Stan was raised by his grandmother, even though his mother was very much alive. To be fair, his mom was wonderful—beautiful and kind—but she worked as a singer at the local concert hall, which meant she was rarely home. Her frequent absences were the reason she and Stan’s father had separated, leaving his care to Grandma.
For as long as Stan could remember, whenever he approached their block of flats, he would look up and see his beloved grandma standing in the fourth-floor window, eagerly waiting for his return. And every time he left, she’d wave him off from the same spot, and he’d always wave back.
But when Stan turned twenty-five, his grandmother passed away. Approaching his building without seeing her familiar silhouette made him feel unbearably sad and empty. The apartment felt hollow too, even when his mother was home. They had lost the ability to communicate deeply, having no shared interests or topics. They didn’t discuss everyday issues anymore and seemed like strangers living under the same roof.
A couple of months after Grandma’s death, Stan decided to move to another city. He held a good job in IT, a field with opportunities everywhere. He found a solid company online that offered a high salary and covered rental accommodations.
Stan’s mother welcomed the news. After all, her son was grown and needed to carve his own path independently.
From home, he only took his grandma’s favorite mug as a keepsake and a few clothes for the journey. As he left with his suitcase, Stan glanced one last time at the kitchen window but saw nobody there. His mother didn’t even come to the window to wave goodbye.
A taxi quickly took him to the train station, and soon he was settling into an upper bunk in a sleeper carriage. The train arrived punctually the next morning, and Stan found the office where he’d work. After setting things up, he started exploring potential apartments he’d found online.
While navigating through the unfamiliar city with his phone’s GPS, he noticed a block of flats that looked remarkably like his own. Though many of these buildings share similarities, something about this one felt deeply familiar, likely because the windows were painted the same peculiar turquoise color.
Stan veered off his path, drawn to the building. He wanted to stand there and remember his grandmother. As he drew closer, he instinctively looked up at what would have been his kitchen window…and froze. His mind spun with disbelief, for he could clearly see his grandmother’s silhouette in a fourth-floor window. His heart raced wildly.
In his right mind, Stan knew this was impossible. Shaking his head, he turned away, but his heart pleaded, “Stop! It’s her!” Giving in, he looked up again. There she was, standing by the window.
Stan couldn’t resist. With his suitcase, he dashed towards the building and entered the unlatched entrance, climbing quickly to the fourth floor. At the door, he hesitated before ringing the bell.
A sleepy girl in a robe opened the door, staring at him with confusion, “Who are you looking for?”
“My grandmother,” Stan stammered in disbelief.
“Gran?” she repeated, then shouted inside, “Mum! Someone’s here for you!”
The woman approached as her daughter curiously eyed Stan. His heart pounded as a similarly sleepy woman, around fifty, appeared.
“Who’s asking for me?” she queried gently.
“He called you Grandma,” the girl laughed.
“Wait,” whispered Stan, “I wasn’t looking for you… In your window… My grandmother… I saw her there.”
“Are you some kind of hallucinating?” the girl scoffed. “We don’t have any grandmas here, just me and my mum.”
“It’s fine, I’m sorry… I must’ve been mistaken,” Stan mumbled as his head spun. He took a step back, lowered his suitcase, and leaned against the wall. “Let me catch my breath, and I’ll leave.”
Before the daughter could shut the door, her mother stepped in.
“You okay, young man?” she asked with concern.
“I’m fine,” Stan fibbed softly, “Don’t worry about me.”
“I think your blood pressure’s through the roof,” she insisted, “Face is as red as a tomato… Come in.”
The woman gently guided him inside, instructing her daughter, “Vera, grab his bag and fetch the blood pressure monitor. Now!”
Eyes wide with surprise, Vera did as told. The woman seated Stan on a couch and silently checked his blood pressure, then issued further commands to her daughter who watched the scene with jaw-dropped curiosity.
“Fetch my bag. It has the meds…”, then she turned to Stan, “I’ll give you something just in case, and we’ll call an ambulance…”
“No ambulances, please!” he murmured fearfully. “I’m just off the train… I don’t know anyone here… Haven’t even rented a place yet…”
“Listen to my mom,” Vera interjected, “She’s a doctor, trust her!”
“Are you not from around here?” asked the woman.
Stan only nodded, pleading again, “Please, no ambulance… Just started a job here… I can’t miss it…”
“Quiet now!” The woman administered the medicine. “Ever had these spells before?”
“No,” he whispered.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-five…”
“Heart issues?”
“Honestly, I’m healthy…”
“Healthy, are you? Then why’s your blood pressure sky-high at 180 over 100?”
“Must be stress.”
“What are you stressed about?”
“I’m telling you. I saw my grandmother at your window… She was looking at me.”
“Your grandmother?”
“Yes. But she passed away two months ago. Any chance there’s an elderly lady here?”
“You’re an odd one…,” Vera said with a smile. “I told you, it’s just us. But to ease your mind, I’ll check the kitchen.”
With that, Vera skipped to the kitchen and within moments shouted, panic-stricken: “Mom! What is this?!”
Back in the hall, she stood, holding an unfamiliar mug. “Where did this come from, mom? We’ve never had mugs like this!”
“Oh…” Stan blinked, “That’s my grandmother’s mug. I took it… But it should be in my suitcase. This is strange…”
“Where’s your suitcase?” The two women looked at him bewildered, trying to make sense of it.
“Right there…” He nodded to his travel bag by the door, “The mug should be inside…”
Together, they rummaged through his belongings but found no second mug.
That incident has remained a mystery for Vera’s family. Particularly for her mother, who, just a few months later, became Stan’s mother-in-law. Indeed, it was a true mystery.
