9: Part One: Haunted House

Another Prank Call

Saturday, November 1st. 5:49 pm.

The sky veers different colors as the night unfolds. Neither Alex nor I brought flashlights, considering we didn't plan on staying out this late. So I resort to using my phone light instead. The trek back to the main road prolongs without a word spoken between us. That and Alex having to lean on me for support as we walk makes it a lot harder to stop and check the time. I consider calling for a ride regarding Alex's wellbeing, but I can't think of a good reason that justifies breaking into an abandoned house on a closed-off road. If either of our fathers hears about this little stunt, I'm sure I won't hear the end of it. Alex, I'm not so sure. His father already sees me as a nuisance, but I can't let all the blame fall onto him.

We make it to the top of Brickfield road unscathed for the most part. As Alex straightens up, my hold on him lessens, but he still has this blank look that only worries me more.

"You going to make it, soldier?" I give him a soft little smirk. To my relief, he mirrors my smile and nods.

"Yeah, I think I'll be alright. What would I do without you, Miss Monster?"

I let my arm fall from his waist, awkwardly putting some distance between us, seeing as he can walk without my support. I don't think he seems bothered by the action, thankfully. "I don't know," I shrug.

"You'd probably be a caretaker for fungus babies?"

He sneers at that, "That's disgusting."

"Perhaps take a shower then, and wash all that gunk off yourself. You smell worse than mold, and now thanks to you, I'll probably have to burn these clothes, too."

Alex catches a whiff of his mildew-covered shirt, then sneezes. Right away, he starts wheezing and coughing again, making me wince.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to send you back into a coughing fit," I admit while patting his back. "That was meant as a joke to get you to laugh, but now I regret opening my dumb mouth." I take out the water bottle again, and this time he takes it, downing the remainder in three long gulps. It doesn't stay down. Alex chokes up water and hunches over, wheezing and hacking until thick yellow saliva is dripping from his lips. I hesitate with my hand hovering over his back, unsure how to help. Seeing yellow drool seeping out of his lips almost makes me gag. I snap myself away from looking any longer. The smell surely isn't helping. I hear him spit at the ground a few times before coughing up a loogie. Only then does he straighten back up again.

"Well, that was unpleasant," Alex blurts before clearing his throat.

"Unpleasant is one way to put it."

The fool has the nerve to snicker as if he didn't just hack out a lung. "You really should see a doctor, Alex. The only normal yellow liquid that should be coming out of you is your damn piss."

That raises a brow and earns me a wicked stare as he cocks his head, "The only normal liquid, huh? Do you want to elaborate on that?"

My cheeks are burning as I bite hard on the inside of my lip. This boy is going to give me a serious case of raging hot flashes, Jesus Christ. "That is not-I said yellow liquid! I don't have to explain myself to you, sir! I know what I said!" I whirl around and begin heading for the park. Alex wastes no time in catching up to me, surprisingly.

I feel his hand brush my shoulder then nothing, "I'm only teasing. Besides, I do feel a lot better thanks to you. I owe you one."

"You're just lucky that I can carry your little twig self. And I'm being nice when I tell you that."

"Ah, and lucky I am to have such a strong and fearless Amazonian by my side in times of peril."

"We're you dropped on your head as a child?"

"Quite possibly."

We both start laughing simultaneously. This time it doesn't send him into another coughing fit, which eases my nerves. I guess whatever mucus he hurled up was causing his ailment. Hopefully, he doesn't have any lingering side effects.

"Still, see a doctor just in case."

"That might be hard to explain to my dad, but I'll consider it."

I squint at him while giving off a look that I hope gets the message across. Alex only grins, and we continue walking. We reach the park in the center of town just before the street lamps turn on. Snow as soft as light rain starts falling from the sky adding to the silence. It defiantly feels close to ten, which would be shitty on my part. My exaggerated suspicions become clear when I check the time on my phone.

Six twenty-four.

Christ, I didn't realize it would take that long for us to get back.

"It's late," I mumble, not looking forward to an audience with my wrathful sister. "I should get back."

I slip my phone back into my pocket just as Alex slows. Just before we split ways, he surprises me with another hug. This time the hug lasts longer. In any other scenario, I know I wouldn't mind this. However, the smell of his clothes from the fungus makes this situation very uncomfortable. Not to mention that It feels like my entire body is burning up the longer I stay in his arms. I think about breaking away first, but the thought of embarrassment prevents me from doing so.

I think he senses my tension and lets go of me, apologizing, "I'm sorry. I almost forgot about being covered in fungus..."

"It's ok. Maybe if you weren't wearing those clothes," I blurt out. It feels like it's getting hotter, and the cold does nothing to ease my nerves. I can feel the heat in my cheeks rise and spread across my neck at the sight of his widening smile. If I could teleport home already, I would. I never want to feel awkward around Alex, and damn these hormones for making me feel this way.

"That's not what I meant, smartass."

"I'll see you tomorrow then? Preferably with not these clothes?"

I shoot a slap at his arm which he springs away like a cat to dodge it, "You better be wearing something! Don't think I won't spray you with my hose!"

His eyes widen at that, but by the deep redness in his cheeks and large grin, I immediately want to murder him.

"You sicko! Go home!" I bark and shove him towards his destination. My flustered self only fuels his amusement but he does as I expect. I pray the cold masks the fact I'm turning redder by the second.

His smirk lingers unfazed,

"Goodnight Miss. Monster."

I roll my eyes and wave him off, "Yeah, yeah, goodnight, Mr. Sarcastic. Now go home."

"Alright, I'm going. I'm gone!" His laughter tails home with him down the street. I watch him until he's through his front door. The distance now calms me long enough to shake off whatever spell of emotions that came pouring out of me. Alex is my best friend, but he has a life outside of hanging around with someone like me. It's just in my head, I keep telling myself. Whatever you're thinking Shae White, it's only you overthinking it, that's it. Alex has no romantic feelings for me. He just cares a lot as any good friend would.

I check my phone again, remembering that Eva is without a doubt home by now. I dread having to deal with whatever bullshit waits for me inside. She's going to be furious. I know it. And I don't blame her.

I steady my breathing while counting my steps towards the house. Any distraction will do if it means it'll clear my head. I make up the driveway and to the front door before hesitating with the knob in my fist. I try to come up with something to say before stepping inside, but I doubt being apologetic is going to fix what had gone down between us last night. I run through the scenarios in my head, trying to decide which one would have some form of a happy ending. But I can't think straight. And every time I think about how unfair it is for dad to lie to her, I get so angry that I don't even want to stay in the same house. Here or not, it doesn't matter. But he's not the only one who's lying to her. I close my eyes and rest my skull against the doorframe, holding back from ramming my head through it instead. What do I even say to her? What am I even doing anymore?

"You're not a good sister," I tell myself.

Maybe what we need is time, and this will all blow over hopefully just before dad gets home. If I can count myself lucky.

With a sigh, I muster up the courage to push open the door and step into the house. Darkness greats me before flicking on the light switch. This is how I left it, I tell myself. I wonder if Eva is still avoiding me. Her note did say not to come looking for her, and in all fairness, I don't plan on hunting her down. If she isn't home then I can relax, or at least try to.

She'll be fine. It's only fifteen minutes to seven. Maybe she wanted to eat dinner with her friend, whichever friend that is. I only know a few names of the kids she liked to hang around with. Maybe I should call the one down the block and see if she's there...

Forget it, Shae. You'll only make matters worse. I drop my bag onto the couch and head for the kitchen to make myself a quick dinner. I'm not up for stuffing my face with junk food tonight, or anything filling. My stomach feels queasy. I think about what Alex coughed up back down the road and grimace. Immediately I lose my appetite and leave the kitchen, not bothering to turn any of the lights off downstairs. I head for my room. For whatever reason I sneak a peak outside my window, not expecting to catch a figure staring back at me from behind the dark maple. I flinch and stagger away, seeing those same red eyes reflect back off our porch lights. Was that...no! No...no, that couldn't be real. I'm just seeing things...

Quickly I draw back the curtains and search the yard, but those red eyes are gone along with the boy possessing them. I must have imagined it. It simply doesn't make any sense, unless it's the fungus from that house... Could that be making me hallucinate? I was so sure before... The only certain thing I'm sure of now is that I need to get some sleep, else I may start seeing things inside my own house. Christ I'm starting to sound like my own mother...

Removing my glasses, I cup my whole face in my hands and groan out my annoyance. It isn't real. None of this is happening. When I look back out at the yard, I find no one standing out there. There is only the trees and the snow darkening by the impending nightfall. Even if there was something there, it's getting dark outside and I much prefer not to go wondering out with a flashlight looking for shadows. I take a deep breath and head back to my bed to curl up with my pillows. Sleep finds me sooner than I realize, and before long I wake up to the sound of my clock ticking. It's the only noise in the room, and possibly the whole house, and it's usually loud. But maybe it's all in my head. And maybe this is just the start of another blizzard dream.

It feels like a weight infused itself into my very bones as I stagger out of bed. I hear a soft thud as something hits the floor, and bend down to look for it. It's too dark to see anything, but I don't even bother going to turn on my lamp. My hand feels around my carpet until eventually, I feel my phone laying face down under my bed. I pick it up and check the time.

One twelve in the morning.

Well at least I don't think I'm still dreaming. It feels like I've slept for maybe five minutes, but six hours? I guess I needed the rest. Sliding my phone back into my pocket, I rub my eyes and step into the hallway to pry into Eva's room. The door is closed, making me suspect she came home. I struggle to find the nerve to knock, even as I hold my hand raised ready to do so, but I just stand there alone in the hall with my thoughts.

A low creaking sound coming from downstairs draws my attention. It sounds like the door to my dad's study. It should be locked, not like we would have any reason to break in knowing dad is the only one with a key. And if Eva did somehow find a way inside, what reasoning did she have to go in there? I certainly don't have one.

I let my arm fall to my side. This whole situation feels ridiculous. Hell, I think I'm being ridiculous overthinking about it. I shake my head and decide to open my sister's door. Her lamp is off so I'm forced to move through her room in complete darkness while avoiding toys left scattered on the floor. To my surprise, I don't step on any plushie or kick one of her chair sets that's usually flipped over or resting on it's side. Especially after the fight we had, I expected her room to be the fallout of her destruction. I turn on her lamp light once by her bed and find her room completely spotless and well organized. It throws me off guard, and only raises more questions. The only thing missing now is Eva. She isn't in her bed. Her blankets and sheets are left folded over and untouched. Not even a wrinkle in her pillow to suggest she'd ever fallen asleep here last night. She's never made her own bed in the eight years she's been alive. It was always our mother, before I started doing it. I try not to panic over impossible speculations as I attempt to think of a logical explanation for all of this. I close my eyes and breath.

She's probably still at her friend's house and spent the night. She's done that before, sleeping over without telling me. Regardless, it would have been nice to have heard from her about this. I decide it's too early to call around, and instead, I leave her room exactly as I had come in before heading downstairs. The lights were still on. I bite back a sigh and decide to watch a few rerun episodes of a tv show I haven't seen in year's instead of worrying over Eva. I snatch a few treats from the green cabinet in the kitchen to snack on as the hours' tick by.

Two became three, then four, then six... I must have fallen asleep again because when I open my eyes the tv is off and the clock above the door read eight O`clock. I don't remember turning it off, but then again I don't recall falling asleep. And somehow I managed to make my body feel even worse.

I glance around for my phone only to find it back on the floor. After muttering a few curse words and retreating it, I look up the number for the neighbor down the road and make a call. The phone rings for longer than expected, but it is still considered early. Just as I'm about to end the call, someone picks up.

"Hello?" Mrs. Byerly answers.

"Um, Hi, Mrs. Byerly? It's Shae White. I'm sorry if I woke you-I'm just calling to see if my sister was around with your daughters Lynsey or Lena?"

"I'm sorry Shae, but the girls have been at their grandmother's for the weekend, and I haven't seen her. Is she missing?" Her words hit me with alarm, and for a moment I start assuming the worst scenarios running feral in my head to be true.

"Oh, no-no, she's not missing," I do my best not to sound panicked as I fill in a lie, "She's probably with Kattie then. Sorry again Mrs. Byerly for disturbing your morning." I hang up the phone before she could respond and pause. Where the hell would Eva go? I know she's angry with me, but Christ.

I promptly search every room upstairs and down while calling out her name. There's no response. The door to my dad's study is open when it should always be closed. I swear if she's been hiding in there this entire time...

Rushing over, I swing open the door fully while flipping on the light switch. I halt dead in my tracks. Eva is nowhere in sight. Dad's study isn't a large room, with very few places for an eight year old to cram herself into to hide. It's half the size of our bathroom. So why the hell is his door open if she isn't inside?

"Eva?" I call out again. I back out of the room and look under the staircase where the door to the basement is. Eva is terrified of the basement so I'm positive she wouldn't be down there. Still, against my better judgment, she's proved me wrong before.

I flip the switch and open the door. The light dangles further down the steps leaving my descent shrouded in shadow.

"If you're down there Eva, this isn't funny."

Still no response. A bad feeling is festering deep in my gut. I bite my lip. This is nonsense. Taking several steps down I notice nothing out of the ordinary as I glimpse around the left side of the basement before stepping over to the corner wall. My bare feet step quietly over the concrete flooring, but feels like im walking on ice. Deciding to be quick about this, I head around the corner wall. On the far right side lies our hot water tank and across from that is an old sink to which the garden hose connects. Besides all the metal shelving lining the walls and plastic bins against the left wall, there aren't many places to hide down here. Unless she crawled through the small door that leads underneath the house. It's a tight crawlspace that's full of cobwebs, dirt, and who knows what else. She hates tight spaces, and I sure as hell am not crawling through one full of spiders to drag her out. If she was in there.

I head back upstairs to reread her note left in the kitchen. I read the note over and over letting each sentence sink in. I can sort of understanding not telling me which friend's house she'd be at if she didn't want me to come looking for her. But why would she tell me she be home for dinner when I can't find any proof of her ever coming home?

I give Alex a call, but it doesn't go through. I try again, but like before it goes straight to voicemail.

"Really Alex?" I figured he'd be up by now. It feels odd to call 911, maybe a bit too much actually, but I don't know where my sister is. I think about calling again, but I decide to hold off. So I slip on my boots and throw on my coat to head outside. I've never done anything like this before, so running straight into the police station downtown in pure panic this early in the morning raises some heads. Especially the woman at the front desk.

Noticing my distress, she calls for the chief after explaining to her that my sister is missing. He's the last person I wanted to talk to, but who else can I go to?

Police Cheif Henry Larson walks out from his office looking visibly annoyed. His long sleeved blue shirt and pair of black trousers look recently cleaned and ironed flat. Beneath his black cap were thick curls of brown hair that looked cut and combed back. Even his black boots look like they've been shined recently. His entire demeanor radiated power and authority. Hard pale eyes focus solely on me, and nothing about them spoke kindly. Something has surly ravaged his morning.

Before I'm able to open my mouth, he takes a long drag from the warn cigar on his lip before querying,"What is it this time, Sharon?"

I speak for her, "I haven't seen or heard from my sister since yesterday morning. She left this note saying she'd be back before dinner," I hand it to him, "but she never came home, and I already called Mrs. Byerly to see if she was there with her daughters, but she hasn't been there at all. I don't know where she would have gone, but she's never been gone this long."

"Alright, is there any reason why your sister would run off without telling you where she was going? Maybe another fight?" He raises a brow knowingly, and I can't help but glare.

How dare he try to shift the blame on me. I hate knowing that he knew about our fights, but this isn't entirely my fault here, "Yes, we had another fight, but this isn't like her to just disappear. She always comes home."

"What was this time? We're you fighting over a bedtime schedule, your sister being left home alone, or just about your mother?"

"Henry," The woman at the desk interrupts in warning. He doesn't flinch.

I hold my tongue, even if I all I want to do right now is scream at him for bringing her up, "It doesn't matter what the fight was about. I'm telling you there is something wrong. It's not like her to up and disappear like this."

"As I remember you used to pull the same stunt, running off into the woods late at night and staying there until dusk after a argument with your mother."

I scowl at him in warning , but he keeps pushing on.

"You nearly gave the whole town a scare when you did it the first couple of times, but enough is enough kid."

My skin prickles with furious heat, but mostly embarrassment as I strive to explain, "She isn't me-"

"Then you should have nothing to worry about," he stops me short. "Now I suggest you go home kid. We've had enough prank calls this morning, and I don't need to send out a search party for a little brat who's most likely cooling off somewhere away from her sister."

My heart races that much faster, letting every scenario of making him regret talking down at me play over in my head. Calm down, Shae...

I bite my lip stubbornly,"I saw a woman in my room the night after we had our fight. I thought it was a dream because she sounded like my mother and I was half asleep, but..." I let out a slight shudder, "I've been hearing strange sounds, and I keep seeing this boy."

Chief Larson sighs through his nose as he takes another drag of his cigarette. After a moment he leans against Sharon's desk and waves for me to continue.

"I saw him the night of Halloween, and I thought he was wearing a costume or at least all painted up. I saw him in a house..." I hesitate, remembering where we all were.

"You saw this boy in a house?" Again his brow raises, then he scoffs at me. "Let me guess, you leave your sister home again to see a boy?"

"No! No, that's not at all what happened! Are you even listing to me? She was with me that night," I glare at him. "I took her out to go trick or treating with some friends and they took us to see a haunted house. And that's where I saw the boy with grey skin with red eyes. He wasn't wearing much of anything besides maybe ripped up pants and a tattered shirt."

Something flickers behind his eyes, a spark of interest maybe, but I can't say for certain.

"He wasn't dressed for the cold that night, and I saw him again last night standing behind one of our trees in the front looking up at me from my bedroom window. I thought I was just seeing things because I was tired. And I haven't even looked around for tracks to be sure he was there..." I groan, "but I doubt they're still there from all the snow falling..."

He takes another long drag before replying, "Go home kid."

I open my mouth to immediately refuse, but he adds, "Go home. If it makes you feel any better I'll take a drive around town." He stunts his cigar on the ashtray laying on Sharon's desk, and says, "Until then, I want you to go home. Maybe tell your friends to quit with all the prank calling unless they'd like to sleep in a jail cell tonight."