haunted. //joshler

two.

word count: 559

"tyler, did you break this expensive vase," his mother questioned him as she put boxes in his room. 

"no, that was totally fine three hours ago," he answered. 

"uhm. just be careful, okay?"

"you got it, mom."

he hummed and put his earphones in his ears. the cold shiver went up his spine. 

"it's an old house," his mother had explained, "old vents, old house. nothing to worry about."

but she seemed off too. ever since they arrived. tyler's best bet was to ignore the feelings in his lungs. how they felt like iron carrying him down. his family loved this house.

why couldn't he love it, no longer?

-

today was tyler's first day at his new high school. the halls were long, and cold. the school felt dead. but tyler also couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched. he just ate his lunch alone under one of the classroom stairs. for three days straight he did this. until a girl with pink shaved hair sat in front of him. 

"you're tyler joseph!" she smiled. 

"yes?"

"i know all about you!"

"stalker alert?"

"ok yes, but that's besides the point."

"you stalked me?" 

the girl smiled at him. 

"for studying purposes, i didn't need you to be a popular kid, that's all."

"i'm new."

"i'm aware."

"your name?"

"ashley."

"hello ashley."

"you call me ash or halsey or hal."

"hal it is."

"cool."

"cool."

-

tyler put earphones in and studied for a test he had on friday in his math class. nobody was home because in his new town high schoolers got off first, middle schoolers second, and elementary school last. 

his test was sure to be easy. some people had had mr. verlin for all three years, and they always passed. tyler was glad he would have at least ONE easy class. he needed to keep his high school straight A streak. maybe he could get into a good ol' college the cheap way. 'that would be great,' tyler thought, finishing the last problem on his worksheet.

he worked on laundry and did other small things waiting for his siblings to get home from school. he still had the feelings he was being watched. but this feeling only came around when tyler was alone. so he assumed he was just paranoid. or maybe this new feeling was just from moving from the town he'd been in since he was born. new towns. new feelings.

tyler tried to shrug off the feelings. so he took a nap and waited for his siblings arrivals.

-

his siblings watched bluey as he helped his mother and father make dinner. 

"how was school?" his father asked. 

"strange. the kids in the town are strange."

"why so?" his mother questioned.

"they act as if they know something we don't."

"hah. that's preposterous. i did research on this house for months. making sure it wasn't.. "haunted" or such," tyler's father scoffed.

"well, these kids act weird around me. but i did meet this girl. her name is ashley her nickname is halsey so i call her hal."

"weird name for a girl," tyler's father said.

"eh. it is what it is."

tyler's mother finished dinner and then the whole family ate. as they ate, tyler felt he was the only one who felt weird things going on. he wanted to leave this town. but meeting someone nice that was as weird as himself. it made him less weary of the place. that maybe he would like it.

once he gave it a try.