Ghostly Love

The Penny Book Store

Chapter 5

Walking down the school hallway I bump into someone, knocking his books out of his hands.

"Sorry," I say automatically.

"Who's the klutz now?" A familiar voice says.

"Huh?" I look up to see Caleb's hazel eyes smiling at me as we pick up his fallen books. "Oh, c'mon! I've got a lot in my mind," I defensively tell him through a small laugh.An idea to go out to eat for lunch today comes to mind. "Wanna go out for lunch today? I could use some fresh air."

"Seeing as we all have lunch passes I second that notion!" Jenny says cheerfully from behind Caleb. I don't know what that girl is taking to always be so joyful, but I want some of that, I think to myself with an inward giggle. Just then I recall Aunty talking about a book with a snake on it. We stand up from our crouching position on the floor and Caleb greets Jenny with a wide smile.

"Hey, Caleb you said your dad owned a book store in town? How about we check it out," I say eagerly.

"Ooo! That sounds like a marvelous idea!" Jenny says looking at me and Caleb. He gives a reluctant look but is quick to please.

"Uh, sure. We can take my car."

"Shot gun!" Jenny calls.

"Awesome!" I say triumphantly. I need to know more about this weird necklace in that book Aunty was talking about. There's something special about the charm. Remembering Mr. Huey's words, my feeling is strengthened.

"Alright, let's meet in front of the school at the beginning of lunch," Caleb instructs.

We nod in confirmation and the bell signals the end of our 10 minute break.

I skip out on fourth period because I'm anxious to visit the book store. Hopefully Mr. Huey won't miss me too much.

The Penny Book Store is in the down town Del Haven and I hardly have a reason to ever go there. I've heard of the store but never gone in. It used to be a library/book store where you could buy new books or borrow old ones. I hide on a grassy knoll towards the side of the school until lunch starts. As I sit there, the wind picks up to an aggressive force. It pulls and tugs at the mass of trees across the street.

Briefly I am able to see a face peer right at me. A lick of fear shoots through me but I stand up to get a better look. Within a second the face is gone. I don't know why I'm so startled by the figure. Oh, yeah! It's probably because I ditched class and I'm on a mystery scavenger hunt! I let go of a breath I didn't realize I was holding in.

The face looked like the guy from the woods. But then why would he be here? But it's as if he disappeared into thin air!

"Okay, calm down Gemma! You're just seeing things that's all," I tell myself in a low whisper.

I rub my eyes and jump a little when I hear the lunch bell ring. I make my way to the front of the school and immediately spot Jenny and Caleb.

"You alright?" Jenny asks seeing me roughly rubbing my eyeballs.

"Peachy," I reply. "Just a little tired," I say following my friends to the car. The ride doesn't take more than five minutes.

"I'm gonna go to the food mart while you guys are at the book store. Want anything?" Jenny says as we pull into the parking lot.

"Nah, I'm good."

"Well, Gem, do you mind if I go with Jenny? My dad should be in there. Just let him know I'm nearby and he'll take care of you," Caleb says hopping out of the car.

"Alright," I say with a dismissive hand. Wait! Does Caleb have a thing for Jenny? A sneaky smile creeps on my face as I look back at them. I see him look down intently at her as she runs off about the new Marvel movie that's coming out soon. Focus, my consciousness commands.

I look up at the book store sign before going in. A faded out line reads the Penny Book Store behind a new neon sign. Lit Palace the sign reads. I walk in and am greeted by a friendly voice.

"Hiya, there missy! What can I do for ya today?" the man says with a warm smile from behind a counter.

"Oh, uh," I clear my throat, "Hi. Are you Caleb's dad?"

"Yes I am. Who's asking?"

"I'm Gem, Caleb's friend from school. I asked him to show me the book store. He's next door at the food mart with our friend Jenny," I say pointing my thumb behind me.

"So you're Gem! Caleb's told me about you and Jenny. It's very kind of you guys to befriend him so quickly, what with him being new to town and all." He sticks out a hand. "I'm Jim."

"No biggy," I shake his hand with a courteous smile.

"So was there anything in particular you're looking for?"

"Yes. I'm looking for a book with a snake on it. It looks like this," I hold up my necklace and let the scales capture the light from outside.

"I don't think I've ever seen a book like that before. But ya know what? Let's look it up on file. This store cataloged all its books for the past twenty years!" He types in "snake" into the store website search engine. He turns his computer screen to face me and right away a list of books pops up. Jim scrolls down and I stop him when I spot a book with a familiar serpent. Spelling Life: 2nd Edition. He clicks on the book title for more information. The book doesn't appear to be in the store, but there is one copy at another location. I read the short summary to the right of the book's picture. "When life's got you down, spell it correctly with the right ingredients."

I look back at the picture and notice that the color of the snake's eyes are white like mine. Aunty said the book she saw had different color of eyes. I ponder the title for a second. 2nd edition -What about the 1st?

"Hey Jim, can you look up Spelling Life: 1st Edition?" He does so and a book with a snake loads onto the screen. The reptile is the same but has bright ruby eyes. That's the book. Under the picture it says "checked out" in red print with the year 2004 next to it.

"Sorry Kiddo, looks like I don't have these books."

"Can I order the 2nd Edition?"

"Sure thing! Come back next week some time and I'll give it to you."

I thank him and catch up with Caleb and Jenny