I sighed in relief. The dorm room is better than expected. It was not hard to exceed my expectations, I imagined it to be completely run-down, given that the building is older than life itself, nevertheless, I got disappointed in a good way. My soon-to-be roommate has not arrived yet, so I got the privilege of choosing the bed first.
The mattress squeaks as I place my weathered luggage on it. I guess discreet bed activities are out of the picture now. Before anything, I examine the room’s condition. I will be not held responsible for other people’s damages. As I roam around the room - running my fingers along the walnut parquets that cover the wall, looking under the beds, opening the table’s cabinets - I notice a paper attached to the inside of the front door.
My stomach fills with anxiety. I really fucking hope it is not what I think it is. I strode to the door, rip off the note, and hurridly glance through it, looking for the typical words and phrases they use.FUCK. ME. That bitch lied to me! “I made sure that, you will only have to focus on your studies while at university.” I imitated her voice in my head in a sarcastic tone. Explain this. I hit the paper and then defeatedly fall to the floor. For a minute I consider setting the list and this whole fucking building on fire, but I swallow the urge. I take a deep breath, and a second one and a third one. Shit. This is my reality now, I better face it with the facts.
Welcome to Silver River Hall! I am so excited that you choose Silver River Dorms for this semester to accommodate you.
I roll my eyes. No one would fucking choose you if they knew the horror they are going to face here. I shout it in my head.
I hope you will enjoy your room and find your temporary home in it. I am sure you have noticed by now that every room is well equipped and both the furniture and the bathroom are in good condition. If not, let us know and we will fix it for you at no charge!
Every time. Every fucking time. It starts almost sickeningly sweet but it always ends up in eternal damnations. I am not even mad or terrified at this point, just fucking annoyed.
Every floor has its own Resident Assistant. Their phone numbers and other availabilities are written down at the end of this letter. They are here to guide you and answer any of your questions, but please be considerate of their time and needs, when reaching out.
The following list will present rules that you need to follow while living here. Some of them might seem a bit strange to some people, but I can assure you, that they are serious. Keeping them is never an option, but a must.
1) Keep noise at a tolerable level.
Besides you, many other students live here, each one with different needs and schedules. Behave the way you expect others to treat you.
2) Clean up the kitchen after using it.
This includes washing your dishes, cleaning any spills, and taking care of leftovers in a timely manner.
3) Make sure, your guests follow the rules as well.
Before having guests over, you have to fill out the official form - found at the reception desk- 24 hours before the stay and have to be approved by the Resident Director. While their stay you are responsible for them and any damage caused by them.
4) Do not answer your door if there is a knock between the hours of two and three in the morning. It might sound like your roommate has lost their key, the RA requesting an emergency examination of the room, but I can assure you it is never the case. Every drill and examination will be done during the daytime.
5) Ignore the petite, Asian girl in the lobby who claims her name is Lilith. She may try to talk to you or might offer help with just the problem you are struggling with. By no means should you invite her back to your room if you make the mistake of interacting with her. Please inform your RA if she is seen.
I would have assumed the Queen of Hell has more responsibilities than to linger around recently turned adults. But who am I to judge? Maybe it makes her feel young again.
6) If someone is waiting outside the dormitory main door for someone to open the door and let them in, instead use the building’s other exit on the opposite side of the hall. If you happen to be in a situation where you opened the door for them, do not give them under any circumstances verbal permission to enter the lobby. They might try to prompt an invitation, but just ignore them, immediately close the door and inform your RA.
7) You may return from classes to find small objects in your room that have been moved around. This is a harmless phenomenon that happens around here from time to time. No need to trouble your RA with it.
I grunt. Fucking fairies. Never respecting one privacy and belongings. At least the demons always knock at the same time. Have some consistency you tiny little flying fucks.
8) The occasional soft scream or distant roar in the middle of the night is nothing you need to worry about. Again, this is usually harmless, if you have not broken any other rules mentioned in this list.
9) Drugs and alcohol are strictly prohibited.
They can’t be serious! Fuck you! I will fucking pour down whiskey on Lilith’s head and set it on fire while smoking a joint. You cannot fucking stop me! I let out a deep sigh and shake my head. Another activity is crossed out on my to-do list.
Not only they are illegal, but they can also blur your senses of what is real and what is not, thereby making it easier for you to make the mistake of breaking one of the rules.
10) If you notice a Shadow Person in your vicinity, I advise you to ignore them or at the very least try pretending. They can only harm you if you pay a great deal of attention to them. If you keep up your act for a longer period of time, they will leave you alone. The better you pay no mind to them, the sooner you get rid of them. But be prepared, ignoring them will not be easy.
Whoever wrote this list, clearly does not have much experience with the supernatural. I just have to bribe the faries with honey and I will have my own flying army of mini teeth and flowery skirts. They will devour any Shadow Person that means harm to me. However, they will still move around my stuff.
11) There is no sub-basement in Silver River Hall. If the elevator takes you to one, do not leave the elevator or permit anyone/anything to enter. They will usually require an invitation to do so.
Usually? Sounds promising. I am just going to use the stairs.
12) Any men in robes carrying torches and/or bloody daggers around in the middle of the night who claim to be members of the Gloria Mali are doing initiation ceremonies and should be avoided.
The glory of Evil. Very creative, not at all boring. I have not seen it on every Satanist’s T-shirt. Maybe I will recommend them a more exciting name, once I bump into them. Satan and the mean guys of Hell. Satan and the soulless. The bloodied gang. Stop screaming my dad’s name during sex. Maybe I should finish the list before my mind wanders too far away.
13) If you do not see your roommate for more than 24 hours, please inform your RA even if he/she has left you a note claiming to have gone home for the weekend. We have ways of verifying these things.
14) The campus security officers’ first priority is the good of Silver River University and not your safety. This means that at times they may minimize your concerns or try to cover up things that happen on campus that would make the university look bad. With this in mind, you should first talk to a member of the residence life staff at Silver River Hall if you have any questions or concerns about your safety. We will protect you as best we can.
John Smith
Representative Director
Well, that was a handful. Nothing surprising or something I have not dealt with before, but I should not be cocky. With these creatures, nothing is certain.
I push myself from the ground and place the list on my roommate’s bed. I hope she has strong nerves and common sense. I would hate to switch roommates so frequently. I look away from the paper and grab my wallet from my suitcase. Instead of dooming my future in advance, I should ready myself for war. I need to make preparations for the wonderful journey I will have at Silver River University with demons and other shitfaced creatures.
The first night we heard the knocks. In the beginning, they were subtle almost as if like it did not want to wake us up. Once I realized the time, my natural annoyance took control. I just grabbed my headphones and blasted them with music, Christian rock to be specific. I do not know if it realizes the passive-aggressive message I am sending to it - they never seem to be aggravated by it - but it makes me feel fuzzy and warm inside, knowing that at least I can say fuck you in some way. I was so engrossed with the song about loving Jesus, that when Rachel shook my shoulder I almost fell off the bed.
- What the fuck Rachel? - I press my palm to my heart, I feel it beating furiously.
- I am sorry. - her voice filled with dread, barely able to keep her tears back – He says… it says, it is our neighbor Raymond. He, it, asks for our help. He says that hooded people took his roommate.
I sit up, brush my hair out of my face and turn my table lamp on. Rachel squeals in horror when the light turns on.
- Don’t worry. The rule says you cannot answer the door. It does not restrict the room’s lighting.
She garbs my hand.
- Are you sure?
- They already know we are here and awake. What’s the point in covering in the darkness? I, for one, will make myself comfortable and watch some Netflix. Wanna join?
She looks at me baffled. Almost as if she cannot decide whether am I just a trick played by the demons or not.
- If you have second guesses about me, pour some holy water on me. It is in my luggage under the bed.
The knocking becomes pounding mixed with pretend-Raymond’s deafening scream. We both jump. Those fuckers! Even Christian rock could not suppress these sounds.
- Help me, please! - it cries desperately, clawing the door – They saw me and they are going to take me!
Rachel climbs into my bed and grabs my arm, her gaze fixated on the door.
- It is not Raymond. We talked about this. - I say it to her as well as myself. The desperate tone in its voice is quite convincing.
- Please! Do not do this to me! They are going to kill me!
- And I am going to watch Netflix. Looks like we both have our hands full for the night. - I shout it at the door furiously.
Rachel stops breathing for a second. I look at her apologetically but I need to be angry, otherwise, I would fall into the endless pit of fear and despair.
- How can you be so cruel? I am begging…
…you. What it was trying to say before something cuts its throat, judging by the sound. No matter how many times I hear that gruesome noise, chills will always run down my spine.
- Is he okay? - asks Rachel sheepishly.
- It is just a trick. - I place my arm in front of her. - I know. It sounds very convincing, but if you wait eight more minutes I will personally escort you to Raymond, to check on his well-being. Okay?
I make her face me. She is one step from pissing herself, passing out, or both. I recognize my ten-year-old self in her. The same pale skin, heavy breathing, the almost floor-touching jaw drop, and the panicking eyes that desperately want to look away from the crime scene. My dad’s solution usually consisted of giving me such a hard slap, that my jaw would actually land on the floor, along with the rest of my body, of course. Sometimes, in situations like this, I feel his punch on my cheeks. It keeps me grounded. Lucky for Rachel, I oppose the idea of hurting the innocent, so I just pull her in a hug and pet her back. Her long hold-back tears started to flow. I wish I could join her.
- You fuckers let me die! - Oh my god, it is not dead. Who would have thought?
Its voice was unnaturally deep and not just it’s own. It is like more than one creature is speaking at once.
- Aren’t you a little chatty for someone who is dead? - I ask, trying to sound nonchalant.
- You are nothing but a weak insect! I could kill you with only my thumb. How dare you talk to me like that?
- Wait? I thought you were Raymond. If you are not him, then who are you?
If it is stupid enough, it will tell me its name and I can banish it back to Hell. Hopefully, it is more prideful than crafty.
- I am Lucifer’s second in command. - Lucifer would send his second in command to scare university students? I shrug. After all, Lilith is here. Maybe Hell lost its former glory and now its leaders are in need of a second job, just to pay the bills. I cannot stop myself, but imagining Satan as a cashier. - I am the world eater, Diavolo. You better remember that name, because you are going to shout it when I torture you in the eternal flames of Hell.
Suddenly silence erupts. Poor guy. Probably had a lot of threats in store for me, but the time limit cut him off. Despite the common knowledge, every demon is different, even within the same type, each one has its own preference for human meat, torture methods, level of intelligence, favorite TV show, and so on. This one was not the sharpest tool in the shed and he is going to pay for it.
Notes:
English is my second language. I am sorry for any grammar mistakes. If you have suggestions on how could I improve, please let me know.
Most of the rules are from this reddit post: https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/ai2sug/my_dorm_has_some_weird_rules/ . Before posting my story, I asked for permission to use them.