The Ordinary Bruja

There was a man. A ghost, maybe. Or something else entirely. Un Diablo perhaps?

I don’t know who he was, but I saw him clear as day.

He stood by my bed—or Mami’s bed. It used to be Mami’s bed. Not too long ago, it used to be her here. But this man, with a Panama hat, a guayabera, and crisp linen pants holding onto a crease they shouldn’t have, stared at me. It was like he knew me, like he was waiting for me to understand something I can’t quite grasp. He didn’t speak, but the air around him felt heavy, like it carried the weight of secrets I wasn’t ready to uncover.

What did Mami say about people who are about to die? They come to you to say goodbye. Like she had done to me when she showed up in my dorm room that night. Even though I shrugged off her and Mamá Belén’s superstitions, I knew when Mami came to visit me that night, I needed to catch a flight.

But who could this man be? I’ve run out of family. Unless he’s a distant uncle still living in the Dominican Republic whom I haven’t met. It could be… His eyes were like mine. They bored through me, making me feel less than.

A restless energy soars through me at the thought. I need to extend my legs on the hill.

What did Mamá Belén say about spirits? That they show themselves when they’re tied to something unfinished. But what if whatever he’s tied to has something to do with me? I don’t know if I’m ready to find out.

– Marisol

🎇 Step into Marisol’s world—The Ordinary Bruja is a story of identity, magic, and self-discovery.