Grace watch as the rain droplets hit the window of the taxi, the rain sliding ever-so slowly down the window. A lock of her dark blonde hair fell in front of her blue eyes which switch to her phone as it lit up on her lap. She picked it up to see the notice. It was a message from Ben Hinderson. She swipe the screen making it disappear and returned her eyes back to the window. As the taxi reached the small town of Simmer, it drove past a couple of businesses, especially a tall dark building that loamed over the small town. There was a diner called Diane's Burger shop where Grace could see people coming in and out of. Grace could also see a small park off the side that was deserted due to the rain. They drove past the junior high school and Grace thought grimly to herself, I guess that's where I'll be going soon. The taxi eventually turned onto a dirt path that went up a hill and into a wooded area. It stopped at an old mansion house with white sidings that were old and chipping away and a gray roofing that needed some shingles repaired. "Here we are, sweetie." The taxi man said popping the truck. "6494 Oaken Pines, Correct?"

"Yeah." Grace said softly as she got out and took her two luggage from the trunk and said thank you to the taxi man and gave him his money.

"Any time, dear." The taxi man said and drove away. Standing between two columns on the porch was a man with dark blonde hair with hazel eyes that wore a blue polo shirt with black jeans and was barefooted on the splintering porch.

"Hello, Gracie, how was your trip?" Asked the man solemnly.

"Hi, Uncle Tom, it was just fine." Grace said as she walked up into the porch and shook off the cold early November rain.

"Come along then, let's get you settled." Tom nodded his head toward the house. Grace followed her uncle inside. She was surprised to see statutes, paintings on walls and vases on antique stands throughout the house. A metal staircase spiraling up the stairs overlooked a living room with a huge fireplace with welcoming fire. Throughout the rest of house, Grace could see furniture covered in white sheets. To her, the house looked some old, abandoned museum. "You can put you coat on the hanger until it dries." Tom said. Grace did and follow her uncle upstairs.

"Don't you have a TV?" Grace ask.

"Ha! No sorry we like to keep things old fashion here, Gracie, sorry to disappoint you." Tom smiled.

"Oh, that's fine...Who is we? I thought you lived alone?"

"Not technically, I do have a cat. You should remember Tiger, don't you?" Tiger. An old orange tabby cat that Grace hadn't seen probably since she was one or two.

"No, not really." She said.

"Well of course I don't expect you to. You were young. But he's around here somewhere, I'm sure you'll meet him shortly."

"But still, you said we as in a person we." Tom ignored her and pushed open a door.

"This will be your room, you can do what you wish with, just don't destroy anything. When you are ready and unpacked, you can meet me in the dining hall, we'll eat, and I'll show you around the place. Sound good?" He said.

"Ok." She said looking around her new bedroom and Tom closed the door behind him as he left. The room was musty as if it hasn't been used in a long time. It had a twin-size bed with a flowered bedspread A large rug laid on the wooden floor in front of the bed. Next to the bed was a small table with a lamp. A desk and chair were to the window overlooking the front of the house. A dresser with a mirror attached was next to the closest. Grace unpacked her clothes and put them in the closet and dresser. After Grace had put her knickknacks up on a self and a one or two posters up, she pulled out the last two items.

She held a small picture frame of her with her parents and her young brother, Garret. She sighed deeply looking at the picture, remembering the fun times they had when it was taken. Setting it on the small table, she reached for the other object which was an old stuff green dragon with button eyes and a red tongue sticking out. Grace remember the day that her mother made this for her. Smiling, she laid the stuff dragon her pillow. Grace's parents died a month ago in a car wreck. While Garret went to live with their grandparents, Grace went to live with her Uncle Tom. Grace sighed and walked out of her bedroom to join her uncle in the dining room where she could smell dinner being cooked.

~~~~

It took Grace forever to find the dining hall, but when she did find it, there were two china plates, forks, and knifes set on the large dining table. Near the corner Tiger the old orange fat tabby was wasting his dinner. Tiger could had easily been mistaken for Garfield because he was so fat. Grace took her seat and moments later her uncle had come through the door flap to the kitchen holding a tray with two silver dome lids on top of the tray. ''I hope you settled OK, then?'' Tom ask her. She nodded.

"This place is huge!" She stated.

"Yes, yes, it is. You know your mother and I grew up in this house." He set the plate with the silver dome lid in front of Grace and himself.

"Really?"

He nodded. "Since your mother was the oldest, she was to supposed to have this old house, but she didn't want the old house, so she gave it to me."

"Well that was nice of her." Grace said as Tom lifted the silver dome lid to reveal her food. It was spaghetti and meatballs.

"Hope you like spaghetti." Tom said as he lifted his lid off too.

"So how old is this house?" She ask as she ate her food.

"Older than you.'' He laughed.

"Yeah, I know that! I mean how long has this house been here?"

"Well, to my knowledge it's been around since this town was built, even a little before I believe." He said after a shallow.

"Cool."

"Meow," went Tiger as he finished his food and walked up to Grace's chair sat down and looked up at her. Grace looked down at him and smiled. "Why is he so fat!" She laughed.

"Eats too much. Now eat your food so I can give you a tour." He said pointing at her food with his fork.

After they ate, Tom gave Grace her tour. Tom first showed her the kitchen since it was right next to the dining room, he then showed her the living room. Grace looked around and saw where the TV should have been there was an old fashion radio. Well, I least I get that, Grace thought. They toured around the downstairs until they reach a very brown door with a rusty golden knob. "This is my study." Tom told her. "You are to stay out of this unless I give you permission or I'm in there and allow you to come in. Got it?"

"Got it." Grace mumbled. Then they went to a double door, Tom opened the door to reveal a library the size of an apartment. "Whoa!" Grace said.

"And this is the library. You may come in here. It's a perfect place for studying, reading, and any other stuff you might want to do." Then they left and went upstairs. They passed a bunch of rooms. Lots were rooms for guest, and some were just rooms filled with old junk. Then they went to a door where Tom this time did not open it. "This room is off limits, understand?" Tom said walking away.

"Understood, uncle." Said Grace catching up to her uncle. Tom showed the rest of the house, including the bathroom location, the hallway closets filled with towels and other necessities, and he even showed her the outlet box in case there was short in the breaker. By the time the tour was over it was late at night. Tom pointed down the hall where they stop.

"My room is just around the corner, if you need me, I'll be in there. Good night, Gracie." And Tom walked away and turned the corner.

"Night, uncle." Grace called after him, then she too walked in her room. When she walked into her room she quickly got on her phone and checked her messages. She went to see what her one and only friend Ben Hinderson had to say. His text read: 'hey sorry about what happened. Do keep in contact with me I'll miss you' Grace sighed and typed back 'will miss you too' then she went to find an outlet, found one and charged her phone. She remembered the day her parents died. She could tell that they wanted to tell her something but could find the right words. They said that they have something to tell her after their date night, but sadly they never did. Again with a sigh she jumped in her bed grab her dragon stuff and went to sleep.

~~~~

Grace woke up the next morning, got up, dressed, and went downstairs. When she entered the dining room there were already plates and silverware set up. Uncle Tom came in five seconds later with a steaming tray. "Oh, good I was just about to get you." He said. "I made pancakes." He set the plates down and they ate.

"How come you're up so early?" Grace ask.

"I was always the early bird in the family. It just stuck...And oh which reminds me. Next week I am going to have you start school. I know it started last month but you still need to go. I'll have you get settled in this week and we get the materials you need for your classes." Tom told her. Grace nodded and continued to eat. The week went by fast, and they got everything Grace needed for school. Then school came. "Come on, Grace time for school!" Tom said banging on her bedroom door.

"OK, OK I'm up!" She grumble and she got up and dress. As she passes the rooms, she heard noises coming from the forbidden room. She put her ear to the door. When she did the room became quiet. Walking down the stairs she ate toast and eggs that Uncle Tom made her. After she ate, Tom said as they walked to the door, "I will be driving you school every day to make sure that you get there safely and on time, but you will need to walk home, I will busy with work so I can't pick you up. Alright, Gracie?"

"Alright." Grace said following her uncle to his car. When they got to Campbell junior high, they went to the office. Grace got her schedule and went to her first class, math. After being to her first, second, third, fourth, and fifth, then it was lunch time. Grace sat by herself at lunch for a while until a young girl with short dark hair with green eyes came beside her. "Um, hello I know you're new here and didn't know if you like someone to join you." She said.

"Um, yeah there's no law against you sitting here." Grace said. The girl laugh which made Grace laugh a little.

"I'm Cami." She said sitting down.

"Grace." Grace said eating her sandwich.

"So where are you from?" Cami ask.

"Columbus." Grace told her.

"Oh, wow! You moved a long way didn't ya?"

"Yeah, I just moved in with my uncle a week ago."

"How come?"

"Um, well...A month ago... My parents died in a car wreck."

"Oh my gosh! Were you in it?!"

"No, I was home."

"That just terrible!" Cami exclaimed. "If you don't me asking, but what happened?"

"All I know is that someone hit my parents car, there was no sign of the car that hit them. A hit and run, the police told us. So went to go live with my uncle."

"Oh my god, that's so sad." Cami said sympathetically. "So who's your uncle? Where do you live?" Grace smiled at the many questions that Cami was asking.

"My uncle is Tom Anders and I live in the giant house up on the hill..."

"Oh, so your uncle is the guy that lives in the creepy old house!" Cami interrupted her.

"Um, yeah, if you want to call it that."

"Wow. What's it like in there?"

"Old and very old fashion." Grace laughed. Cami laughed too, which made Grace laugh even harder.

~~~~

Grace started to walk home from school when she heard someone walking behind her. Grace turned around to see a boy with black hair and very blue eyes. "Why are you following me?" Grace asked suspiciously.

"My house is down this way if you don't mind." He said coldly and walked past her.

"Oh, sorry." She said. "I didn't know." The boy paused as he walked past her and looked back at her with a cocked head.

"Eh, not your fault." He finally said after a moment of thought. "Names Mason Reynolds."

''Grace Michaels."'' She said.

"Are you new around here?" Grace nodded.

"Yeah, I just moved here. I live with my Uncle. Tom Anders."

"Anders, eh?" Mason wondered. "You, uh, live in the big house on the hill?"

"That's the one, yeah." Grace said and Mason hummed in thought. They then continued to walked down the sidewalk together in silence. After a few moments, Mason said, "Well, this is where I turn." He pointed at the corner and made his turn. As he did so, he looked back at Grace and gave her a salute. "See ya around, Anders." Then he made his way home, leaving Grace confused when he called her Anders. Shaking her head from the weird confrontation, she continued walking her way home. Her uncle Tom greeted her at the door.

"And how was school?" He ask.

"It was alright thinking I made a friend though." Grace said dropping her backpack at the door.

"Oh? And who would that be?" He ask.

"Well one is a girl, her name is Cami, we met at lunch. And not really sure about the other. His name is Mason, but he was really weird." Tom was startled when Grace mentioned the name Mason.

"Was this Mason, by any chance, have last name Reynolds?" He ask.

"Um yeah how do yo-"

"Well stay away from him, Gracie." He ordered startling Grace by his abruptness.

"But why-"

"If you know what's good for you, you will stay away from him." And with that he walked away.