After only a few weeks in our new house, I began noticing that
something felt... off. Every day,
there was something just a little out of the ordinary something
strangely unsettling.
Whenever I walked into certain areas of the house, especially the
basement or the backyard, I
couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching me. Every
time I turned around, expecting
to see someone standing there, no one was there. It was unsettling,
to say the least.
In the living room sat an old rocking chair where my daughter,
Kimberly, loved spending hours
with her favorite doll, Jasmine. She treated Jasmine as though she
were a real little girl, carrying
on long conversations and patiently waiting for the doll's replies.
Somehow, Kimberly always
14TAWANA BEECHAM
seemed to know exactly what Jasmine was "saying."
I have to admit...
It gave me the chills.
Still, kids have vivid imaginations, so I played along. The doll itself
didn't help matters. Jasmine
had one of those battery-operated voices that randomly said things
like, "I love you," "I'm
hungry," and a handful of other programmed phrases while her
eyes blinked beneath a wide,
eerie smile. She reminded me of that creepy doll, Chucky.
Sometimes I would catch myself staring into Jasmine's lifelike
eyes, convinced she was waiting
for me to look away so she could do something she wasn't
programmed to do like speak
complete sentences or climb out of that rocking chair on her own.
I laughed at myself, blaming my imagination.
Maybe Kimberly's constant conversations with the doll were
beginning to get inside my head.
After all, she would often answer Jasmine before I even had the
chance to ask what the doll had
supposedly said. More and more, I found myself scratching my
head.
Despite the strange feelings, I loved our new home. It was
spacious, peaceful, and surrounded by
beautiful wooded scenery. The only downside was how isolated it
felt. Once the sun started to
15JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO
set, the silence around the house became almost unsettling.
The children loved playing outside. My son and his father even
built Kimberly a beautiful little
playhouse where she could spend time with all of her dolls. Yet
none of the other dolls seemed to
matter anymore.
Kimberly only wanted Jasmine.
One evening, I went outside to call the children in for dinner. As I
approached the playhouse, I
heard voices.
Not one voice.
Two.
I stopped walking.
Kimberly was sitting inside with Jasmine, carrying on what
sounded like a real conversation.
"Kimberly," I called. "Who are you talking to?"
She looked up at me as if the answer should have been obvious.
"Jasmine."
I forced a nervous smile.
"Oh, really? And what did Jasmine have to say?"
Kimberly looked down at the doll before answering.
"She's telling me secrets about her old home... and she said she
never wants to go back there."
A chill ran through me.
16TAWANA BEECHAM
"Really?" I asked, trying to hide how uneasy I suddenly felt. "Why
doesn't she want to go
back?"
Before Kimberly could answer, I caught myself.
No.
This was ridiculous.
I knelt beside her and gently said, "Sweetheart, it's not nice to tell
stories like that. Dolls don't
talk. They're made of fabric and stuffing. They're toys for little girls
to dress up and play with."
Kimberly looked at me with complete sincerity.
"Mother... Jasmine is special. She talks to me when nobody else is
around."
I forced another smile, convincing myself my daughter simply had
an extraordinary imagination.
Children often blur the lines between fantasy and reality.
Still...
Something about Kimberly's attachment to Jasmine had begun to
concern me.
She refused to let the doll out of her sight.
That evening, while I prepared dinner, Kimberly happily helped
set the table. Everything seemed
perfectly normal until I noticed she had placed an extra plate on
the table.
"For who?" I asked.
17JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO
"For Jasmine," she answered matter-of-factly.
Normally, Kimberly kept the doll on her lap while she ate, but
tonight was different. Jasmine had
her own chair... her own plate... and her own place at the dinner
table.
I stared at the untouched plate and sighed.
"Kimberly, Jasmine isn't going to eat dinner."
"She might," Kimberly whispered.
At that moment, my concern turned into genuine worry.
What would come next?
Would Kimberly start asking me to enroll Jasmine in school? Buy
her clothes? Celebrate her
birthday?
The whole situation had become far more than innocent pretend
play.
As strange as it all seemed, I couldn't help wondering if Kimberly
was simply lonely. Maybe
having another sibling would give her someone real to love and
care for instead of pouring all of
her affection into a doll.
I already knew she would make an amazing big sister, just as her
older brother had been to her.
When the time was right, I planned to surprise the family with the
wonderful news during our
annual family picnic.
18TAWANA BEECHAM
For now, however...
Kimberly seemed perfectly content spending every waking
moment with her new little sister
Jasmine.
I decided I would announce the baby's arrival after dinner. It felt
like the perfect time to share
the news and see everyone's reaction.
Tommy had always loved being a big brother, so I already knew
he would be excited about
welcoming another baby into the family.
Kimberly...
I wasn't so sure.
Lately, all of her attention seemed to revolve around Jasmine.
Everywhere Kimberly went, Jasmine followed. Whether she was
brushing the doll's hair or quietly talking to her, Kimberly treated
her as though she were real. I smiled, reminding myself that
children have incredible imaginations. At least... that's what I kept
telling myself.
Still, something about that doll had begun to bother me.
It had slowly become the center of everything.
Sometimes I caught myself thinking about that old Child's Play
movie where the doll
unexpectedly came to life after the mother realized it didn't even
have batteries.
I laughed at myself for making the comparison.
19JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO
Real life wasn't a horror movie.
...Was it?
Even so, I couldn't ignore the strange little things that had been
happening around the house ever
since Jasmine became part of our family.
Nothing I could explain.
Nothing I could prove.
Just odd moments...
Small enough to dismiss.
But frequent enough to make me wonder.
Maybe I was simply overthinking everything.
Or maybe pregnancy hormones were making me more emotional
than usual.
Either way, I couldn't shake the feeling that, sooner or later...
The truth would reveal itself.
I only prayed my family would be ready when it did.
That night, after everyone had gone to bed, I quietly peeked inside
Kimberly's bedroom one last
time.
She was fast asleep, holding Jasmine tightly against her chest as
though she were protecting a
real little girl instead of a doll.
For a brief moment, I smiled.
Children often formed strong attachments to their favorite toys.
20TAWANA BEECHAM
Maybe I was worrying over nothing.
Maybe this was simply another phase of childhood that would
eventually pass.
Still...
I couldn't ignore the uneasy feeling growing deep inside me.
There was something different about Jasmine.
I just couldn't explain what it was.
As I quietly closed Kimberly's bedroom door, I paused and looked
back one last time.
The room was silent.
Peaceful.
Yet somehow...
It didn't feel that way.
I whispered a small prayer for my children before making my way
down the hallway.
Tomorrow would be another day.
Another opportunity to convince myself that everything I had
been feeling was nothing more
than stress...
And an overactive imagination.
Little did I know...
The strange events inside our new home were only beginning.