Who Was It?

I had just started working in an old government office, close to the heart of KL - capital of Malaysia. The building must have been near to 50 years old, if not more. We have a flexible clock-in/out system, you'd either pick to be in group one (which clocks in at 7.30am and clocks out at 4pm) or group two (clock in at 8.15, clocks out at 4.45pm). We worked half-days on Saturdays. The office was in a 3-storey building. I'd reach the office at about 6.45am, clock-in, read the papers, check my mail, have a cup of coffee before starting work. I was usually alone in the office with only one or two other clerical staff as the other officers had various meetings and discussions. But the thing was, everyone, and I mean everyone, left before dusk. By 7pm, the place would usually be clear, which struck me as a little strange, considering the huge workload we all had.

I can't quite remember when I started hearing footsteps and things being moved above my head, maybe it was the second month I was there, but somehow I was always under the impression that the people in the office above us were doing some work.

I heard the noises almost all the time. In plain daylight when I was left alone in the office at lunch, when I was waiting for my (ex)boyfriend to pick me up from work, or waiting for a colleague to catch a ride with her, I kept hearing those noises all the time.

It wasn't until I got transfered out and came back to that office for a short visit that I casually asked a girlfriend about the office on the 4th floor. Everyone was going to move to a new building at that point, so she was busy packing and I was kind of lazily helping her. She dropped the file she was holding and turned to me with wide-open eyes. "There is no fourth floor," she said in a small, hushed voice. And with a shock, I realised that for the past 6 months, I've been climbing to the top-most floor of the building! It just never occured to me when those noises started that there was no one above us.

The thought of something or someone walking in the tiny space between my office ceilling and the roof still gives me shivers and goosebumps until this day, 5 years after I experienced it.