Ghosting Around (Watty Awards 2012)

Chapter One

I sighed, “If I throw a stick, will you leave?”

I massaged my throbbing temples as I glanced up at Derek, although, what I saw of him was little, considering he was transparent. His laugh was throaty, “Not a chance!” I groaned, perfect, I was stuck with a ghost with an attitude.

Not only did he always show up when I wanted him the least, but he would always argue with me. Reasoning, begging and bribery, never seemed to work with him.

“Can’t you go haunt someone else?” I whined,

“And miss out on this fun? Never.” He grinned.

I would do anything to wipe that smug look off his face. Ever since I moved to this house, I have had to deal with this transparent blockhead! “Just one day!” I sobbed, “Just for one day!” Today was the day that losing my job was on the top of the menu, with my rent being the expensive dessert that I now can’t afford. I couldn’t ring my parents for a loan, that would be my last act of desperation, especially since I’m now twenty-two years old; I could just imagine my Mother saying:

“See? I told you didn’t I? You would never find a job in Edinburgh!”

“No, Mother, I did find a job, but I need to find another one,” I’d say exasperated,

“Pish posh! It’s all dirty laundry water. You will come back to Hampshire, where you belong.”

I shuddered, no way am I going through that sort of punishment. Absentmindedly, I picked up my gold locket around my neck with Alina inscribed on it rubbed it back and forth in my fingers in an attempt to calm my nerves. I glimpsed Derek in the corner of my eye pacing back and forth and turned to him.

“Stop that, you’ll wear my carpet out.” I laughed. Derek peered at me over his shoulder and scowled. I held my hands up in defence, with a smile creeping onto my face. I slowly stood up and reached for my coffee and when my lips touched the mug, the sweet aroma tickled my nose and I sipped quietly, deep in thought.

Thunder rumbled in the distance as rain began pelting down in sheets, I peered out my living room window and watched the rain drops race down the glass. I sighed, there had to be some way I could fix my situation, but how?

Humming a tune I’d heard from the radio this morning, Derek glided past me grinning, I eyed him suspiciously. What was he up to? He gave me a fleeting look and disappeared into my bedroom upstairs.

Oh no, he was not going in there! It took me an hour to get him out last time and I was not prepared to go through that again. I gulped the remaining bit of my coffee and ran to my room, praying he’d just gone through the wall to get to another room.

What I did see wasn’t exactly what I’d expected. Derek was perched on my bed examining an old jewellery box I’d thrown on there earlier; his brow was furrowed in concentration as he tried to lift an old, small key. “Derek?” I spoke in a hushed tone and he acknowledged my presence with a grunt. I rolled my eyes, always the gentleman.

I moved closer to where he was sitting and plunked down onto the bed. He groaned in effort as he tried to move the object without letting it slip through his fingers, his determination etched on his face. With a sudden jerk of his hands he dropped it onto the bed and I silently cheered for his achievement. Each day his willpower grew stronger as he tried to move inanimate objects.

“Well, what do you think?” Derek asked,

“It’s uh, beautiful?”

Derek rolled his eyes and shifted closer to the key. “I saw this the other day when you had the jewellery box open and I think it’s a key for a secret door, or compartment,” I raised my eyebrow and quietly questioned his sanity, since when did he believe in secret doors? “I have a faint memory of this key from when I was alive and lived in this house.”

“If you say you lived here back when you were alive, then what do you call what you’re doing now?” I questioned,

“Now? I’m on vacation,” He smirked.

“Then, by all means, just keep on ‘living’ here, it’s not like I need personal space,” I growled. How dare he? I’ve got to invest in some sort of ghost remover.

“So, it’s true then,” Derek mused,

“What are you on about?” I snapped,

“Red heads do have a quick temper.”

I gave Derek a stare and he grinned back. I grabbed the key and leapt off my bed, moving back to the living room. Before I walked in I took a sweeping look of the room, my bookshelf sat to the right, stocked up with the classics and my modern favourites and around the wall from that was my fireplace which faced my lounge and coffee table.

Then on the right hand side of the room was the sliding door to the back patio. Heaving a sigh I sauntered to my lounge and sat down noisily, gazing out my back window to the forest that lay close by.

I transferred the key from one hand to the other, weighing it and silently wondering where it belonged. From my knowledge there is only one secret door in the house and it leads to the forest from my bedroom.

The door was hidden behind a small panel that sits on the right wall of my bedroom, I discovered it when I was cleaning one day and lent against the wall to rest and found myself falling backwards and almost down a flight of stairs before I caught myself.

Out of curiosity I followed the dark stairs to find another small door with a rusty key still in the handle and with a pull it relented with a groan and opened and that’s where I found myself standing in front of the Bogg Forest. I had ran back to the small door to search for more passageways but every door I found after the original had been locked and the first key didn’t fit.

Maybe this was the key I needed? I scrutinised the key in my hands closely and with a gasp I realised this one looked the same. Heart beating and excitement running through me I scrambled off the lounge and ran to my bedroom.