Uncle's house, there were houses on both sides of the road alternating with fields or crops. I walked out of the house towards Uncle's field, which was next to the house, with a Barbie doll in hand. The field was approximately a little over 2 acres wide. In the middle of the field, there was a spacious cottage with large trees beside it.
I walked straight to the cottage and climbed up to sit and play as usual. Whenever I came to the field with Uncle and Auntie, I always liked to sit and play at the cottage.
I sat playing with the Barbie doll, glancing around while waiting for the adults to finish moving. Suddenly, I noticed someone standing behind the tree. It was a fair-skinned girl with long, straight black hair, wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, a black skirt, and school shoes. Her face was partly obscured, her eyes gleamed with curiosity.
I stared back at her, but it seemed like she already knew and swiftly disappeared behind the tree. Intrigued, I walked over to investigate, but there was no one there. I circled a few times to make sure, then convinced that nobody was around, I returned to playing with the Barbie doll.
While I was playing with the doll, I suddenly heard someone calling out. I looked up and saw the girl who had been watching me by the side of the cottage earlier.
"What's your name?"
She replied with a shy voice before gradually breaking into a smile. At that moment, I didn't think much and just responded normally, assuming she was an around-here kid.
"I'm Rin. And you?"
"My name Fah. Nice to meet you."
After we finished introducing ourselves, I invited Phee Fah to sit in the cottage. While we were sitting and playing, Phee Fah told me that she had been living in this area for a long time, ever since her Great-grandfather's generation. Her house was near my uncle's house, not far away. Walking past the store, we reached her house.
We were playing together for a while when my aunt came over and called me.
"My aunt called, so I have to go now, Fah."
"And is Rin still around tomorrow? I was thinking of taking you to my house."
"I'm still at home."
At that moment, I responded to her without thinking. In my mind, I only thought that she could be a good new friend, so I wanted to become close to her quickly.
"Wait for me here tomorrow morning. I'll come pick you up."
While I was watching TV, I took the opportunity when my aunt was sitting down to tell her about my plan to visit my friend's house tomorrow.
"Auntie, tomorrow I'm going to my friend's house."
My aunt turned to me with a puzzled frown before asking.
"Which friend?"
"Fah, the house next to the store."
My aunt nodded in approval while her gaze remained fixed on the TV show.
"Sure, but don't come back too late."
I nodded happily, grateful that I would finally get to go to my friend's house. At that moment, I didn't think much; I was just happy to be able to visit my friend like any other kid.
As the morning passed, I quickly got up to shower and have breakfast, preparing myself to visit my friend's house. I hurriedly walked towards the cottage and saw that my sister was already waiting there. Seeing her, I rushed over to her immediately.
"Shall we go now?"
At the same time, I nodded and took her hand as she reached out to me, and then we walked out together.
We spent a moment walking together until we reached Fah's house. As soon as we arrived, I used my eyes to sweep around. Fah's house was located at the corner of the street on the left-hand side, with sugarcane fields on the opposite side. In front of Fah's house, there was a spacious and open yard, probably used for parking.
I followed my sister until we reached her house. Her house was a two-story wooden house. The lower floor had a room, a bathroom, and a kitchen at the back. On the right side, there were a few wooden chairs and a missing hammock, leaning against a pole not far away. Overall, it looked quite old, maybe because it had been there since the Great-grandfather's generation, but it wasn't too rundown to be unusable.
"Come sit here."
Fah, who had been sitting on the wooden chair for who knows how long, called me to sit beside her. I walked over and sat down, sweeping my gaze around with suspicion. Since I entered my sister's house, I felt that it was unusually quiet, without the slightest hint of anyone else in the house.
"Fah, where has everyone in the house gone?"
Fah slowly turned her face towards me, her gaze still and serene, as if she were soulless.
"I'm with grandma. They're all here, haven't gone anywhere."
After exchanging a few small talks, we sat playing for a while. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of something passing by behind the house. Curious, I hesitantly glanced around, prompting Fah to turn and ask with suspicion.
"Is there something?"
I looked at her and then glanced at the back of the house before telling her.
"I saw someone walking towards the back of the house."
Fah looked in that direction before turning back to me.
"That must be Grandma. She likes to sit in the backyard."
So, I replied with an 'Oh okay' without thinking much and then turned back to continue playing as usual.
As the hours passed, I began to feel bored and wanted to find something to play with, like the other children. I turned to the person beside me and said I wanted to find something to play with. At that moment, Fa turned down from the wooden table before turning to me and saying...
"There's a swing in the backyard. Do you want to play?"
Upon hearing that, I eagerly perked up, brimming with excitement. At that moment, I didn't think of anything else but the desire to play on the swing. I followed Fah to the backyard, my eyes scanning the surroundings. Apart from the cottage made of nipa palm leaves and the swing tied to a big tree, there wasn't much else in the backyard.
Fah pulled me to sit on the swing before she walked around to the back and gently started swaying it. The creaking of the rope against the wooden branch competed with the gentle rustle of the breeze. As I was enjoying the swing, I caught sight of something through the second-floor window. I raised my head to look and saw Fah's grandmother staring in this direction with a gaze that sent shivers down my spine.
At that moment, I felt overwhelming fear and turned to tell Fah, who was behind me. But when I turned back, there was no one there. I looked left, and right, and shouted Fah's name, but she didn't appear. Moreover, when I looked up at the window, I saw Fa's grandmother still staring at me. I decided to get off the swing to go back home, but before I could take a step, someone's hand grabbed my arm almost causing me to fall forward. I turned to look, terrified and saw an old, pale-skinned man wearing shorts and a sleeveless top that seemed to belong to Fah's grandfather. He was the one who had pulled me. As I looked up at his face, I was shocked to find that he had no eyes. At that moment, I burst into heavy tears and screams, trembling until I collapsed on the ground.
As I was crying and calling out for Fah, Fah's grandfather started shouting and cursing in a language I didn't understand, while also fiercely striking with his cane on my back. I screamed in pain as he hit me relentlessly, begging him to stop, but he showed no signs of stopping. All he did was hit me harder and harder without mercy.
I cried until I was breathless, collapsing onto the floor, my eyes blurry, barely able to see Fa standing in front of me. I called out to her, my voice trembling, but was shocked once again when I saw Fah's condition. She was covered in bruises all over her body, her ankles chained with large shackles.
"Fa, help me, please!"
Fah stood and looked at me quietly, her face full of tears, and she repeatedly apologized.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
At that moment, I didn't understand why she was apologizing. I just wanted her to come and help me, that's all.
The moment I was crying out in agony and about to collapse, I heard someone's voice.
"RIN!!! Where are you?"
I remembered it was Auntie's voice. At that moment, I was so relieved that finally, someone came to help me. I lay down on the floor, feeling weak. At the same time, Grandpa stopped hitting me. The footsteps of several people approached closer before I passed out.
I woke up again on Monday morning, still at my uncle's house. When I woke up, I took a shower and had breakfast as usual, but while showering, I felt a lot of pain in my back. It was so sore that I couldn't even let the water touch it.
After finishing my chores, I came out to have lunch with my uncle and aunt, but this time there were also unfamiliar adults present, including my grandmother. My aunt had me sit down before asking me to tell them everything that happened. After I finished telling my story, the shop owner shared stories about Fah's family.
Flashback to 4 years ago, back then, Fah's house was still filled with happiness. There were grandparents, parents, uncles, aunts, and Fah herself. Until one day, her uncle and aunt moved out, leaving only her grandparents and parents. Not long after, Fah's parents had to move to work in Bangkok, and since Fah was still studying, she had to stay with her grandparents instead. At first, everything seemed normal, just like before.
One day, Fah brought her friend over to play at her house as usual, until it was evening. Suddenly, her grandfather got angry and started hitting her, causing bruises all over her body. He even tied Fah to a post under the house. Whenever Fah cried or tried to loosen the rope, her grandfather would come and hit her again and again. In the end, Fah couldn't bear the pain anymore and tragically lost her life.
The grandmother witnessed everything and tried to stop the grandfather, but in the end, she couldn't handle him anymore. Not only that, but she also became a victim of her grandfather's abuse. After Fai's tragic death, the grandmother couldn't bear it anymore. In the end, she chose to end her life by hanging herself in her room.
After Fah and her grandmother passed away, the grandfather's behavior changed. He became more aggressive, cursing at everyone who drove past or throwing rocks at villagers passing by his house. One day, he got into a confrontation with some teenagers, and eventually, he was fatally injured by them until death in front of his own house.
After the funeral, many people reported seeing their spirits, both inside and outside the house. But the person who faced it the hardest was probably me. I went to the extent of being brought into the house and physically hit.
The next day, my grandmother's neighbors, along with other relatives of Fa, invited the monk to perform a ritual to send off her spirit. After the ceremony, Fah's aunt demolished the house and left only an empty piece of land. While the excavator was demolishing the house, I caught a glimpse of Fah standing behind her mother. Fah was wearing a beautiful white dress, smiling at me, and waving goodbye. Seeing her like that, my initial fear disappeared, replaced only by pity and sympathy towards her. I waved back, whispering...
"Take care, Fah. If there's another life, let's be friends again."
Then Fah slowly faded away. I raised my hand, wiping away the tears that streamed down. I glanced at Fah's house in front of me, now reduced to just a pile of crumbling wood stacked upon each other.
The story of Fah's family is something I still vividly remember to this day. What used to be Fah's home has now become a community center for the villagers, with small shops owned by Fah's uncle and aunt serving the locals and passersby. There are no more sights of spirits or ghosts for people to see. Every time I visit my uncle and aunt, I always make sure to stop by and see Fah's uncle and aunt as well. I can't help but wonder, if Fah hadn't been harmed and was still alive today, what would she be like? Perhaps she would be my close friend or maybe the adorable Fa that everyone wished her to be.