Evening falls very quickly in the narrow alleys of Venice. The alleys that are crowded with tourists all day suddenly become silent after sunset. The shadows of the old buildings tremble on the canal water, as if someone is slowly shaking them from below.
Elisa, a 27-year-old girl living in the small Italian town of Padua, had always been fascinated by old houses and their stories. One day she got a chance to live for three months in the old quarter of Venice. The house was very cheap — so cheap that Elisa herself was surprised.
While giving the keys, the landlord said only one thing —
"Don't open the upper window at night."
Elisa laughed. "Why? Is there a ghost there?"
The old landlord didn't answer. He just placed the key in Elisa's hand and said softly — "If the window opens on its own... don't try to close it."
That night Elisa laughed remembering it. But around midnight, suddenly cold air filled her room.
The window was closed. Yet the curtain was slowly moving.
Elisa got up and saw — fog had settled on the glass of the window. In the middle of the fog, someone had written a word with a finger —
"DOMANI"
In Italian, it means — "Tomorrow."
The next morning Elisa thought she might have had a dream last night. But when she went downstairs, the landlord froze as soon as he saw her.
"Did you see that word?"
The coffee cup almost slipped from Elisa's hand. "How do you know?"
The old man looked towards the window. "Because every new tenant sees it."
"And after that?"
He remained silent for a while. "The next night, a shadow of someone appears outside the window... who shouldn't be there at all."
That night Elisa decided not to go near the window. But at exactly 2:17 AM, there was a soft knock in the room.
Knock... knock... knock.
The sound was coming from the window. Elisa pulled the blanket over herself. A few seconds later, the knock came again.
Then a slow voice came — "Elisa..." She froze. The voice sounded exactly like hers.
As soon as morning came, Elisa told the landlord everything. This time the old man didn't even try to smile. He took out an old photograph of the house. The photo was almost fifty years old.
It had the same room. The same window. And a girl standing near the window.
Elisa looked at the picture carefully. The girl's face was blurry. But her dress, hairstyle and the small silver ring in her hand... everything was like Elisa's.
"Who is this?"
The old man said — "Her name was also Elisa."
Suddenly there was silence in the room. "She used to live in this house. One night she saw her name written on the window. The next day she left. Forever."
"Where?"
"No one knows."
Elisa looked at the picture again. Now something different was visible in the picture. Written on the window glass was — DOMANI. But this time there was another word below it. "OGGI." Today.
That night Elisa decided she would stay awake. Nothing happened at 2:17. 2:18... 2:19... Then suddenly her phone screen lit up on its own.
A new picture appeared on the phone. It was a picture of the same room. But in the picture, Elisa was sleeping on the bed. And someone was standing behind her near the window.
Elisa slowly looked behind. The room was empty. She started looking at the phone again. The picture had changed. Now the window was open. And a little girl was standing outside. The girl put her hand on the glass. Then one last word appeared on the phone screen — "GRAZIE." Thank you.
Suddenly the air in the room became normal. When Elisa woke up in the morning, the window was completely closed. There was no mark on the glass. But on the table was an old silver ring. The same ring she had seen on the girl's finger in the old photograph.
That day Elisa left that house forever. Even after many years, she never talks about that incident to anyone.
But in Venice, the window of that old house still opens on its own sometimes at 2:17 at night. And in the morning, only one word is visible on the glass — "DOMANI." Tomorrow.
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