I remember some people wanted to see the short story I wrote for my Literature class, so I might as well upload it. 10k amount of garbage, I didn't want to upload on Christmas because it was Christmas also I just forgot. I had some trivia about the writing process but I might upload it later or in the comments or something. Also this is all unedited btw so it's kinda trashy.

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October 21st, 1997, the first time I saw Mrs. Piper, I accidentally stumbled upon her yard looking for the baseball I hit. The air was crisp because of the changing season, all of the leaves had started changing colors like they do every year. Her yard was covered in them, it looked like she had not raked since they started accumulating. I became annoyed, because I knew it would be troublesome to try and find it in the mess and piles of leaves. I did not notice until I looked up for a moment, that she sat in the old rocking chair that stood on her porch, looking at me with weirdly observant eyes. I saw how she curled in her chair, and hunched her back. She looked really frail, numerous wrinkles decorated her face and her hair had gray linings. It was like the slightest touch would make her body crumble to dust. She looked upon me with a sweet toothy smile, but she said nothing. I found it odd that she stayed silent the entire time and just stared, maybe she was thinking of what to say? Nevertheless, it creeped me out so I just decided to quickly find my ball and leave.

Until she spoke, "Are you lost darling?" Her entire voice shook, it seemed like it took an immense amount of effort for her to even produce a sound. I froze when I heard her speak. The sweet smile stayed on her face, and she waited seemingly expecting me to reply. It unnerved me, I heard rumors about Mrs. Piper from the many quiet musings my parents would have in the kitchen while they thought I was asleep. I only heard a few words, but they were along the line of, "crazy...she's only 30 yet...sick..." They all sounded overly pessimistic almost insulting, I may be young, but I understood when my parents used words so negatively. The entire neighborhood also, they always talked so ill of Mrs. Piper, I never understood the rumors. They talked of her being a madwoman. They mentioned as well of her accident several years ago, it was the talk of the school for a few weeks. A lot of my friends gossiped about the crazy lady down the street, and how their own parents mentioned that it was her fault she lost her child. I paid no mind to them, I never believed in rumors. However, everything came rushing in the back of my mind at that one moment. I stood still for about a minute with my mouth agape, and several thousand thoughts rushing in my head. Should I say something or nothing? At the moment I really did not care, I just wanted my ball back. She made it difficult to ignore her, however, because she spoke again. "Are you well child? You did not answer my question." She stated. The expression on her face flashed concern towards me, and I only stood. I shifted awkwardly, because I did not know what I should say, what was I supposed to say in this scenario? I was in the presence of the "neighborhood crazy lady." Then again, with how much backlash she got from the rest of the community, Mrs. Piper really did not look intimidating or crazy, and certainly not like a witch. She did not look ready to chase me down with a kitchen knife, maybe then everyone's prattle was just rumors. "I-I'm just looking for my ball I lost." I croaked, I did not know why, but I still felt very unsettled being in her presence. She mumbled to herself in confusion for a few seconds, and then she looked as if she had realized something. She slowly reached behind her chair, and pulled out the very item I was searching for. My eyes lit up as soon as I saw the ball in her hand.

"That's it!" I accidentally exclaimed out loud, I heard her chuckle lowly.

I wasted no time going up to retrieve the ball, I felt too excited to finally have it back and then rejoin my friends. She held out the ball, I noticed that she still sat in her old rocking chair, but I did not bother to ask about it. Once I was in proximity, I started to notice a lot more. She had dark circles under her eyes, the same type my dad gets when he overworks. Also, she had very disheveled hair. Her face also seemed very thinned out, and she looked even more brittle up close. It was strange, it was like she was not sleeping or eating. Distracted with my observations, she did something that I found bizarre, she carefully took my hand and placed the ball in my palm. A very trivial thing to be mentioning, however, I suddenly got chills, the same type I get when I go up to present in front of my class. I just blamed it on the weather, since it had been becoming chillier lately. Her dainty hands lingered in the air, and I quickly snapped my hands away, I just wanted to leave. She spoke again, before I can even move. "You should be careful with these precious items, if you lose them they disappear from you forever." The way she spoke so lowly set me off the edge, it felt like she was wrapping me around with rope or chains, just from the tone of her voice. It became shaky once again, and she had this crestfallen expression on her face, small, but heavy breaths came out in little wheeze noises from her. She contrasted from all the sweet and ambience she had been sending before. And I swore, I saw the darkest look come about in her eyes, and my chills became slightly more violent. It made me uncomfortable, so I just ushered a quick reply from my lips before rapidly descending the porch steps and dashing into the yard.

"Dear!" She called with vigor. I became annoyed along with the distress once more, why couldn't she just let me leave? "Please do visit again! It gets awfully lonely here, many of the neighbors abstain from even saying hello anymore." She yelled with such furious sorrow, a despondent expression appeared on her gaunt face that I couldn't help but feel kind of...guilty. I swallowed hard, at a loss for words, and I already had run a little way ahead so I just decided to continue. I had no response to her plea, and honestly the way I ran without saying anything or acknowledging that strange request of hers was a little rude. But, at the same time I couldn't bring myself to say a word or merely a simple sound for I was anxious, a little too anxious. Why was I getting very horrible vibes from her? She was just a simple woman derived of any and all connections from her neighborhood. It all confused me so much. I hightailed right out of the area and back to my group of friends, who all were waiting around impatiently. "There you are!" My best friend, Thomas, cried upon seeing me run up. I breathed in air to my burning lungs, all my friends surrounded me, some probably more annoyed that I took so long getting the ball and others a little more worried that I was looking like I ran a marathon.

"What's up? Why're you panting so hard?" Thomas asked as I started coughing. His brows scrunched in concern as he pats my back, not expecting the coughing fit. I took a moment to let myself recover from running for so long. "Did something happen?" He then inquired, I froze for a split second before another big cough hit me. I tried to hide my reaction, but everyone already caught onto it when Thomas looked at them all signaling that something did go down. After a few minutes I looked at all of them staring me down, awaiting an answer from me. My lips twisted in hesitance, I actually did not know what to say. Also, I do not know how they would all react to me meeting the rumored crazy lady of our neighborhood. They would not take it well.

"Well? Spit it out already?" My other friend Zeke demanded. His arms were cross and he stood stiffly as he stared at me with an irked air. I shrunk under the gazes I already received and his tone really was not helping me say anything. Thomas seemed to notice and hit him on the arm trying to calm him down. I swallowed, and spoke with a gentle voice, bracing myself "I saw Mrs. Piper, and she had my ball." As I expected, an uproar came about them, they were in disbelief. They started screaming a barrage of questions at me, and I started to become overwhelmed. I really hated when they became rowdy like this. Thomas had to cut them all off with a powerful yell, and they quiet down for a second. "Let's ask him one by one." Thomas suggested, and Zeke already took the opportunity to ask first.

"Did you really see her? What did she look like?" He asked, from his tone he sounded very skeptical of me. We are talking of an old woman a victim of many horrible rumors, and who never leaves her home. I nodded, I couldn't really say much because I was the only one who had witnessed and experienced it. However, I couldn't really lie or make any of this up, because many of the bad feelings I had staying in her proximity lingered on me. It felt like a fog surrounding me, and I felt chills creep on me once again just thinking about how shaky her voice was or how that sweet smile had some sort of other meaning behind it. I abandoned the thought, thinking I was just tired. I got jolted by Zeke shaking me by the shoulders, however, and he started spewing his own thoughts at me loudly. "If you really did meet her, how did you get the ball and not end up dying? Did she secretly curse you or something?!"

"Wha-No!" I exclaimed, I felt fed up of his actions as well as all the questions I was receiving so I burst. "She just sat in her rocking chair and talked to me. And then she said she had my ball so I just went up and took it and then left. That's it." I stated clearly for all of them to hear, I heard Zeke make an irritated grunt before he let go and crossed his arms again. Everyone remained silent, not knowing what to say. "Honestly she seemed kind of creepy." I then declared, a shiver pass through me as I did.

"Well duh!" Zeke bellowed, his arms now waving wildly in the air, "Everyone talks about how weird she is! Even my parents told me to be wary of her, they make her sound like she is a witch from the Middle Ages." Zeke explained. "Maybe she is a witch..." Another replied, I could tell he was joking, or at least half joking. They discussed more between themselves, getting louder with each passing minute to the point where I tried to tune them out. I suddenly felt myself get chills, and they crept upon my skin until I could feel myself get goosebumps. I noticed it did seem to be getting late, everyone else noticed too. I sensed the air turned tense, and everyone looked spooked from the various images and fabrications mentioned. At that moment we all just decided to go home quickly, if we stayed outside anymore it would scare me more that I already felt. Thomas gripped my shoulder, sending me a sympathetic look, he could tell I felt frightened from the encounter, after all my stiff body posture as well as the goosebumps made it quite obvious. "Maybe you should tell your parents about this. I think it would make you feel better." He explained mildly. I contemplated it, my parents would definitely make a big fuss about it, and they would scold me more than I would want them to. They did not like Mrs. Piper, they thought she was wasting her life away in her home, still stuck in the past, whatever that meant. "Maybe." I said curt, and we parted ways after that. I just wanted to run home and hide in my bed for the rest of the weekend, I really did not want to hear my parents scold me about going into Mrs. Piper's yard.

When I got home, my mother was already in her study reading some papers, she looked busy. Her head faced down onto her desk, and her body sat opposite of the doorway, this gave me a chance. I took the opportunity to try and sneak by her and towards the stairs in one quick, quiet stride. I almost made it to the first step, creeping on my toes really silent, until I accidentally hit a nearby vase I could not see. It made a loud noise as it scratched on the floor, which unfortunately alerted my mother of my presence, she opened the door and spotted me still trying to walk up the stairs. "Pause." She ordered, and I froze on the fourth step in response, I did not turn around and stood frozen, hoping I could miraculously vanish into thin air. I heard her huff, "Ian, please turn around." She ordered once more, losing patience with my current behavior. I sighed softly in defeat and I descended the stairs, stopping just a short few inches in front of her, I tried to look at anything but her eyes. Her hand came in contact with the top of my head making me flinch in response, and suddenly she knelt down to my height looking right at me, that only made me more nervous. She watched me with those observant, steely eyes, the same ones she had when she was either angry or serious.

"Why are you so nervous? You're not looking me in the eyes like you usually do," She stated and I felt her hand ruffle my hair and her hand on my shoulder, every gesture she made very gentle. "Did something happen while you were playing with your friends?" Right on the mark, I sometimes wished all of my body language was not so obvious. I swallowed a developing lump in my throat, "U-Um..." I stuttered, my entire voice quivered, now it really was obvious. With the growing awkwardness, I mulled over what happened today in small flashbacks trying to think of what to say, which I really wanted to avoid. Her eyebrows knitted together, her eyelids dropped slightly as she waited for me to speak, and she picked up how my voice as well as body trembled. She tried soothing me in hushed whispers and soft touches with her hand in my hair. We were going to have to talk about it eventually, but right now I just felt really stressed and terrified. My mother felt this tension I was probably feeling, as she told me, mother's intuition is powerful. She just smiled slightly, "How about I make you something." She offered, to which I nodded silently. Her smile felt comforting to me, and I realized something, that between her and Mrs. Piper despite them both having gentle smiles, my mother's own never gave me those weird vibes. I scolded myself right after, for comparing my mom and Mrs. Piper. Of course, they would be different, but a part of me would not shake off the observations I made and the thoughts I had. I sat down at the table, thinking over everything, with a scowl present on my face. My mother must have noticed because I caught her glancing, but she did not say anything. I already felt upset. Just thinking over everything over and over was not going to help me, so I decided to watch as my mother fiddled around with the dishes. She pulled out a mug and poured milk into a pot. I watched as she concentrated quietly, observing her and what she was doing distracted me from things I did not want to think about, and well the milk also interested me. She brought the mug full of boiled milk over to me, and then sat down next to me with a slightly apologetic look.

"Sorry we ran out of hot chocolate, so you have to settle for this." She explained

I did not really care about the hot chocolate as the milk sounded ok to me, the mug sat in between my hands, warming my skin from the chills I got earlier. My mother stepped out for a moment, going back to handle her papers. So, I just fiddled with the mug in boredom waiting for it to cool watching the steam rise and vanish, sometimes I wanted to be like steam. I could just dissipate from all of the stress and fear that hung around right now. My mother came back, as soon as I started to drink vigorously. "Ok," She sat herself next to me again, now looking at me expectantly. I traced the rim of my mug, my lips once again twisted at my loss of speech, and I could feel myself wanting to shrink at her gaze.

A few minutes passed with no progress, and she sighed, "I'm worried that you looked a little frightened when you tried to go upstairs. So, I'm wondering if any of your friends had something to do with it."

"No." I asserted. I paused for a moment before taking a deep breath, and then I let everything out right afterwards. From when I lost the ball, to when I stumbled onto Mrs. Piper's yard, to that weird encounter I had, basically everything. I watched as I explained, her expression changing through various emotions, the one that stuck was this look of fear. She looked scared, although I still don't know why. Once I finished explaining she just nodded and then looked to the side, she does this whenever she thinks deeply about something. I mentally braced myself for any scolding that would come my way, but surprisingly she did not start yelling, and instead I felt her hand on my shoulder.

"She did not say or do anything to you right?" She asked, her eyes scanning me as if I had gotten hurt. I thought back to the things she said to me when she handed me back my ball, also before I ran from her yard, they were still odd. But, it's not like I'm going to go back to her house willingly, so what she said might be irrelevant at this point, and I really did not understand anyways. So, I shook my head in response, and my mom seemed to relax, letting out a relieved breath. She started mumbling to herself in anger afterwards, short mentions of Mrs. Piper reached my ear. With that a curious question popped into my head.

"Why does everyone seem to hate Mrs. Piper?" I blurted out my question accidentally, and flinched when my mother looked back to me. She had a vacant expression, her eyes had that hard stare once more. I let my shoulders sag, and I looked down, maybe asking that was not the best idea. I heard her sigh again, heavily in response.

"How should I explain, she's, uh, she's not exactly like you or me. She's someone who is really really, um, sad, sad over events that have happened a long time ago." She fumbled with her words, trying to find the right way to explain what was happening. I tilted my head in question.

"Everyone keeps talking about rumors they heard from their parents. That she's crazy, a witch, that it's her own fault that she lost her own child. What does lose her child mean by the way?" I asked, the more I thought about it, the more everything just seemed so perplexing to me. I wanted to know what was going on. Mrs. Piper was a woman shrouded in mystery, and while I wanted to stay far away from her, I couldn't help but really mull over what was happening with her and the rest of the neighborhood. What did she do that caused so much hate? My mother rubbed her temples pensively, for the first time I have seen her at a loss for words.

"Well," She started, little sounds left her mouth as she tried forming words again, "Let's just say Mrs. Piper is suspected of doing something bad to her child." Bad? What did she mean by bad? "She also has been very hostile with neighborhood, after it happened. She used to be so nice and gave so much to the people here. When she was younger she was so brimming with life, and she loved meeting people, especially children. Children had a special place in her heart, even after she became pregnant and birthed her first child. And... well..." She paused and pursed her lips, she was struggling immensely, then she shook her head.

"I think I will give you an explanation later, when I feel the time is right." She said simply. I felt a little frustrated as I have learned next to nothing, and now everything just seemed more confusing to me. I only had one more question, "Does that mean the rumors about her are true?" I asked.

"They're half true." She stated, and I could feel another lump in my throat form from her tone. The chills came back, and I felt the urge to go up to my bed again. I excused myself, and then rushed upstairs, grabbing the huge blanket and then covering myself with it. I tried to block out everything, from every sound to every sight; I tried to hide myself. My mind felt more at ease and my body felt more protected this way, every event that has happened started weighing in on me, and my body trembled more violently despite the large blanket blocking out any cold. I stayed under there for quite a while, as I did not know how much time had passed. My brain them came up with a million questions at a time. The biggest one being, how could a fragile old lady like Mrs. Piper give off such a chilling vibe? The feeling refused to leave, and it bothered me. The talk with my mom had replayed in my head a second after that, and I started putting together everything I have learned. Mrs. Piper was actually bad? Were my instincts not going crazy? My thoughts got interrupted and I heard my parents muffled voices, it appeared as though my dad had gotten home without me realizing it. I peeked my head out to see them standing in the hallway having a big discussion. I had no concern with this discussion, and as soon as I heard my mom mention Mrs. Piper's name I ignored the rest of their words. As time continued to pass I felt more and more exhausted from everything today. It was something I wished to no longer deal with, not today, tomorrow, or probably the rest of the week. I closed my eyes, thinking of anything else that could distract me, soon enough I felt the drowsiness take over me, and I fell fast asleep.

My days continued on as normal after that, yet my mom did have a very stern talk with me before school the next day of not trespassing onto Mrs. Piper's yard again. To which, I aggressively agreed. I went to school obediently, not participating on the rumors that floated around a few days apart. No one bothered me about how I trespassed onto Mrs. Piper's property, except for a stray few who loved to hear everything just like news reporters hungry for a new story. Luckily, I had Thomas and his assertive nature had gotten everyone to leave me alone, and within 2 days I got my space back. I eventually did not even remember my encounter with Mrs. Piper, and I felt relieved, I no longer got those chills. I no longer went to that part of the neighborhood, or anywhere near that dreaded house. It all went back to how it should be.

February 2nd, 1998, the second time I saw Mrs. Piper, she had died from unknown causes and had been buried in the community cemetery. Her death came as a shock to everyone at first, we all did not know what to think, but then people excitingly spread the news like wildfire. Reactions became different all around for a time afterwards, some people became relieved they no longer had to deal with the sightings and rumors of Mrs. Piper, others had become curious as to how she actually died, speculating she took her own life. They all came up with their little theories, and shared them like the whole thing was a game. I did not join in their fun, it seemed kind of cruel to me, even if she was the strangest and scariest women I've ever met. I really did not try to focus too much on her death like other people, it just felt trivial to me. Yet, this weird feeling of curiosity constantly invaded my mind, as I sat in class and wondered, what went through in the last few months that drove her to her own demise. I hadn't a clue, it became a little thought that would pop up every now and then. Especially with all the gossip and news coming to me back and forth, from every person. Her death along with several other reports of Mrs. Piper even made it onto the news broadcast. The news was kind of boring to me, so I always avoided it. But, I did learn that her house was being emptied of all belongings and then will be sold, after some community service employees investigate and clean the house. Apparently, she left no will or any type of note that explained why she did what she did, so everything remained in mystery, and mysteries had to resolve eventually. I sat down with all of my friends during lunch, pondering the entire news I had unfortunately heard last night thanks to my dad. I blocked out Zeke's loud voice and Thomas' reprimands, as well as everyone else's individual conversations. I just kept to myself for the time, not that anyone minded. Until Zeke brought up a topic that broke me out of my thoughts suddenly.

"Hey, did you hear, a kid went missing recently?" He pipped, all heads turned to him in heavy alarm, and they all bellowed in agreement. Oh yeah, the kid from our school that turned out to be missing four days ago, Jeffery. I did not know him personally, but when I heard a kid from our school, from so close, had gone missing, I became terrified. Who wouldn't? To learn someone from our school had disappeared, it's a pretty frightening piece of news. Also, who is to say it might not happen again? The thought of that scared me beyond belief, so I tried to repress it. Unfortunately, thanks to Zeke, the discussion and fear resurfaced. They all went into a full-blown debate and discussion about it.

"I heard he has not been found yet."

"Hey wasn't he your neighbor Thomas?"

"Yeah, I'm worried he might not be found, his parents seem to be very anxious too from what I've seen."

"Isn't this, like, the 5th time this happened?"

"Well I have a contender to his disappearance." Zeke spoke with the utmost confidence, imitating the tone you would hear from one of those detective shows. Everyone stopped and turned to him in inquiry, including myself. What could he possibly know? His lips twisted into a small grin, imitating the detective pose, now he was just showing off.

"Well word from my dad is that, Jeffery had been passing by Mrs. Piper's house, and THAT was where he had been last seen. Coincidence? I think not. Obviously, the Piper residence might be behind it, maybe it's haunted." He stood tall, and crossed his arms, in an air of complete sternness. He emphasized the last part, showing an air of authority as well as adding in spooky sound effects that just decreased the amount of seriousness he had for me. The rest of the group gasped and raved in response to him. I found it unbelievable, the way he told his information, and the way he would emphasize it, geared me towards it being a lie. Also, ghosts don't exist, so obviously it was a lie. However, everyone was too terrified to be skeptical, that or Zeke was really convincing, which I doubt.

"It can't be possible can it?"

"Of course not!" I asserted breaking my long silence, everyone screaming about ghosts and kidnappings started getting on my nerves, along with the growing fear in my chest had already gotten me on edge. "First of all, Ghosts do not exist and second of all, it may very well be a coincidence, someone else could have gotten Jeffery, and he just so happened to be by Mrs. Piper's house." I argued with such an assertive tone, sounding a lot like Thomas, that it made everyone silent, usually I was not so outspoken, so this was the first time they have seen me like that. Thomas stood next to me, and then spoke up right after to me, "You're right. We can't really say much about the situation, but ghosts sound like a really 'out there' reason. Why don't we all stop and talk about something else" He persuaded the rest of the group to settle down from their yells and loud chatter, finally, everyone moved onto a new subject. I just sighed in relief we did not have to talk about the scary subject anymore. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Zeke cross his arms and pout, "You didn't let me mention something, he was in the yard when he disappeared." He grumbled to himself, but I caught what he said, and I nearly jumped. The chills I never thought I would feel again started coming back to me, goosebumps started appearing on my arm along with the back of my neck, and I could feel the fear slowly rise from the deepest pit in my chest. It might have been an overreaction, after all someone else could have chased him into the yard, but still, thinking back to Mrs. Piper's presence, it still seemed off. Nothing made sense to me, so I shook my head vigorously, and I turned to the rest of the group to listen to the rest of their conversation instead. They looked to have forgotten the subject really easily, all of them never did have the greatest attention span, I wished my stupid brain could be as forgetful like that at the moment. I never wanted to think back to my meeting with Mrs. Piper, it brought back feelings I did not want to relive. My eyes scanned all of the group of boys, and they landed on Thomas. He looked restless, which struck me as odd, because he never usually gets this way unless it was showing his parents his grades. I elbowed him slightly, making him freeze, and stare at me in shock. With everyone surrounding us and talking so loudly, there was no way for us to have a decent or quiet conversation. So, I gestured silently for him to follow behind one of the trees right next to the playground, no one ever goes near this area plus it muffled the sounds of the other kids, so I found it to be perfect spot. As I lead him along, I glanced at him every so often, he did seem to fidget as he walked, and his face held this intense pensive look. His behavior just bewildered too much, so I stopped and turned to ask,

"What's wrong?"

Thomas skidded to a stop, and he remained quiet after I asked, his lips pressed into a thin line as his eyes traveled everywhere instead of making contact with my own. His fingers fiddled together, and his mouth parted every so often as if he wanted to explain why he was acting this way, but something else stopped him. I waited patiently for him to calm down, although his change in attitude now really started freaking me out. After what felt like an eternity, he finally spoke.

"I know I'm acting weird, I'm just really nervous after Jeffery went missing." He said, taking in a gulp of air to try and calm the shiver of his voice. I nodded in understanding, Jeffery was his neighbor after all, they were literally so close and now he lives with the potential of the same thing happening to him.

"Also, what Zeke said earlier-"

"Zeke was probably just kidding, we all know he loves to overexaggerate." I tried reassuring him, but it didn't seem to work because he still frowned.

"I know that!" He exclaimed, although a little too aggressively; so, he took a sharp breath and continued. "It's just my house is much closer to Mrs. Piper's than yours, and I don't know every time my parents drive by it or I walk by it, I get this weird chill down my spine. It just feels...creepy." Again, I nodded, I didn't feel the need to say anything because I understood how he felt the same anxiety, but it was probably not at the same level. I remember he always told me about the times he went pass Mrs. Piper's house, but nothing actually happened. So, we paid no mind to it, but now is different. I squeezed his shoulder in sympathy, my eyes gave him a sympathetic look. He appreciated the gesture giving me a small smile in gratitude. After a few seconds he continued.

"Jeffery and I always walked home together when both of our parents were too busy to pick us up, and we both felt the same vibe." He paused biting his lip, and he looked around before leaning in. "I'm gonna tell you a secret, I never told anyone this," he said in a hushed whisper, "But the last week after Mrs. Piper's passing, Jeff and I passed by the house was the last time I saw him, we heard something strange coming from the house. It was faint, but we definitely heard something." My brows furrowed at the last part, with his tone he couldn't have been joking, it wasn't possible. No, it definitely wasn't possible; but the way Thomas' body trembled and his voice quivered ever so slightly, and his right hand scrunching the fabric of his shirt in a tight grip while his eyes stared into mine gave me an indication that he was not joking. I did not know what to believe at that point. Thomas backed away a bit, his head faced to side, "I did not want to tell anybody because they might not believe me. But when Zeke mentioned ghosts, even though he was acting really stupid, I felt myself conclude that. Maybe I'm too afraid right now..." His voice drifted off, he sounded disappointed, but above all he was terrified. I racked my brain for something to say, but there wasn't much, besides we were all scared. The argument of ghosts was just too insane for me.

The silence grew too heavy, the tension loomed in the air like a heavy fog, it started weighing on me with how much my heart sped up. I decided to break the silence, "I'm pretty sure your parents would not let you walk around alone now. Even if we think it's a ghost, many people just think it's a kidnapper." I said, even though I sounded uneasy, my words seemed to have comforted him a bit.

"Are your parents picking you up?" I asked.

He nodded, "Yeah, they're going to be very late though. I hope one of the teachers would stay so late." I felt troubled, staying by yourself in school when all of your friends are back home, was unfair. I wanted to volunteer to stay with him or at least offer him a ride home, but I recalled the fact that I had reading practice with my tutor at home, which meant I couldn't have friends over. Along with that Thomas' parents did not like the fact of Thomas of staying home by himself, so he had no way of letting himself in. My teeth ground together and I could feel this heaviness in my chest grow, there really was no easy solution except for him to wait by himself, and I hated the fact the we both seemed stuck.

"Listen," Thomas announced, breaking my concentration, "Thanks for listening to me. I just needed to let this out to someone who wouldn't immediately call me crazy." He lauded showing his toothy grin, his arms were still tight wound around each other, but he no longer fidgeted so much.

"So..you'll be ok then?" I inquired cautiously. I couldn't stop worrying, even after Thomas seemed to relax a bit, the tension still sat in the air like heavy metal. He nodded, "Of course! I'll call you later sometime to prove it!" He declared as he hit his fist on his chest in merriment, the confident Thomas started to show again letting my own anxiety disappear for a bit. We ended just in time, the bell rung a few seconds afterwards signaling the end of recess. "I'll race you!" He shouted already running ahead of me. I grinned following him in brief merriment, for a moment I forgot about that hefty tension that lingered in the air. Nothing really happened, so I figured why worry so much?

I couldn't have been more wrong, as reality set in and a large wave of grief washed over all of us over the news of Thomas' disappearance. I couldn't believe it at first, I didn't want to believe it. Everything was going so well, just a few days ago we were talking and racing each other. My emotions were all over the place, anger, sadness, disbelief, grief, I just couldn't accept the fact. He said he would be careful. I went into absolute shock and denial, my parents would worry about me when I shut myself in my room, or just broke down watching Thomas' picture appear on the news. What happened? Why did it happen? Why Thomas of all people? These questions swarmed my brain as I would lie in my bed, unable to fall asleep of pure anxiety and fear. I even skipped school, which was a first for me, my mom certainly didn't expect me to refuse her offer to drive me to school so aggressively. My dad wanted to argue, even drag me to school after a few days had passed, but my mom would let me be, knowing fully well how much this affects me. And even now my parents were worried about my safety even more, they would personally drive me places, and would check up on me every so often. I studied the news every day, hoping, praying that Thomas would be found, that he would return to school with that cheery grin he would always give. My hopes were dashed every time, and I never thought I would feel this much despair. Until one night, the reporter brought up Thomas again, while I was watching the news with my dad, I anxiously waited for something, anything. Finally, I heard something that piqued my interest, "His school bag was found in the yard of the late Mrs. Piper, a full investigation will be lead to see if the kidnapper is still anywhere near the vicinity." My heart pounded, and I felt my mouth dry from how big it dropped. The same event, the same event that happened to Thomas' neighbor, the whole scene came hitting me and I still could not believe my ears and eyes. My dad mumbled things about the report, but I didn't bother to hear them. I felt sick, I felt the room started to spin and my lungs constricted to the point where air couldn't enter. I rushed back up to my room, to just hide. Many things flashed in my mind, and I couldn't help but shed a few tears from the sheer insanity. The conversation I had with Thomas replayed in my head, and it kept repeating like film, so I covered my ears and hid further in my blanket. I really could not deny anymore, even if it sounded ridiculous to me still, Mrs. Piper had to be involved. A kidnapper who could take 6 children, and not get caught eventually was unheard of, or maybe I just watched too many mystery movies with my dad. But, at the back of my mind a thought tugged at my conscience, or more like a memory, of what Thomas specifically described to me. I tried hard, picking out each word, until it hit me. He told me he heard something from the house, which wouldn't have been possible since Mrs. Piper was dead. What if.... I shook my head violently, it was all so nonsensical that I would even think of that, but at the same time it oddly made a little sense.

"Ugh!" I groaned in agitation. I gripped the blanket hard in my hands, momentarily letting go. I took one of my pillows and just threw it as hard as I could at my door. It made a loud thump, and I watched my door with narrowed eyes for a second. My whole body shook, and I felt the need to just break everything in my room. Before I could actually, I heard a knock, "Ian? May I come in?" My mom asked, I didn't really give an answer, but I did open the door. Her face held a gentle smile and she walked in my room slowly, eyeing the pillow and then me. I disregarded her, and sat on my bed with tightly pressed lips and crossed arms. She joined me, but she didn't utter a word, instead she just sat next to me in silence and waited. I slumped onto my mom's side, and she chuckled a bit as if she expected it, and she carefully shifted so that her arm was rubbing my side.

"I know you're scared about Thomas," She said making me swallow back a painful feeling forming, "But, I'm worried about you, you haven't gone to school in a few days and now you don't even eat much. Did you want to talk to me about anything?" She asked, her question made a frown appear on my face, and I concentrated on getting my emotions in check. On one hand, I wanted to let everything out and just let my feelings run free, but at the same time I wanted to be alone and figure everything out by myself. Besides, she wouldn't believe what I was thinking would be true anyway. So, I hummed in response, closing my eyes, just organizing my thoughts. My mom waited patiently, which kind of surprised me, as she usually loses patience quite often.

"Mom, can you tell me about Mrs. Piper again?" I then asked, she blinked in shock not expecting the question to come from me so suddenly, or rather THAT type of question. I stared at her, right in the eyes, which also shocked her. She mumbled something to herself, it made me huff in frustration.

"Thomas' bag was found in Mrs. Piper's yard, which is very weird because Zeke told me that his neighbor had his bag found in the same place, and then everyone just keeps spreading these rumors about her ghost and--"

"Ian! Please calm down!" My mother shouted making my rambling stop. I gulped, I've done it now, that must have gotten on her nerves, however she looked at me not in a scolding way but in a more mellow, almost melancholic sort of way.

Out of impulse I just started blurting out again, "Why was she so bad? I just want to know." Because what is the truth?

My mother sighed, "Ian-"

"Fine. Don't tell me then." I bellowed out, she was stalling, and her tone showed that she didn't want to tell me still. It made me angry, so I just snapped. Because of that she became irritated, as her eyebrows crinkled together and a small glare appeared in her eyes.

"Thomas told me something about Mrs. Piper before he disappeared, and I thought maybe she had something to do with it. But she's dead, and Thomas' gone and I just want him to come back." As I finished I felt hot streams of tears fall down my face. I couldn't take it anymore, fear, sadness, anger once again engulfed me while I wailed. My mom reverted back to gentle as she took my violently shaking form and embraced me. I didn't care about how gross I must've looked with all of the tears smearing on my face, I just cared about all the heavy weight sinking in my chest and Thomas who must've been in some dark place, scared out of his mind. All the while, my mom cooed things to me in a hushed voice while she weaved her fingers through my hair. It took a while for me to calm down, but when I did I felt absolutely exhausted. My mom let a few moments pass before she got up and got a few tissues from the nightstand for me.

"How do you feel?" She asked.

"Tired." I stated while she chuckled.

"I'm sorry." She apologized, "I didn't realize you were so sad and frustrated." She sounded guilty.

"You said you wanted to know about Mrs. Piper, and why she people call her bad?" My head snapped in her direction, and I nodded vigorously. Finally, I may learn something.

"Mrs. Piper was well, she changed. I mentioned before, from the first few years I've known her she was always so bright. She always participated in community volunteer opportunities, and I would see her interact with everyone with such a wide smile on her face. Despite losing her husband a long time back. She had her son, he would be the age you are right now, and that was when she became the happiest person on earth. She was a big family person, she loved family more than anything." She let out a bitter chuckle. It caught my attention. I sat up straight, attentive to what she was going to say next. "But, a year afterwards, I don't know the exact details, but," she took a big pause biting her lip a little anxiously, "Her son had passed away, and she became so depressed afterwards. It was like watching the flame of a candle slowly burn out, and soon enough she had stopped interacting with people, and whenever I passed by her, her smile seemed so forced. Then she shut herself out, not even saying hello. She never received the right help she should have. I think she was lost, and lonely, really lonely, so I can't blame her for her behavior. I just wished she had gotten at least someone to help guide her. And I despise these rumors, they're just so ridiculous." She let out a long breath, a fatigued expression of her face and she rubbed her face in her hands. Something still did not seem right to me, however.

"Is that why she's bad? Because she changed? Or because she no longer contacted anyone?" I picked up on how my mom seemed to freeze for a split second, and I grew suspicious.

"Ian, it's probably best if I didn't tell you right now."

"That's what you said last time." I grumbled to myself, and at this point I grew too tired. After crying for while I had drained my energy, but at the same time I needed to know, because I still had Thomas and our conversation in my mind.

"Please mom." I resorted to begging, child like begging, "I don't think I can sleep either. I miss Thomas." I threw in a deep frown along with a sorrowful tone.

"It might scare you, you are young after all."

"I'm more scared of what might happen to Thomas." I argued, and she really could not argue with me with that fact. So, she swallowed her stubbornness, "Alright." She said reluctantly.

"Mrs. Piper was accused of having something to do with the passing of her own child. And she became constantly reminded of the fact of it." She declared, her voice even quivered in the end. I felt the chills come back and shivers creep on my spine, I didn't know how but I felt myself shudder from the air. Even my mom seemed to need a moment to compose herself.

"That doesn't justify all of those horrible rumors. She was only accused, and they might've been false claims." She tried turning this feeling of dread that hung around us, but the words already struck me. Along with fear, a strong feeling of intrigue took over me. And once again so many questions rung in my head, and I tried to put it together, maybe, just maybe, these facts of Mrs. Piper could lead to something. I thought it was a long shot, and still pretty crazy, but I was desperate.

"Why don't you go to sleep? You must be tired." My mother said as she pats my head softly, I respond with a silent nod. "I'm sure there will be something leading to Thomas, just try and sleep for now." She left me alone with those words. I lied in my bed, shifting and turning, and I thought and thought and thought. If the news showed no more progress, then I would have to take matters into my own hands. I closed my eyes, both hopeful and determined with the new resolve.

The days passed by, and everyday my hopes of waiting to receive any type of news on Thomas, but nothing, they were all broken. Now I my resolve kept growing because of that, and I decided to wait no longer, for I had stood by for long enough. It was stupid, a bad decision, insane, all of those combined. But, if I had to sit around with these bad thoughts of his well being or of Mrs. Piper and how she might be connected to this I think I would become the next Mrs. Piper. I went back to school after a couple of days, and with some scolding's from my dad. During recess, the usual group were a lot less talkative and playful, many of the conversations fell short, and some even had permanent frowns on their faces. They tried to be like how they were before, however with everything that has transpired it became harder. I went up to Zeke, who poked at his lunch absent mindedly, even he couldn't be his loud, arrogant self.

"Zeke, I have a question for you." I announced.

"What?"

"What time does your dad and his team usually investigate Mrs. Piper's?" I asked. He looked at me a little surprised by my question, but then his expression turned sympathetic because he also knows how worried I have been.

"I mean, I don't know that much, and sometimes he doesn't go out to investigate and instead does some other stuff. He's gone during the beginning of the week." He explained as he scratched near his temple. I should have figured, usually information like this is kept from other people, and even though Zeke's dad is apart of it Zeke is no different. I sighed, well I didn't get far, but it's a start.

"I'm worried about Thomas too, and jeez, I'm really terrified." He admitted. He hid his face in his knees, while I sat next to him silently. I really hated seeing everyone like this, bright cheery smiles from all of my friends stolen away. It made me feel more bad, and made me want to investigate Mrs. Piper's residence more.

I decided to wait, however, wait until the right time to sneak into the residence where I could finally get my own answers. I waited until the weekend, where I found the time to plan. What made it easier was that kidnapping activity according to the news had died down a bit. So, I carefully delivered my words to my mom, of my request to play with my friends outside again. She was hesitant, very hesitant, to the point where she wanted to ground me for arguing so much. I threw in a couple of white lies, that I would go to Zeke's house, because he lived closer to me, and she wouldn't have to worry about me. Plus, she could contact Zeke's mom just in case. Only then did she agree. I felt bad that I had to lie, but again I was desperate, and I just wanted to check. There was nothing wrong with that? Right? I deluded myself into thinking this was a good act for me to do. When I got the ok, I packed everything I needed first. I went out, and walked in the direction of Thomas' house. The sun already started to set once I got there, and I saw cars parked around the area. It seemed as though the investigation was not over yet, which meant I had to wait it out until it seemed clear for me. I sat down in the bushes, and I felt the rush of a strange excitement, or maybe it felt more like adrenaline. Whatever it was made my heart race. I couldn't believe I was doing this, sneaking onto private property into a seemingly haunted house, by myself just to search it. I had to reason with myself, that it was to find out just what was up with Mrs. Piper, and if everything was true, and also for Thomas. I waited and waited, and eventually peeked out of the bushes to see most of the area vastly empty, but the police tap and barriers remained. The twilight sky settled, changing from sunset to night, and it obscured a good amount of my vision. I was so glad I brought a flashlight. I cautiously stepped out, and slowly crept about the yard, I recognized the spot. This was where I first met Mrs. Piper, the chills and the feelings of discomfort stayed with me like they did back then. I transcended the stairs up to the backdoor, taking one big intake of air, every fiber of my being screamed at me to turn back and just go back home. But, I was relentless and drowning in adrenaline, and I opened the door slowly. I stepped into a kitchen, and it seemed pretty normal, the entire area enveloped in the developing darkness of the night sky, and many items were shifted around, probably because of the investigations. I ventured onward, I shone the flashlight everywhere trying to pick up on some clue, also it was becoming too dark to see correctly. I searched and searched, but I unfortunately turned up with nothing, a sense of hopelessness came over me. So, nothing really connected, and I went through all the trouble to receive nothing? Was Thomas really gone? Just as I had about given up, my ears picked up on something. It was quiet, but I heard a light, high pitched tone sounding similar to an instrument. Some kind of woodwind? Or maybe it was a music box? Whatever it was, the tune sounded really pretty, it had this delicate melody I would hear in a lullaby. I followed the sound, and as I did a thought came to me. I remembered, this must have been the same sound Thomas and his neighbor heard before! I paused, and my brows furrowed, I wondered where it was coming from and how any music could be playing at all. I continued, being lead by the alluring notes of the music, it got louder the more I walked, and eventually it leads me to a small door just at the end of the hall. It was about half the size of a regular door, and the more I stared at it I could feel sweat accumulate on my forehead while my heart sped up a thousand-fold. Why did I get such a dreaded feeling? Swallowing a large lump in my throat, I pushed the door open, and shone the flashlight. I saw the shape of stairs, leading a long way down as I couldn't see the bottom. The steps groaned under my weight, and I flinched in response. After what felt like forever, I reached the bottom, and what hit me first was a really odd smell. I maneuvered my way with my light, tripping slightly over little things I missed. Until I reached the most gruesome sight. A line of 5 boys, all of them my age, thin, malnourished, all of them corpses. The first half were already rotting away, and I had to turn away as soon as I saw them, trying not to throw up. The smell caused tears to roll down my face, and the sight burned in my mind until an everlasting image formed. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cry, I wanted to run. These must have been the kidnapped boys, so they were trapped in here. That means Mrs. Piper....

A choked sound came from behind my hand as I tried my hardest to calm down. Thomas, that means Thomas was here too?! I gripped my flashlight hard, my entire body violently trembled, and I crossed the bodies with great speed to go further in. Just how big was this room? I caught the sound of very quiet whimpers from around the corner, and I snapped the light around in fright.

"Thomas?!" He looked up, with wide eyes.

"Ian!" He cried in strained voice. I got a closer look at him, and he looked disheveled. His clothes and face were covered in dirt, and he looked thin. Dark circles sat under his swollen eyes, and his mouth sat agape as he saw me.

"Is this where you were the entire time?!" I asked in a harsh whisper.

"I-I wanted to leave so b-badly, but she wouldn't let m-me." He stuttered.

My head tilted in confusion, "She?" And then I realized who, "Mrs. Piper?" He nodded violently in response. Then everything came together, Mrs. Piper's past, the vibes, the rumors, and Zeke and Thomas' conversations. But one thing didn't make sense to me, Mrs. Piper's death, was she really dead? I saw her grave, and people saw her being buried, so it didn't make sense to me. It really wasn't the right time for me to think it over, I quickly got Thomas to stand up.

"She might come back so let's run!" He exclaimed. I observed his state once more, and he really wasn't in the best state for running, he looked ready to fall over just after standing. But, we both really needed to get out of the place.

"Think of it as a race." He then said. We both ran, crossing the line of bodies once more, and I heard Thomas whimper again. His neighbor lied among them, and I couldn't help but feel a little pity. We made it to the stairs, and I was impressed on how well Thomas kept up with my pace. Before we could even get to the first step, I heard the tune again, except this time it became much louder. Thomas froze in his place, a large fear stricken expression on his face. He was glued to his spot, even when I tried to tug him.

"S-She's..." He pointed ahead, and my eyes nearly popped out of my head. There she stood, she looked the same as when I first saw her, fragile form, and dainty limbs. She looked a lot paler from the light of my flashlight. This is the third time I saw Mrs. Piper it was unbelievable; the whole scene became unbelievable. I observed more, and in her hands, she held a small flute or pipe. Her long hair covered her face, so I couldn't read her expression very well. My heart pounded, and the heavy weight in my chest grew, I couldn't breathe.

"My son...where are you going? Are you leaving me again?" Her voice shook so much, a tone of melancholy followed. "I've been so alone since you left, they all called me crazy for missing you so much. I even played your favorite lullaby. So why are you still leaving?" Her voice grew from shaky to more demonic and her yell seemed to shake the house. I went and pulled Thomas to get him moving and we went on a full sprint up the stairs. Thankfully we were very fast, faster than Mrs. Piper, who had given chase yelling incoherent things towards us. The fear we experienced caused us to move fast, and soon enough we were on the main floor. I felt the house shake again along with her grieving moans, except it rocked more violently. We pushed ourselves further until we felt the chilling wind on our skin, and we didn't stop there, we kept going until the house disappeared from our sight.

The next day we reported to thepolice, who were shocked that the missing boy suddenly turned up along with me.My parents were even more shocked, and also, they became angry right afterwardsfor lying. I got punished for it, but I could hardly care. I still feltparanoid after seeing Mrs. Piper, but at the same time Thomas was back so anyanxiety I felt went away and replaced with great relief. Thomas and I wouldtake a while to recover from what we saw, but we stayed far away from thatarea, Thomas even moved out and away to another neighborhood. But, even if weavoid it, the images and experience we had would be burned in our minds to staywith us for a long time. And the more I thought about it, seeing Mrs. Piperagain, I still couldn't figure out if she was real or an apparition. I do know,however, of reports coming from people near the house of the soft sounds offlute music coming from it. Even to this day, Mrs. Piper stays in that housemourning over her son that left her once again