100 Ghost Stories Counting Down To Halloween! 84 Nights Left! "Still pond, clear water"

Reuben did his best to keep his mind, his heart and his life like a still pond of clear water. A pond so clear that even the bottom of it appeared to be just beneath the surface when it was in fact, thirty feet deeper. The deeper parts of Reuben’s mind and heart was where it belonged, sitting still and tranquil for as long as it could stay still and tranquil. The fact that the clarity of the pond gave people a glimpse into who they thought Reuben might be was a mistake. No one really knew Reuben the way they thought they did. Reuben wouldn’t allow anyone to go near the water's edge, he kept them at the top of the knoll where they were only able to appreciate the sight of the clear pond, having never gone near it much less wetting their feet in it’s cool, soothing embrace.

Now and again, fish were sighted swimming about in the depths of Reuben’s pond, but like random thoughts that come and go, so too would the fish. Here one moment flitting about and gone the next.
One fateful afternoon as Reuben sat at the edge of the clear pond he noticed a young woman sitting on the other side. His heart leaped and a fever grew within him, he quickly rose to his feet and made his way to her. The girl saw his approach and rose to her feet in order to greet Reuben. Her hair fell carelessly around her shoulders as she extended her hand in a friendly salutation.

Rueben immediately put both of his hands around her throat and began to squeeze them together with every ounce of strength he could muster. No one was allowed to come anywhere near the crystal clear pond, no one. As the girl struggled to free herself from Reuben’s grip she managed to only call out his name once, “Reuben..”

The blood vessels in her eyes began to burst and the light slowly began to dim from within her; Reuben dragged the girl toward the pond and only cast her body into its shallow depths when he was absolutely sure that she was dead, but not before he pierced her lungs with a serrated kitchen knife. The silt and muck kicked up as Reuben took step by painful step into the pond where he let the girl's body float until the water filled her lungs and rendered her form to the bottom of his crystal clear pond.

….…

In his padded room at the state hospital, Reuben sits silently on the floor staring at the wall. His eyes are closed and his breathing is evenly paced. A doctor and two orderlies look on as Martha Ahakuelo sits cross-legged in front of her brother with her hands on her lap and a smile on her face.

“Reuben? Reuben? Reuben, it’s Martha; can you hear me?”

Reuben Ahakuelo doesn’t see his sister, he only sees the profane presence of someone who might sully the tranquility of his crystal clear pond. Before anyone in the room can think, he is on top of his sister and already has her throat in his hands. The orderlies tear Reuben away from Martha but not without a few scratches and bruised finger marks around her throat. Martha needs a minute or two to catch her breath and gather her thoughts.

“Where ever he is,” the doctor began, “he doesn’t want anyone there. He’s attacked the entire staff whenever we get too close to him. We appreciate your trying, but it’s best we leave him alone.”

Tearfully, Martha exits the room along with the hospital staff.

…...

Three years ago, Reuben had a nervous breakdown after he attacked a co-worker at the post office. On the advice of his sister, he checked himself into the state hospital for treatment not knowing that the facility was severely haunted by the ghosts of former residents and patients who took their own lives. Having not been in residence for more than a month, Reuben began to be inundated with the voices of the dead who were constantly communicating to him; while most of it was mindless dribble, he found that the majority of the otherworldly communications were precise and clear. They wanted him to commit murder on their behalf. They meant to use his mind and body to carry out their evil deeds. At some point, Reuben was able to create a mental barrier from which he would never return; and to which no one could enter. The crystal pond was that barrier; Reuben had complete control over it. It was the only way that he could stay sane.