The Local 58 News breakroom hummed with a familiar buzz of fluorescent lights, the ugly brown tile and bland white walls a constant reminder that we could barely afford to renovate the place after buying this burnt out building. We took any freebies local suppliers would give us and apparently shit brown wasn't flying off the shelves.
A couple of the interns were huddled around a table, some obnoxious youtuber’s voice emitting from a phone’s speaker.
“WHAT'S UP GUYS! GhostHuntar420 here, back at it with another urban exploration. Last night we broke into the Local 58 News building. Legend has it that the station has been haunted ever since they renovated the building.”
“This place used to be a dance club before a fatal fire tragically took four lives back in 1974, the building sat vacant for almost three decades until the local news purchased the property and disturbed the spirits that reside here.”
“The place is super lame now, all of the original club space has been converted into a news room and a pretty bland broadcast desk. Probably no budget to fix the place up nice, who gives a shit about local news when we have Youtube. REMEMBER TO SMASH that like button.”
“Oddly enough they left the disco ball hanging in the news room. Rumors have spread that this last remaining relic of the club is keeping the spirits tethered to the space.”
“GUYS! We captured irrefutable proof that one of the club patrons is haunting the space to this day. Here is the footage.”
I snuck up behind the interns and peered at the phone screen. Some copyright free spooky music played as a red circle appeared and tracked an “orb” floating from one end of the news room to the other.
The interns gasped and pointed. I was poised to crush their delusions.
“Guys, first off I hope neither of you have lost your key. Clearly we have a security breach… second this punk just caught some car headlights reflecting off the disco ball.”
The interns turned to me with sheepish looks. I walked away deciding I'd rather eat at my desk.
With the stupid disco ball dangling over my head, I found myself making a mental checklist of new tasks I now have to complete as the building manager.
-Change the locks
-Look into taking legal action against GhostHuntar420
-Remove the disco ball
After gathering supplies from the local hardware store and finishing up some paperwork the work day was shot. I decided lock swaps and ball removal could wait until the next day.
In the morning I arrived at the station. The news room was in a frenzy, this was not a common occurrence at sleepy old Local 58.
I checked my email for the daily updates to see if I could figure out what everyone was all worked up about. The day's top story caught me off guard.
“Urbex Youtuber, found dead in home after releasing footage from Local 58.”
I quickly read the story notes. Apparently GhostHuntar420 was found by their mom. During the police interview the mother reported hearing stomping and shuffling from their room late into the night.
Autopsy notes cited the cause of death as a mix of severe exhaustion and dehydration.
In a state of shock I looked above me… that ball had to come down immediately.
If the rumors keep drawing idiot kids to break in it will become a legal nightmare… especially when they drop dead after broadcasting their activities in the building.
There was no way to safely remove the disco ball during the work day, I would have to wait until everyone left for the night. A sense of dread washed over me at the thought of being alone in this damn building.
I killed time by changing the locks and updating some of the bathroom plumbing that I had been neglecting for weeks.
The sun had set by the time the last of the journalists and broadcast crew filtered out.
It was just me, a hacksaw and the Disco ball. Desks moved and floors covered in tarps I climbed the ladder.
I sawed away at the pole that secured the ball for what seemed like a half hour. I produced plenty of noise but made no real progress. It looked like it was time for power tools.
It was a terrible idea.
Cordless saw powered on. I brought the blade to the metal.
There was an instant flash of ethereal light, the saw kicked back and I nearly smashed it into the disco ball below.
The light grew in intensity as the ball began to spin, casting shimmering dots along every surface of the news room.
My mind was overtaken with an overwhelming urge to move my body, not just move, but dance!
I leapt from the ladder with flair, landing on the tarp below, saw still in hand.
Against my will my body began to groove to an imaginary beat. It was so… funky.
Hours passed, I was becoming delirious as the disco lights sparkled and a voice entered my mind.
“Disco never dies!”
The sudden intrusion into my psyche startled me. I had forgotten the saw was still in my hand and in a fatal error I jerked my hands up to cover my ears, dragging the blade across my neck.
As I lay bleeding onto a tarp below the alluring light of the disco ball I heard the front door open. Thank god I left it unlocked. Whoever just came in could save me.
My remaining blood ran cold as I heard what would likely be the last words I would ever hear.
“WHAT'S UP GUYS! ExplorationNation36 back at it with another banger video. Today we explore the last building that GhostHuntar420 filmed before their untimely demise!”
As the youtuber intruder rounded the corner the disco ball ceased moving and the ethereal light dimmed.
Toes still tapping to the imagined beat I felt my soul leave my body.