My dearest sweet friend of 20 years is suffering from an advancing disorder so our options to travel for girls weekends are running out. This spring we promised to do a girls weekend in an antebellum bed and breakfast that was beautifully restored and well decorated with proper furniture and china. Our arrival was met with excitement as the docent and the manager gave a quick tour of the areas we would be able to access and showing us our delightfully adorned room.

We had a little time to chat and change before we were invited to attend a special tour of the gardens and home and have wine and snacks with the owner and other guests. As we were chatting and looking over the opulent beauty of the old home and listening to the owner tell us of the history and the restoration, I noticed that the doors on a cabinet had slowly begun to open. The docent nonchalantly walked over and calmly closed the doors then glared up at the staircase (we weren’t allowed to ascend said staircase for safety and privacy purposes). As she walked away, I heard a soft giggle and watched again as the doors slowly swung back open and then closed. My dear friend caught me watching and saw the doors move and mentioned to me that we should walk outside and look at some of the old flowers. Upon our arrival outside, she mentioned that she probably should have told me but the estate is rumored to be haunted and she hoped I wouldn’t be angry with her. Much to her delight, I said no I wasn’t angry at all and I found this terribly interesting. Little did we know, someone was listening.

After a few glasses of wine, we were slipping away for a quick bite of fresh seafood before retiring for the evening. The manager stopped us on our way out and informed us of times in the morning for a fresh cooked breakfast in the formal dining room and to sneak us another bottle of local wine for a night cap later and some awesome locally made soaps and shampoos for our room. She really was a treasure.

Upon returning from a truly filling dinner of local boiled shrimp and veggies, my friend decided to take a soak and since I’m a smoker I snuck away to find a quiet place in the gardens to have a cigarette before a hot shower and a night cap (and an evening of giggling and gossip with my oldest friend). I finally settled on a beautiful wrought iron bench and lit my smoke. Then I heard it, the sweet little giggle and some soft humming from a little girl but no girl was to be seen. I sat quietly and smoked and listened, then I saw her, and she saw me. A darling young girl in a simple dress twirling and humming in the dusk, suddenly freezing and staring innocently at me. I nodded and said it’s alright sweetpea, have fun, you’re not bothering me at all. She smiled sweetly and continued to hum and swirl about. Then when my cigarette was finished, I leaned down to put it out but when I leaned back up she had vanished. I was a tiny bit confused but I shrugged it off. As I trotted back up to the room, I saw the docent and asked where the young girl’s parents were, she informed me that there was no young girl staying this weekend. I thought it odd but moved on as I was tired and missing my friend.

Upon arriving back in our room, my friend had already poured us a glass of wine and man was it tasty! We gossiped and giggled for several hours and finished the wine before we realized it had become super late. At this point, my friend was fully prepared to tuck in so I promised to quickly have a little mixed drink and smoke then shower and come straight to bed. So I rushed about through my smoke and trotted back inside for a hurried shower then pajamas. The soaps were also delightful and so luxurious which ran me over a touch in my process. As I was drying off and getting dressed, I heard the sweet little giggle again. I shrugged it off, thinking maybe the young lady was in the next room or something until it happened! A small fingertip ran up the small of my back and I jumped clean out of my skin! I heard the sweet little girl giggle and heard shoes tapping out of the room! I had to take a moment to calm myself down, inhale the remainder of my last drink and make a sprint into the bed with my friend. I didn’t dare wake her or tell her but I layed in the bed all night fitfully sleeping with my hand on my friends shoulder or hand until sunrise.

Upon the arrival of daylight, my friend and I packed our belongings and got dressed and floated downstairs to attend the formal breakfast. The tables were set so beautifully for each guest set with proper china and silver and the decorations were gorgeous. Then there was the food, oh my so decadent! But I noticed a table was set only for one and no one was there yet. As we enjoyed the opening of the meal, I looked up and there she was again! The sweet little girl with the simple dress descended the staircase, entered the room and sat at the single set table! She looked over at me and smiled so sweetly! I watched the docent and the manager and the owner hoping to catch one not too busy but never could. By the time we finished breakfast and conversation it was time to fetch our bags and leave, with me never getting answers!

As we pulled away, I looked up at the big stately home and saw the young girl wave at me from a window and thought to myself how sad she must be to be alone like that with no parents or loved ones, a truly sad reflection to me.

I wish I had never had that thought…. Now I have a new member in my home and traveling everywhere with me. I pray she’s always my sweet soft giggling girl because I invited this trouble.

My giggling dancing girl in the simple dress.