Multi-Stories

Chapter 46 - Attachment Pt. 1

Caleb, Kelly, and Mark come walking up to the front door of a house. The two guys are each carrying a duffel bag. 

She knocks on the door. A moment goes by before a girl wearing a necklace with a blue gem opens the door. 

Kelly: Hey, Ashley. I brought them like you asked.  

Ashley: Thank you. Please come in. 

She steps aside and allows the three of them to enter the house before closing the door. 

Caleb: Kelly said something about your house being haunted. 

Ashley glances over at him, staring as he looks around, and she immediately looks away when he looks back at her. 

Ashley: Uh... yeah, it's been going on for a few months. Never payed much attention to it until now, though. It's been mild up until now. 

Caleb exchanges a glance with Mark before looking back at Ashley. 

Caleb: What exactly is "it"? 

Ashley: A black figure that I'd find around the house. It would always appear to be watching me. But now... it's escalated or something. Went from watching to trying to grab. Pushing things off of tables, sending them flying across the room. Messing with electronics...

She goes to continue but trails off as she glances over at Caleb. 

Caleb: We get it. Not good things. Where are your parents now?

Ashley: Out. They do this thing where they repeat their honeymoon every few years. And it started on Monday. 

Mark: So a few days ago. 

Ashley: Like I told Kelly on the phone, I thought I could tough it out for the week. Wait until my parents got back home. But obviously I couldn't. That's when she told me about what you two did. So I asked for you to come here and help. 

Caleb: Well, that's exactly what we're going to do. You're not alone anymore. 

Mark looks over at Caleb. 

Mark: Let's get our stuff settled. Do a sweep. 

Caleb: You have a place we can put these? 

Ashley: Yeah... you can just put them down in the living room. On a couch or something. 

Caleb nods before he and Mark go walking into the living room. 

Kelly comes walking up to Ashley. 

Kelly: You're certainly lucky he didn't read much into it. 

Ashley: Was I being obvious? 

Kelly: To me, yeah. But that's just because I know you have a crush on my brother. 

Ashley lets out a sigh. 

Ashley: I don't know how to feel about this. I never thought he'd ever be in my house, and now that he is, it somehow makes me feel more nervous than having that black figure around. 

Kelly: Just relax. After all, this may be a perfect opportunity to tell him. Knowing him and how he is about helping people, he's going to stick close to protect you. 

A blush forms on Ashley's face. 

Ashley: Well... I, uh... how do I go about it? How do I even know if he's interested in me? What if it backfires and he hates me afterward? 

Kelly: That's just your fear of rejection talking. Everybody has that. And fears are meant to be conquered. 

Ashley nods.