Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish.

Johny unstrapped the seat-belt, propped his head between Mum and Dad, peered through the wind-shield flooded with rain. He liked rain, but not when it rained like this. Not at all.

'Mum, when will we reach?' He raised his voice over the rattle on the rain of the car-roof.

Mum squeezed his palm, 'A little more, honey.'

'Strap up, Jo,' Dad said, his eyes narrow in the rear-view mirror.

'Mum, I want to pee.'

'Strap Up, GODDAMNIT!' Dad snapped, his grip tight on the steering.

Jo sank into the seat, buckled. An angry white flash lit up the sky; Joe pinched his eyes. A rumble bellowed, and he pressed his palms on his ears, curling his knees to his chest.

A sudden jerk — the strap tightened against his chest. Another jerk and Jo felt light, very light. His bum lifted off his seat. He half-opened his eyes, saw Mum's arms wide, fingers stretched, her hair flying. Jo's legs flew off the floor too, hands crossed over his face.

THUD! GHAD! GHAD! GHAD! SCREEEEECH...

Metal flared against the tarmac, and Jo saw yellow sparks. A sharp stab of pain on the head over his left ear. All went black.

'Jo... jo... Johny... JOHNY!'

'Gaaaaa—'

'Wake up!'

Jo felt a grip on his elbow, shaking him.

'W-W-What?' He snapped awake, touched his head over the ear, felt for pain. Nothing.

'Let's go, Jo.' Dad wiped his face, turned, and Jo saw dad's back disappearing in the haze of rain.

'Mum?'

'I'm here, honey. We'll have to stay here for tonight.'

Jo looked into the darkness, saw the green walls that rose and rose ending in a slanting roof, red and gray in the rain. He lowered his gaze — a humongous door, like a monster's jaw, and two square windows, curtained like eyes, gaped at him. 'Where are we, Mum?'

'It's the only place we could find, honey. Hurry before dad gets annoyed. We'll leave first thing tomorrow.'

The monstrous door slurped its tongue, moved like a snake. Joe rubbed his eyes; it was dad waving. Mum tugged him.

They dashed towards the door, head low, splashing and plopping. Through the blur of the rain, the monster's mouth got bigger and bigger. Jo slowed, felt mum's grip tighten, lugging him and they entered the door.

The rattle of the rain muffled indoors, and Jo wriggled his toes inside wet shoes. The air felt warm, smelled strange — like grandma, soft and muggy. A dark silhouette descended from the stairs to his left, the footfalls wet and squeaky. Jo stiffened.

'It's vacant. No one here.' It was dad. Jo exhaled.

'Sit here, honey.' Mum left him, and she and dad mumbled, 'lights', 'only a night', 'what choice do we have', 'goddamnit—'

'JOHNYYYY....'

A whisper licked Jo's earlobe. Joe shuddered at the cold touch, the hair on his neck stood up, his nails dug through his palms.

'JOHNYYEHHHH...'

He ran and buried his face in Mum's stomach, hugged her tight, a sudden urge to pee building inside.

'Honey?'

'Don't leave me, don't leave me.' Jo tightened his arms around Mum.

'It's okay, it's okay, hon. I'm here.' She ruffled his hair, rubbed his back.

'Found it.' Dad's voice bounced off the walls and reached Jo from all directions. Click, click, click and lights came on.

Jo wriggled his fingers into Mum's and turned. An enormous chandelier high above on the ceiling with two strings of crystals hanging, flickered. The corners had cob-webs, gray, some black. Two windows over the door, the blue-green panes cracked, stuttered and rattled with the wind. Jo followed the cracked wallpaper to the cracked wooden floor and spotted pieces of glass. Jo lifted his palm, felt the dust floating in the air.

He turned to the footfalls, grabbed Mum's arms over his neck. Dad was four steps up on a warped staircase in the far corner, looking at him, tilting his head. 'Bedroom's upstairs.'

He didn't want to go, not at all. But Mum followed Dad, and he lugged after.

'I checked, honey,' dad pushed one of the two doors. 'It's surprisingly clean. There's a bed, good for three, I guess.'

'What about here?' Mum reached for the door on the opposite wall.

Dad grabbed her wrist, 'Let's not,' he tilted his eyes towards Jo and back to Mum. They trailed after him into the first room.

Dad was right. It was like the nice hotel room Jo had seen in magazines. Large wooden bed with high back-board, edges embroidered and painted in gold and soft mattress. The window was thankfully shut and both lamps on either side of the bed had a soft yellow glow.

'Bathroom's here,' Dad's voice came through a door on the side. Mum followed the voice. This is better, surely, this is safe, Jo thought and followed her.

'Easy young man,' Dad tapped Jo's head as he let out a long-stifled pee.

He washed his hands in the basin, splashed water on his face, but never lifted his eyes to look into the mirror. He ran after dad and snuggled between them on the soft bed.

'JOHNY...'

Jo plucked his eyes open, the pressure in his tummy building up. 'Mum,' he nudged her. She rolled away, mumbled. Jo turned toward Dad, snoring.

'JOHNYYEH...'

Jo pulled the sheet over his face, the liquid in his abdomen growing, pushing against his belly. He felt a trickle leaking through, clenched his teeth to hold it off.

He walked to the bathroom door, but the knob won't turn.

'JOHNYYEHHHH...'

His feet turned on their own toward the voice, toward the door across the corridor.

He stepped out of the bedroom and stood, facing the door. He must've stood for long, because the pressure in his belly was ripe and heavy. His hand reached out, felt the cold doorknob. His wrist moved, the knob turned without noise, not even a click. He pushed, and the door opened all the way. Jo anticipated a thud when the door hit the wall behind, but it didn't.

The room was identical to theirs and Jo stepped into the bathroom, the door fortunately easy on the knob and sighed with relief. He zipped, washed his hands, and stepped out.

'Johny.'

Jo froze. The voice came from behind the bathroom curtain. Run. He wanted to run, to Dad, to Mum. But his feet were brittle, heavy, too stiff to even move a toe.

'It's you, Johny?'

Jo gulped, his mouth sour. 'W... who's there?'

'It's me.'

'Who?'

'Me.'

Jo reached out, gripped the curtain. He paused, something inside him told him to withdraw his arm.

'It's okay, Jo. I'm sorry if I scared you.'

Jo slid the curtain aside, his breath locked. The girl, maybe six or seven, younger than him for sure, bronze curly hair like him, was coiled inside the bath tub, wet and shaking, her breath exhaling white mist.

'W... who are you?'

'Joanna.' She smiled, rubbing her palms, her teeth rattling.

'What are you doing here?'

'I wanted to pee. You should've knocked.'

'You live in this house?'

'Yes, we all do.'

'All?'

'Mum, Dad and us.'

'Us?'

She lowered her face onto her knees, shivering. Jo grabbed the towel off the hook and handed over. 'You'll catch a cold. Come out.'

'I need to pee.'

He tapped his head, smiled. 'Of course.'

He pulled the door behind, shook his head and scanned the room. Exactly the same as the other, he thought, except for a photo-frame on the bedside table on the far-corner. He sauntered, glanced at the bathroom door, and lifted the frame.

His shoulders jumped with a sudden scare.

It was a photo of his Mum and Dad, standing outside this very house with him holding dad's arm and... and... the girl in the bathroom leaning against Mum, all smiling, except dad. He never smiled.

It's a dream... just a dream. His heart screamed inside his chest.

The bathroom door-knob turned, the door opened, and she stepped out — Joanna, dressed in the same frock as the photo.

Jo stared at her, then at the photograph, toward the door across the corridor. It's just a dream, just a dream. He mumbled.

'You are trembling.' Joanna said.

'GET AWAY... stay away!' Jo stuttered, his words barely audible to him.

She lowered her head, protruded her lips, 'You still annoyed with me?'

'W... what?' He wiped his lips, placed the frame back. It's just a dream.

'Why you mumbling, Jo?'

'Huh?'

'Jo is scared, scared, scared.' She raised her palm to her mouth and giggled.

'I'm not scared.' He straightened his back. It's just a dream.

'Why are you shaking, then?'

'Who are you?'

'Joanna.'

'Who Joanna?'

'I'll tell mamma you were teasing me.'

'I'm not teasing you. I have never seen you before.'

She curled her lips down, slumped her shoulder and sat on the bed with her back toward Jo, her feet dangling.

Jo glanced at the frame, back to the girl and grit his teeth. He climbed up onto the bed and sat next to her, his feet dangling like her. 'Are you a ghost?'

'Stop scaring me, Jo. I'll tell Dad and you know what'll happen next. You'll get his Goddamnit!' She made claws with her little hands and widened her eyes, giggling.

'How do you know he does that?'

'He does that every time he's angry.' She slumped on the bed.

'Yeah, I don't like him when he does that.'

'Neither me,' Jo laid next to her.

'Mum says,' she turned her face toward him, 'it's because of his anger he's always sad.'

'He's not sad.' Jo said, yawning. 'You're really not a ghost?'

She elbowed him. 'Stop it, Jo.'

'Then why are you here, alone?'

'I sleep alone,' she stood on the bed, raised herself on toes, 'I'm a big girl now.'

Jo laughed, 'Yeah, how old are you, six?'

'And a half,' she made herself taller, and slumped next to him, rubbing her nose against his arm.

'Ew! Don't do that.' Jo slid himself away.

'Sorry.'

'Aren't you scared of sleeping alone?'

'You're there with me.' she pulled herself closer. Suddenly, she gripped his arm. Pulled him close. 'The curtain Jo, the curtain.'

Jo looked at the curtain; it was swaying with the wind. 'Window's open I guess.' For the first time, Jo felt brave. He hopped off the bed and reached out for the window and pulled it shut. 'There,' he turned. 'Better now?'

'Thanks,' she shook her head and stretched herself on the bed. Let's sleep.'

Jo lay next to her. 'I don't understand how—'

'Whom you talking to, honey?' It was Mum. Jo sighed with relief.

'No one,' he replied.

'Come, sleep with mamma.'

'Okay.' Jo hopped off the bed. Joanna hopped too.

'You weren't talking to Jo again, were you?' Mum curled her arm around Joanna and walked toward the other bedroom.

Jo froze. 'Mum? Mum? MUM!'

Panic erupted inside him, he reached for Mum. But his hand went right through, as if Mum was smoke and shadow. He stumbled.

Joanna turned toward him, and raised her finger to her lips.

Jo dashed after, found Dad on the bed. Mum lay next to him with Joanna in between.

'What happened?' Dad asked.

'I saw this girl in the other bathr... Dad. Dad?'

Dad pulled Joanna close

'She was talking to Jo again.' Mum said.

Dad wound his arm around her, and tapped her forehead. Joanna slept.

Mum looked toward Jo, not at him, through him, her eyes sad. 'Someday we got to tell her that we had a son named Johny.'

Dad knocked his head against the headboard. 'It was my fault... my fault.' He let out a cry, 'I killed my son.'

'It was an accident, an accident, you understand,' Mum sniffed her tears.

Jo stumbled back toward the other bedroom, ran, picked up the frame. There were only three people in the photo: Dad, Mum and Joanna.