Forever a Ghost ✓

Matthew C. Roberts

Everything about that woman I despise. I can't believe Abigail, as good as a heart she has had to be raised by such a judgmental woman. She scanned every inch of the house, as if looking for something to chastise Abigail about. I wonder if this woman just hates her own daughter for all the remarks she gives away to Abigail like candy.

Abigail just takes it. Sometimes gives a small and witty remark, but overall brushes over her mom's behavior... Which means getting back at her mom is ultimately up to me at this point. I hope Abigail won't get mad at me.

As of right now, everyone has moved on from their bickering over my chuckle. It was quite entertaining to hear them bicker, especially considering Abigail's mom is crazily superstitious, but it wasn't as fun seeing Abigail so... Upset. That's the only way I can describe it. It's not that she looked sad or really mad, just... Upset during and after the whole ordeal. Everyone is now waiting on the couch for the pizza, talking among themselves. I keep my eye close on Abigail's mom in case she tries to pull anything.

When the pizza arrives, it seems everyone who originally had an issue with pizza got over it because they immediately go to grab some slices to pile on their plates. Specifically Abigail's mom, you'd guess she hasn't eaten in days with the hurried way she devours each slice she grabs. It's immensely out of character for someone like her, and actually pretty interesting to see her so unladylike.

After eating, it's now time for Abigail to give everyone a tour of her house. She's clearly dreading it from her useless stalling and I have some sympathy for her situation.

The tour begins at the places the guests have already seen- the kitchen, the living room- as Abigail leads them throughout the house. I stay by her side, and I think she knows because she commented about feeling a little cold and sometimes glanced in my direction. I made sure not to touch her, not wanting the pain to overwhelm me, and I find myself actually not feeling many aches.

During the tour, when going through less decorated rooms, Abigail's mom makes remarks such as, "This place needs a lot of work, work you're too lazy to do," "You should really move back home, I don't think you're ready for the responsibility for your own house," and other belittling phrases. It really starts to anger me. It's clear that Abigail is tired of each comment coming from her mouth, and for some reason something inside of me hates to see her so annoyed.

As everyone examines the decorations in the upstairs living room, Abigail excuses herself, claiming, "I need a glass of water real quick. Stay here, I'll be back in a minute." I follow her down the stairs where she stands in silence, resting her head against the fridge.

"Can I antagonize your mother? She's driving me to murder," I whisper into her ear.

"No, don't. It's fine... She's just being herself."

"And that's why I asked if I could antagonize her. I want to make her shut up," I reply softly into her ear.

She shakes her head no, slightly smiling. "I wish, but no. Don't do anything to her."

I sigh. "Fine. For today."

"Good," she responds quietly, filling a glass with water. "Now stop talking before she hears." She gulps down her glass of water and travels back up the stairs, sighing as she does so. I trail closely behind, already annoyed by Abigail's mom's presence despite not yet seeing her. When we return, Abigail's mom is nowhere to be found. The rest of the guests are involved in light chatter. Abigail notices this and asks them, "Where did Janette go?"

So that's the witch's name.

"I don't know, I didn't even realize she was gone. You need to hear the story I'm telling, though," one of the girls say.

"Sure, Ashley, shoot."

As Ashley- who I presume is Abigail's sister based on their similar appearances- tells her story, I travel through the house looking for Janette. I don't trust her.

After looking in a couple rooms, I find her in Abigail's bedroom shuffling through boxes. What does she think she's doing?!

I watch silently as she finds a notebook that's practically falling apart, flipping through it. Money falls out of some of the pages, lots of money.

Yeah, no, this isn't happening. But I can't interfere with her, or else she'll go to Abigail about ghosts haunting her house.

I quickly go back to Abigail, morphing through rooms to get there as fast as possible, and tap on her shoulder. She shivers and seems to take the hint. "Sorry, I'll be right back once again. Bathroom." She walks into the bathroom and shuts the door, me following close behind, and asks, "What's happening?"

"Your mom is stealing your money. She was in your room going through your notebooks for money."

"What?!" she exclaims, trying to stay at a whisper.

"Go check yourself! I don't know why she's doing it."

With that, Abigail ran out of the bathroom and to her bedroom. I follow behind, smirking to myself. It's about time Janette gets what she deserves. When Abigail opens the door wider, Janette is looking at her bookshelf, flipping through her books. There's no mess of notebooks on the floor or any cash in sight. "Mom, there you are. What're you doing?"

"Sorry, I just took myself on my own tour. I got curious seeing all these books. You must read Pride and Prejudice a lot, huh?"

"What-? Oh, eh, sometimes. Why?"

"That's weird. It looks pretty worn," she holds up the book and I see that the cover is bent open due to how many times the book has been opened. There is a page folded at the corner to mark a place in the book, a fold I had made.

"Oh, yeah I bought it used. That folded page is where I am in the book," Abigail lies. "Anyway, let's get back to the official tour now."

"Sure," Janette smiles at her. This woman can not be serious. The two walk back to the others and I once again follow.

A/N (Please read!)

Hey guys, published early as a Christmas present and also i wanted to say something

So uhhh... I guess I'm going to spill my heart out to strangers on the internet. Thank you. I couldn't have gotten this far without the people reading this, although it's currently a very small amount. And thank you, Katie. You make me like myself everyday a little more and I promise me and all your other friends love you. 

I guess lately I've been going through some sort of existential crisis, so uhhh, I guess thank you, Wattpad, for being a gateway out of my mind. I've been staying up really late to write and it's very nice to feel productive the next day. I don't know what lies ahead, but I genuinely want to finish this book in its entirety. I'm sorry if the story seems to be dragging on, but one thing I want to get right is pacing because it bugs me when stories seem so rushed. I also want to not have much filler, I want each chapter to mean something to the plot. 

I know my writing isn't the best. To be honest, I'm just having fun. And I want to share stories and what keeps me sane with the world. I'm usually in a very panicked state with everything, no matter how much I try to hide it, but with this story I feel safe. I know this is probably cheesy, but yeah, I just wanted to thank my readers, Katie, and Wattpad for making me feel like everything will turn out okay.

Okay, uh, yeah. See you Sunday for the next update lol.

Remember to comment! I truly do care about your opinions, likes, dislikes, etc, and want to know my readers better. Even just reactions to things, seriosly, I love you all.

This project means the world to me.