Natasha`s+February+Story

My name is Emily Johnson and I just moved to Willowgrove, BC, a small town almost right on the BC-Alberta border. I used to live in Vancouver and I miss living in the city. Something was always going on, while here in Willowgrove the most noise you hear is the newly fallen leaves and the chit chat of neighbors on their porches.

My family, my mom, dad, my sister Kim and myself, moved here because my parents, who are authors, thought a small town would be more “inspiring”. I had my doubts at first, but now that I’m here, I can see Willowgrove has its benefits.

The first one is that I met a girl named Jess Miller on the first day of school and we are now best friends. The second is that the houses here are very old. I don’t mean built in the 60’s or something, I mean they were built in the 1700’s. My house has a huge yard with a barn, an old outhouse and everything. I love it here. It’s certainly an improvement from that cramped apartment in Vancouver.

“EMILY!” I heard my mom call from downstairs, interrupting me from my day dreaming. Jess must have been here. I asked her to come over because last night I read an awesome story and I had a great idea.

I ran down the old, wooden, creaky stairs and saw Jess standing at the front door. Jess’s shoulder-length dark brown hair was pulled up in a pony tail that showed off her shorts and Willowgrove Lightning soccer tee-shirt. Even though Jess was short, she was dangerous on the soccer field! She always has tons of energy and she has a great sense of humor. Me, on the other hand, I love to read and write. I am terrible at sports, so I prefer to wear my blonde hair straight down with jeans, hoodies and Converse shoes. I guess Jess and I prove that opposites attract!

I followed Jess up the stairs. She’s been here many times in the last two weeks (when school started). She darted into my bedroom and sat down on my fleecy purple beanbag chair. I took a seat on my window seat. Jess looked up expectantly.

I held up the book I read last night. //Thrills and Chills//. Jess shuddered. “Ghost stories?” she asked suspiciously. “Well, I read this story last night.” I explained. Jess nodded. “And there was a story about a girl moving into an old hous e-“. “As old as yours?” Jess wondered aloud. I nodded. “Yes. Anyways, she looked everywhere and she found…….” I trailed on mysteriously. Jess looked scared but intrigued. “……..a secret passage!” I finished. Jess looked doubtful. Then she smiled. “Em, you think there’s a secret passage here, don’t you?” she said. I giggled. “Yes. And we are going to find it!” Jess continued to look doubtful, but she agreed to help me find the passage. I guess she thought this was just a game, but I honestly believed we’d find something.

First we looked in Kim’s room (she was at a friends, but if she knew what we were doing she’d kill us). I tapped every inch of the walls looking for a hollow sound while Jess inspected the floor for a trap door. We spent the day searching all the rooms in my house. At last we were back in my room. Jess continued to look for trapdoors. I tapped the walls. I went over to the last wall. //Tap tap tap//. The wall was hollow! Jess jumped up and started feeling the door for secret caches. We gave up after about ten minutes. “Cripes. It was a false alarm , ” complained Jess, leading me to believe this wasn’t a game anymore.

After Jess went home, it was only 3pm on a beautiful September day, so I decided to take advantage of the sun. Who knew how many more sunny days we had left. I went to the airy, sun filled barn and found a comfy spot to sit. I piled up some hay and took a seat. I had just opened the book when I heard a crash. I soon realized the crash was //me//! I had fallen into a deep dark pit. I looked up and saw the light of the barn. The pit was about 5 feet deep. I was about to scream then I realized something. I was home alone and I had discovered the secret passage! I climbed out. Luckily there was a hastily made wooden ladder leaning against the side of the pit. I ran to the house and grabbed my flashlight. I can’t believe I had ever called Willowgrove a boring, little town (well, with a population of just over 500 you can’t deny the little part).

I climbed slowly back into the pit and examined the floor. It was hard packed dirt. I looked like many people had walked on this floor before. I shuddered. Then I noticed the passage veered to the right. Toward the house. I kept walking slowly, afraid of what I might see. Soon, I came face to face with a dirt wall. After all this trouble, I’d come to a dead end! That’s when I noticed the passage made a sharp turn. I saw an old, wooden staircase, not unlike the one in my house. I climbed slowly, holding the railing that was attached to the dirty walls. Where was I? Somewhere in my house? At the top of the stairs, the passage became very narrow and the walls were wooden. I was sure I was in between the walls of my house. Then about a meter in front of me, there was a real dead end. I began to feel the walls. All the sudden something clicked and the wall swung open! I was staring at my own bedroom!

I gasped. The wall that swung open was the wall that had felt hollow this morning. This morning felt like years ago. I was terrified but I decided I wanted to explore the passage more carefully. I left the wall open, just in case and kept my flashlight pointed at the floor. I walked to just before the staircase and I saw it. A key. It was dirty and positively ancient. That was it. I decided something (or someone) had lived or lived in this passage. I screamed and ran back into my bedroom, slamming the wall shut as I left.

I ran all the way to the front hall and saw my mom, dad and Kim coming home. “Emily!” my mom exclaimed. “Are you all right?” my dad said, his voice full of concern. “Passage, ghost, key ! ” I stammered. My parents and Kim’s faces looked confused. I ran up to my bedroom and swung the wall open. Kim’s jaw dropped. “Oh my goodness!” my mom cried. “You found this? Today? By yourself?” my dad asked. Kim stepped inside and my parents followed. I clung to my mom’s arm as my dad searched the passage. “The passage is haunted!” I exclaimed. “Emily, you are 13 years old. You know perfectly well there are no such things as ghosts. Anyways, your scaring Kim , ” My mom scolded. My dad ignored her. “How did you find this?” he asked in disbelief. I explained what happened earlier. My parents were both shocked and they began to check the passage. 20 minutes later, they decided it was safe. Whatever. It wasn’t like I was ever going in there again.

My whole family, even 4 year old Kim, didn’t believe what I said about ghosts. But, even after their reassurance I knew I couldn’t sleep in my room tonight. I took my thick purple quilt and my stuffed hippo and snuggled up on the downstairs sofa. Sitting on the coffee table was a thick book. //The History of Willowgrove.// I was immediately interested and I picked up the book. The table of contents looked boring except the last chapter, Legends. I flipped to page 104 and realized it said the publishing date on the corners of each page, 1884. Years and years ago. I felt the goose bumps on my arms. I began to read the first legend aloud.

“Over 50 years before this book was written, there was a family that lived here in Willowgrove, the Smiths. Old Man Smith and his wife, two daughters and son lived in a small farm. Old Man Smith had so much debt with the local banker; he decided to move his family away from the town to start over, selling his farm and much of his belongings to pay the debt. Old Man Smith’s son, 17 year old James Smith, loved Willowgrove. A little too much. He refused to leave the town and when the day came, Old Man Smith, his wife and two daughters had to leave without him. He calle d, “ I ain’t leaving” from someplace between the house and barn..."

I stopped. The pieces came together in my head. The author didn’t describe were this farm was but I had a theory. My house! My barn! MY SECRET PASSAGE! I had to continue reading.

“50 years later, the story of James has turned into a ghost story. It is believed James haunts his old farm, searching for things to pay back the banker with.”

That was it. I knew it. The ghost of James Smith was haunting the secret passage. It all made sense. He was looking for thing to pay back the banker with. I thought of the things that I had "lost" since I moved here. A ten dollar bill, my fake diamond necklace and a few of the coins in my coin collection. James took them to pay the banker! I screamed a loud, bloodcurdling, giant-monster-about-to-eat-me type of scream. Since it was about 10:00 at night, my parents came running down the stairs. Mom was holding little Kim, who looked half asleep. I must have woken her. Normally, I would’ve felt guilty, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

“Em?” my dad said groggily.

Mom had her ‘you’re grounded young lady’ face on.

“What is the problem Emily?” she said sternly.

“G-g-g ghost s!” I stammered.

She sighed. “You woke up the whole house and probably the whole neighborhood over ghosts?” she asked.

I nodded. She seemed to sense something was bothering me, so she handed a tired Kim to my dad and he brought her back to bed.

“Now. What is the problem?”

I showed my mom the book. She read it and laughed.

“So, you think James is haunting the passage?”

“Yes, I’ve been hearing moaning and creaking coming from that direction since we moved here, ” I answered.

My mom groaned. “Old houses make noises when they settle. End of discussion.”

She went back upstairs and I finally fell into a restless sleep.

When I woke up that morning, I thought I was going to wake up in my old apartment in Vancouver, and this was just a dream. No such luck. I woke up to see the familiar tiny living room of my (haunted) house in Willowgrove. I sat up, remembering yesterday’s horrid events. I saw a note on the coffee table. My mom had said she and my dad had taken Kim to kindergarten registration and that Jess had called. Jess. She won’t believe the news! I called her and told her about the passage, purposely leaving out the part about James Smith haunting the passage. She said she’d be over as soon as she could.

"You actually found it?" asked Jess profoundly, you could hear the excitement, and amazement in her voice. “Well, I didn’t mean to find it, it just kind of, well, found me." It was nearly impossible for me to put it into words, it all happened so fast.

My mouth became dry and empty. I was thinking about the ghost, and how I was home, alone. I struggled for words.

"Come here, as soon as possible!" were the only words that managed to escape from my quivering mouth.

The call ended. The expression on my face changed from worry, to confusion, to restless. What a long day it had been. So much to think about. My mind wandered as I tried to fit together the jagged puzzle pieces of knowledge from that book together. The book said he wanted something, but what?

When Jess arrived, she was out of breath. She didn’t say anything she just ran up to my room.

“Where is it?” she asked suspiciously. I laughed and swung the passage open. Jess was speechless for once. I didn’t want to go in the passage but I led Jess in.

We walked to the stairs, when I finally told Jess what I read yesterday.

“Jess, I’m sorry but this passage is haunted by the ghost of James Smith ," I began as I explained the story.

Jess’s face went pale. So pale, I could see her ghost white face in the dim lighting of the passage. She ran the speed she usually reserves for the soccer field, toward my bedroom. She slammed the passage door shut, locking me in. I banged on the door.

“Jessica Miller, open the door!” I commanded. Jess opened the door a crack and jumped toward my bed.

“Do you want the ghost to kill me?” I asked her. Jess cracked a teeny smile, but it disappeared before I was even positive it was there.

“I have to leave and I can’t come back!” Jess quivered.

“Jess!” I shouted as she ran down the stairs, out the door and toward her own house.

She yelled something back to me. “You better leave that house Emily!” She said it so eerily it sounded like a warning.

I decided I didn’t want to stay home alone, so I walked the two blocks to Willowgrove Library to do research on, you guessed it, ghosts.

The librarian, who I knew from previous trips, was a short, white haired elderly lady with a friendly smile. She had once said she lived here her whole life so I wondered if she knew about any Willowgrove legends.

“Hello Ms…..” I read her name tag.”…Lee. I’m Emily and I’m researching Willowgrove legends.”

“Hello Emily, ” Ms. Lee said cheerfully. “Willowgrove legends, you say? You must have heard the story of James-.”

“Smith, ” I said. “I read the history of Willowgrove and I was hoping to hear more about that particular legend because I have a feeling the setting of that legend is my house!” I explained the secret passage and Ms. Lee listened with wide eyes.

“Emily, dear. That is quite the story. Where do you live?” she asked.

When I answered she gasped. “You might be right, but I suggest you don’t dig any deeper into that particular mystery. About 15 years ago, a girl about your age, Jennifer, Janet, Jamie or something, asked me the same questions. We haven’t seen her since. Wait! Jessica was her name.”

I shuddered, but didn’t plan to stop digging, no matter the risks. “Jessica’s my best friend’s name. Jess, actually.

Then, all the sudden, something clicked. Jess was afraid to come back to my house and 15 years ago, a girl my age named Jessica investigated the same mystery and hasn’t been seen since. I was beginning to think there was really a ghost in the passage and their name //wasn’t// James Smith.

I knew one thing. I had to see Jess.

“Thank you Ms. Lee” I called as I ran out of the library and toward Jess’s house. I realized something. I had never met Jess’s parents, nor had I visited her house. I didn’t know if she had siblings, pets, anything. The only things I knew about her were things from school; she loved soccer, hated math and adored the singer Justin Bieber. But, I knew nothing about her family or anything outside of school. I sucked in my breath as I jogged. Was Jess a ghost? // Bang bang bang // ! A tall woman opened the door with her small son clinging onto her leg. “Hello?” she asked. She looked confused but not unfriendly. “Can I see Jess please?” I asked politely. The woman looked puzzled. “Jess…….?” “Jessica Miller. Brown hair, about this ta ll,” I gestured to my shoulder. The woman looked at me like I was crazy. “The Miller family moved away 15 years ago, after their daughter, I can’t remember which one, Jessica or Samantha, died in there house. Nobody knows how, except one day the Millers just picked up and left, saying “She’ll come back someday!" They lived in the old farm up the road. The hairs on my spine stood straight up. Jess was a ghost. I was, am, best friends with a //ghost//! The woman invited me in, noticing my pale face. I politely denied. I ran home calling “Thank you!” over my shoulder to the woman.  I burst through the front door and ran up the stairs to the living room. My family was home. Kim was watching a movie and my parents were writing.  “Emily?” my dad asked absentmindedly. Neither him or my mom looked up.  I nodded. “Ghosts, ” I whispered.  “Emily, stop with the ghosts.” My mom pleaded.  I sat on the couch beside my dad and began to cry.  “What happened today, Em?” my dad asked, his voice full of sympathy. That didn’t make me feel any better. I needed //empathy//, not //sympathy//.  I explained today’s horrible events. “……………..and that’s how I know Jess is a ghost.” My mom gasped. “Jess Miller? Your best friend?” she asked. “Mom! She died 15 years ago! IN THIS HOUSE!” I cried. Kim was still engrossed in //Barney and Friends//, but my parents were in shock at my claims. My mom opened her mouth to say something but the doorbell rang. I looked outside. Jess’s familiar bike was lying on my front lawn. My mom looked outside and then looked at me. “Emily, Jess is not a ghost and that is final. There is no such thing as ghosts.” I watched helplessly as she went downstairs and opened the door. I heard snippets of their conversations. “…….ghosts, ” my mom said. Jess laughed. “….passage?” Before long they both ran up stairs. “Em!” called Jess “Let’s go up to your room.”

I stayed on the couch. “What happened to "I have to leave and I can’t come back"?” I asked.

Jess’s face remained expressionless. “Ghosts don’t exist. I was wrong. I was just……scared.”

“Hurry up Emily, ” my mom said. I turned to her, pleading with my eyes. She pointed up toward my room. “Go.”

I stood up and sighed. Wordlessly I walked pass Jess towards my room. She was grinning like a Halloween jack-a-lantern. When we were both up in my room, she closed the door. She sat on the floor, leaning against the passage wall. I sat on my bed, as far as possible from her.

“So. You think I’m a ghost?” Jess said, smirking.

I stared straight at her. “I have evidence.”

She smiled. “Go ahead.”

“First, you were scared of the passage and refused to come back after I explained the ghost story. Second, after you left, I visited the librarian, Ms. Lee and she told me a girl named Jessica had died investigating the same mystery. Lastly, I went to “your” house. I was told the Miller family left town after their daughter, Jessica died. In this house.”

Jess looked like she was going to cry. I thought she was going to deny what I had just said but, she sai d, “ 15 years ago, I lived here with my parents and my sister Samantha. I was 13. I found the passage, same as you, and then I read the story of James Smith in the book. I was the one who placed it on your table. Anyways, I read the story and I needed to know more. I went to the library and talked to Ms. Lee. But, I know it was just a ghost story. James Smith doesn’t haunt the passage. I do.”

I gasped. “B-b-b-ut………”

“Let me finish. I was exploring the passage and…….well, I don’t want to scare you, but let’s just say I never came out.”

“Why are you haunting the passage?” I asked.

"I died when I was 13! Because of this stupid secret passage!" Jess was practically yelling. "Is that fair!? No! It isn't! I'm here to get revenge!"

I felt my knees shaking. "What are you gonna do?"

Jess laughed. "You read ghost stories, what do you think? I'm gonna take over your mind!" Jess stood up and I watched in horror as she became see-through.

It felt like time had stopped. I wanted to scream but no noise came from my dry mouth. I wanted to run but my wobbly legs were glued to the floor. As Jess took a step forward, the passage door opened.

"LEAVE!" shouted Jess.

A man stepped out. He looked like he was in his late teens. I nearly had a heart attack. It was James Smith!

He grabbed Jess. "AAAAHHHHHHH!" she screamed. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed until she was gone.

I expected James to leave, disappear along with Jess, but he took a menacing step toward me. His glowing red eyes locked with mine. I screamed. He took another step toward me and I backed up, right into the corner.

He grabbed me arm and pulled me into the passage. The door slammed behind him. Then, it all went black.


 * Epilogue- **

When I woke up it was very dark. It took a second for me to realize I was in the passage. I stood up and realized I wasn't alone. When I saw the see-through figure next to me I remembered what happened earlier. Jess was a ghost and James Smith saved me. James noticed that I was up and stood up as well.

"Y'all okay?" he asked with a country accent.

I nodded. "What happened?"

James sighed. "I've been here for many, many years. I was peaceful as a ghost until 15 years ago. A family moved here and one of the girls, Jessica, took interest in my story. She investigated too far and died. Here in this passage." James paused. "She wasn't careful and a falling brick hit her in the head. She never woke up. What do y'all know? Before I knew it, she was here, a ghost in this passage, like me. Unlike me, she was evil. She was obsessed with taking over the mind of the next person that moved here. Only one family did. About 2 years after the Millers left the Smiths moved in. They weren't here long, just a few months."

I was staring at James. I believed he wasn't evil and I trusted him. "So, when I moved here, Jess posed as a regular girl and lured me in?"

James shrugged. "I tried my best to stop her, but I was too late. Emily, you're dead."

"N-n-n-n-n-no. No way. You stopped her! I saw!" I stuttered.

"You looked her in the eyes, Emily. That's how she killed you."

I took a deep breath and touched my transparent skin.

"But-" James was interrupted as I screamed. My feet left the floor and I started floating upwards.

James stayed on the ground. "I said I ain't leaving, and I ain't leaving," he said with a smile.

I continued to float up, higher and higher when I finally looked down. James waved good bye and finally, it all went black.

For good.

By Natasha Bieber :)