The Haunted Hotel Ch. 04

"Rosie, I know you're not going to want to hear this, but there's someone else," he said. He had to tread carefully partly out of concern for her feelings, partly because he wasn't sure what a ghost's revenge would be like, but he didn't want to find out.

Her hand lowered from her face, her expression distant, taking in what he said. "Who?" she asked.

"It doesn't matter."

"It does matter, to me it does! I had your baby, Mike. Doesn't that count for anything?" she asked.

He wondered if she knew, on some level. That her baby was a ghost of a ghost. That his love was a sin best left unspoken. She could be toying with him, but her voice didn't betray it. She sounded genuinely hurt.

He decided that if there was anywhere he could confess his situation, this was it. Where it all began. Where anything he confided would stay put. To the very one who had tricked him into uniting himself with his sister in the first place.

"It's Jenna," he said. It actually felt good to say it, finally.

"Jenna...you mean your sister?" Rosie asked. "You would rather be with your sister than me?"

Mike remembered the last time they came here, how he came to actually welcome the moments when the "curse" made it look and feel like it was Jenna in bed with him.

"I'm afraid so." He shrugged. He knew he was damaged, warped, perhaps permanently.

"I'm such a fool," Rosie said, more to herself. Then she turned and rushed out, leaving him alone. Mike worried what kind of mistake he'd just made.

------

Jenna got bored, waiting for Mike to come out of the shower. Typical Mike, taking overly long showers. It always used to bother her growing up.

Rather than just wait around, she changed into her sweats and sneakers, and went out for a run. She had always enjoyed the paths behind the hotel, up and down the terrain, the ground made soft with pine needles, sunlight filtering through the canopy.

She started to work up a sweat, but she couldn't stop wondering how much of it was real. Every time they came here, she'd gone jogging out in the forest. But what was she doing right now in the real world? Actually running out behind the abandoned hotel? Jogging in place? Or was there no reality to it at all? She wished she'd brought the video camera with her.

She started to feel a pleasant ache in her legs, which was enough for her. She went back inside and walked down the hall to their room. But there were noises coming from behind the door of their room. Muffled groans and cries, unmistakable sounds of unrestrained passion. It sounded like one of them was Mike. She couldn't be sure about the other voice. Was it hers, or that front desk girl's?

The door was locked, bolted from the inside. She knocked, but there was no answer. A pity. She might be getting fucked behind that door, and instead, she was stuck out in the hallway.

It elicited a weird feeling of jealousy, but she also found herself getting aroused. Even if she wasn't experiencing it firsthand, it could be her in bed with Mike right now. Even if it was Rosie in this illusion, it was likely Jenna in real life. Which meant that one way or another, it likely ended with Mike's seed inside her.

She sat down, right there in the hallway by the door. So what if it looked odd. None of this was real anyway. People walked by. There were so many people here, it was hard to believe they were all ghosts, none of them real and alive anymore.

One young woman stopped and stood, looming over her. She looked like an undergrad for sure.

"Hey, you're Zack's friend, right?" she asked.

Jenna thought for a second. It was complicated actually. She had made a move, but Zack had turned her down. "Yeah, hi. Have we met?"

"Not really..." the coed said. "I'm Violet. I was wondering, if you see him, can you tell him that I need to talk to him?"

"Yeah...sure," Jenna said. She figured it ultimately didn't matter.

The young woman strode away. It was only then that Jenna remembered her, as the one Zack had picked over her. At the time, she had felt bitter about it. She had seen it as Zack predictably picking the thin young thing over her thick womanly self. Now Jenna felt like she wasn't the one left alone and unloved. Though it was hard to keep feeling good about it when Mike was fucking somebody on the other side of the door, and Jenna was left out of it.

"What shall I call you this time? Room 126 or 131?"

Jenna recognized the voice of Frederic, the Olympic runner she had hooked up with here before.

"147," she said, the room number they stood in front of. "I'm sharing the room with my brother...sort of."

"It seems rude of him to lock you out with nowhere else to go," Frederic remarked. "Perhaps back at my room, we could listen to something a little more...melodious?"

Listening to the sounds behind the door had made Jenna desperate with arousal, and seeing Frederic reminded her of the times they shared before. Even if those times had been tainted and unreal, he was still always a gentleman and a tender lover. And she felt a bit of spite for Mike, for leaving her out of what he was doing. Two could play at that game.

"You know what? Sure," she said.

They started walking to his room, making smalltalk about the past few months. Frederic explained that he had been back here about once a month between competitions. It was just coincidence or fate that brought them together again. Jenna took it all in, knowing that there was likely nothing true about it. More likely, Frederic appeared here whenever she did.

In his room, he had a stereo, and put on a bossa nova playlist. For Jenna, it was retro and elegant and charming and a bit sensual. He sat down in a wide leather chair, as if the two of them were just going to have a chat for a while. Jenna didn't want to mince words. She leaned down, lifting his chin to meet hers until their lips met. Then he got the idea, and his hands reached for her waist.

Conscious of her bulk, she straddled his hips, settling her weight down on him where she felt it would be stable. She could already feel him pressing up against her through his pants. His hands roamed under her sweatshirt, the skin of her belly lighting up under his touch. She gasped, running her hands across his chest. It was hard to believe that this wasn't real.

They made their way to the bed, and continued making out as they stripped each other, one article at a time, rolling this way and that to get free of their clothes, until it was just the two of them, his body pressed against hers.

"Do you need a condom this time?" he asked.

"No need," she said.

She was surprised at herself for moving this quickly with anyone, even this familiar ghost. At the same time, she was thinking about how, in the real world, the role of Frederic was likely being played by Mike. It meant that when he pressed the tip of himself into her, it was likely Mike penetrating her.

He nudged into her softly, gently at first, and she felt herself open up to him, as the length of him slid further into her. The sensation between them was driving her wild with desire, egging him on, but he was relentlessly patient, savoring the moment, measuring it out.

Jenna would have gladly let this go on, let it climb to a peak. The only thing that would have made it sweeter would have been a glimpse at the reality behind the curtain, to look up and see her brother's eyes.

Abruptly he pulled away, sliding back onto his haunches to bring his kisses level with her hips, her inner thighs, and then yes, even there, where she needed him most. She pressed her hips up to meet his tongue, his fingers.

She was so close, and yet she could feel something missing still. If she looked down between her legs and saw Mike's head of hair, would that push her over the edge? The curse refused to show her what she longed to see. It was still Frederic, just Frederic.

She guided him back up onto her. "I need you inside me." She didn't normally talk like this, but there was no reason to hold back.

He teased her at first, and she could tell that they were both sensitive, where their parts met. Then he pushed himself all the way into her, to where she could feel him press deep inside her. He felt different than Mike inside of her, touched different spots because of the shape of him. How could that be possible? He didn't fit into her quite as perfectly, and yet, this would do. After months of nothing but herself, this would more than do.

Soon she could tell that he wasn't far from his climax, and neither was she. There was something more she needed, but she had to hope that what he was about to provide would fulfill it.

"I'm quite close," he whispered, though she could already tell by the way he had to slow himself. She could feel him growing even harder inside her.

"I'm ready," she said.

She blinked, frantically trying to get the curse to kick in, to show her Mike instead. She felt him swell up, and knew what came next. Jenna squeezed her eyes shut. Even if the curse wouldn't show her Mike, she could imagine that it was him. She knew that in the real world, it probably was him.

When she felt him erupt into her, it triggered a spasm of pleasure deep inside.

"Oh Mike!" she cried.

It was just enough to push her over the edge. She shuddered around him, as he kept spilling more of Mike's seed into her. She felt well-fucked, bred, and yet there were still desires left unfulfilled. Things Frederic couldn't satisfy.

He rolled himself off of her, exhausted and spent. After she had cried out another man's name, he wouldn't meet her eye.

Jenna felt like she should be basking in the afterglow of what just happened, but it only left her all the more conscious of what she truly needed. Once she caught her breath again, she put her sweats back on, though it would make them sweatier and stickier. Then she left to go find Mike, the real Mike.

------

Mike wandered the halls, looking for his sister everywhere. He had checked the lobby, the bar, all the common areas first. Now it was just labyrinthine corridors of closed doors. He tried the handle on some of them, wondering how far these ghosts would let him go.

"Jenna!" he called out. Where was she? The point of coming here was for them to be together.

He tried hallway after hallway, floor after floor. He eventually reached the fourth floor, where the honeymoon suites were. He remembered a time in one of the hot tubs with Rosie.

One of the doors opened. It was Rosie again. "Stop, Mike! You're disturbing the guests!"

At first, Mike was inclined to ignore her. This wasn't about her. He had to find his sister and escape this illusion, and they knew how to escape. They'd done it before.

"I don't know what games you all are playing, but I don't want to play along," Mike said.

Rosie sighed and stepped out into the hallway, her arms sternly crossed. "I should have explained this to you before, but I didn't think I would have to. So let me put this to you straight, Mike. If you want to see your sister again, you're going to have to go through me first."

"You're saying...you're speaking on behalf of this whole place..." Mike said.

"I'm just telling you how this is going to work, and what you have to do to get what you want."

It looked like Rosie, it sounded like her, but it was out of character. Not playing a part anymore. Whatever it was, it wanted something from him, and had power over him to get it. Mike was scared, and sad. Even if he'd gotten over Rosie not being real, she had always acted real before. Now he was dealing directly with whatever was pulling her strings. It couldn't directly pull his, but it could get very close. He didn't have much to bargain with.

"Okay," Mike said. He tried to sound confident, though he was trembling. "If that's what it takes, sure. Just tell me what to do."

"Inside," Rosie said, with a hint of a smirk. "Undress me."

Mike slid off her sweater, unbuttoned her shirt, unclasped her bra, unzipped her pants. He was caught between trying to show his reluctance by doing all this efficiently, detachedly, or trying to play the part that was asked of him. As he denuded her, he noticed how childbearing had reshaped her. Perhaps now that she was primed for it, the next one would be easier on her. If we was real, that is.

"Now you," she said. He started to fumble with his own clothes, before she reached out and started to help. "No need to be scared. There's nothing here you haven't had before, Mike."

She pressed her warm body to his, and he didn't need a command to know she expected to be kissed. Once they started, it felt familiar and natural. Soon enough, he would've needed a cue to know when to stop. She moaned into his mouth when she felt him spring to life between them. Her hand found his erection, and he gasped as she started to stroke it.

"Lie down," she whispered, nudging him back towards the bed, a large round one. He slid up onto the duvet. She flipped a switch, and the circular bed started to slowly rotate.

Then she climbed up on the bed with him, and leaned down over his lap, taking him into her mouth. The wetness, the heat, the caress of her lips and tongue all felt very tangible. His resistance was quickly melting away. If this was what she wanted from him, she could have it. It cost him nothing at all.

She came up for air, and he found that he didn't want her to stop, but he did need the reprieve. Then she climbed up over him, straddling his waist, and guided him into her. Her hips lowered down on him inch by inch. She felt ready, eager for him. Then she started to roll her hips back and forth. She felt different than he remembered, but it was still intense.

"I want you to knock me up a second time," Rosie said.

By Mike's calculation, it couldn't have been that long since the first child was born, but he wasn't entirely sure how time worked here. After all, Rosie had been dead a century before they met. Yet her words were spurring him on, not just because he had to meet her demands, but because of something primal within him that wanted the same thing. Just like in the real world, where had knocked up his sister once already. He knew in that moment that he'd do it again, given the chance.

"Mm, Yes. Right there," she said, forcing herself down on him harder, pushing him to reach something specific inside her. That target they both wanted him to hit. He gripped her hips, helping pull her down on him.

"Do it. Come inside me," she repeated. She must have been able to feel how close to the edge he was.

Mike spared a thought for the fact that maybe there was some version of this scene playing out in real life as well.

Rosie screamed, her mouth not far from his ear. Her voice sounded taut, almost tormented. Mike felt a twinge of regret when everything built up inside of him, saved for Jenna, exploded inside of Rosie instead. Jenna's strength gave out, her chest collapsing on his.

"Does that about do it?" he asked when his breath returned.

"Yes, that's plenty to work with," she said with smug satisfaction. "I can feel it happening already."

Mike knew there was no way that could be true, yet it was dizzying to think. She rolled off of him, and sprawled out on the bed, slick with their fluids. She was still beautiful, even if it was a disguise for something monstrous. He had half a mind to climb atop her and go again. But he had more important priorities.

"Go get her, lover boy," Rosie said, with a touch of mockery.

Mike got dressed again, if only so he wouldn't get cold. It ultimately didn't matter if he covered himself, since no one else in the hotel was real.

-----

Back in the room alone, Jenna changed out of her exercise clothes, and sprawled out on the bed, letting her skin cool and dry.

Part of her felt cheated. She had come here to be with Mike. And more than just that. She counted back to when her period had last came. That was a couple weeks ago, which explained why now her body was so eager to take a risk again.

But then there'd been the locked door, and Frederic charming as ever, and it all moved seductively fast, and now she could still feel the fluid inside her. Someone's semen. Probably Mike's, but she'd still been tricked out of experiencing that moment with him.

Even so, thinking about all of that taking place inside of her was making her nerve endings stand on end. Getting pregnant wasn't just some abstract possibility to consider; they'd proven that already. It was something that had happened before, and could happen again. She had felt the process take place inside her and mold her in its image. Now she knew for a fact that she was as fertile as she felt. It meant that all the precautions she'd taken over the years had been necessary, that any slip up could have changed her life. It was a thrilling power to know for a fact that she possessed.

But it was also scary, to know how easily her life could change. How little it would take, to put her in a tricky position to get out of. If she wasn't careful, the spark of life could take root in her, and grow and flourish and ultimately have a life of its own beyond her.

She had been ready to jump into that adventure with her own brother, which should have been alarming. She would've willingly brought a product of incest to term and into the world. Even as she felt that desire still, the strength of it terrified her. Just a year ago, thoughts of pregnancy had been a forbidden fantasy, something she'd never act upon. Now she'd gone down that path once already. It had all changed so quickly.

Her hand drifted down her body, finding her slit soaking wet. When her fingers circled her clit, she could feel the sperm-laden semen sticky, most of it still inside of her.

The door opened, and she sat up, not bothering to cover herself. There was no one to be wary of here.

"It's really you," Mike said, looking her up and down, eagerly taking in the naked sight of her. "Thank goodness."

He rushed to her, giving her a hug, like she would disappear if he let her. She laughed gently, patting him on the back. When his grip let up, she tilted his chin up towards hers.

"So what do you want to do?" he asked with a smirk, his intentions clear.

"Sit with me for a second. There's something I need to tell you," she began, and he sat next to her on the bed. It took restraint not to press herself against him right away, but there'd be time for that too.

"When I found out I was pregnant, it was a bit of a wake-up call. Things with you and me were moving so incredibly fast. Like zero to infinity. Remember how a year ago, we were just normal brother and sister? And then suddenly I was literally about to have your baby. That's insane."

He looked her in the eye, taking in what she was saying. Yet she knew it must sound like she was about to let him down. Maybe even break her own brother's heart. It would be the responsible thing to do, even if it'd be difficult.

She went on, "If we don't get some control over this thing we have together, it's going to ruin us. We have to slow this down. Just hit the brakes a little."

He opened his mouth to speak, but she pressed a finger to his lips, shushing him.

"...after this, I mean. We're here, and we're stuck here until we consummate this thing. So we get this out of our systems right now. Then when I go abroad again, we'll have some time apart to reset."

She reached down, caressing his legs, finding him eager for her touch.

"I can't say I like the idea of slowing down, but you're probably right that we should," he said breathlessly. "So how do we start this again?"

"I think normal people kiss," she said.

"Well that's not us, but I'll try," he replied, and brought his lips to hers.

Jenna thrilled at the feeling of his tongue playing against her own. She brought a hand to his erection, finding it already slick. Perhaps it had been him playing the role of Frederic after all.