A Goth, A Geek, and a Ghost

Chapter I: Casper the Not-So-Friendly School

     For being named after the friendly ghost, Casper High didn't have very many friendly ghosts. In fact, it only had one, and even he had his unfriendly moments. For example, presently, Daniel Fenton was glaring daggers into the back of his English teacher's skull. It wasn't for any particular reason, of course. Today was just one of those days where Danny wanted nothing more than to go home and collapse on the couch, ignoring any homework or studying he had been tasked with in order to finally catch up on a week's worth of missed sleep. There had been a rise in ghost activity recently, setting all of Amity Park on edge. Between normal teenage angst and dealing with a new enemy after every turn, the kid was completely and utterly exhausted.

     You, on the other hand, had an abundant supply of spunk and enthusiasm. Most kids would dread the first day at a new school, petrified by the unfamiliar faces and piles upon piles of catching up to do. Not you. You had found that, in situations like this, it was better to pretend fear didn't exist. After all, it had worked the first fourteen years of your life, it surely had to work now, right? The principal seemed decent enough, as far as high school principals go, and your locker was pretty close to most of your classes. Now all you had to do was actually get there.

     Simple.

     You decided to start by taking a left, and then navigating from there. It's not like they could count you as absent. You weren't even in the system yet. Therefore, you took your time as you meandered the twisting corridors, observing the various posters and advertisements that littered the off-white walls.

     In truth, Casper High was intimidating. Not in the way a high-class prep school would be: burdened by the fear of validation and unachievable grade standards. No, Casper high was intimidating in a way that sent a shiver up your spine. The hallways remained frigid at all times, and there was a constant hum in the air that seemed to generate from nowhere in particular. With every empty hallway the feeling of being overcrowded became heavier, like there were too many entities in one building; There were too many people, yet not enough breath. Overall, it gave you the creeps, as was to be expected in a place like Amity Park. It was no secret the town had a bit of a...ghost problem. When you first heard about the specter situation, you couldn't decide whether to laugh or grimace. Your parents had said it with such straight faces, it had taken you a few moments to realize they were dead serious. Pun intended.

     Was the entire town crazy, or were you just in denial?

     It wasn't until after a few late nights of personal research that you came to the conclusion that the town was, in fact, not full of loons. It was, indeed, haunted. Every street corner seemed to have some ghost event attached to it, whether from an attack or a simple sighting. You had stumbled upon AfterDark.com early into your "investigations." It had been thrown together by some teenager named Tucker about a month ago, in order to archive some of the ghost sightings in Amity Park, specifically around Casper High. A few of the ghosts had even been given names: the Lunch Lady seemed to be one of the earliest sightings, dating back to a few months ago. She didn't seem very dangerous from the website's description, though. There were some other ghosts mentioned as well, such as Ember. She seemed to be a sort of sick rock ghost with an overcompensated ego. Then there was Spectra, who had been easily overlooked by those who weren't directly involved with her. The list went on, some that were eerie, some that you easily skimmed over. Though, it was the segment at the very bottom that caused a bit of nervousness on your part. This ghost didn't have a specific name quite yet. He didn't strike fear into your heart, or send your skin into a crawling frenzy. He simply made you uneasy, which was much worse. According to the website, the "Ghost Boy" was still an emerging figure that the public was desperately trying to decipher. The article said he was a hero, adored by teens and detested by most adults...but something about him rubbed you the wrong way. Most ghosts seemed like trouble. How was he any different? He must have had an angle or...something?