CHAPTER TWO

Nannie's ghost

------------------------------------------Chapter Two------------------------------------------------------

 

Rachel helped herself to the cafeteria for a quick bun and swallowed it down on her way as the bell rang and headed straight to class. Emma and Robert were already in and were busy chatting away about school homework and arguing about project matters. Rachel slid in quietly and sat behind them and remained soundless for the first thirty minutes of the period pretending to stare at her books when she was really thinking about what had happened to her last night.

The two friends, who noticed Rachel being so silent, nudged each other questioning on why she was behaving like that and on the absence of Mr. Reynolds the rest of the eighteen students carelessly began to make a loud noise but it wasn’t for long when a woman of French decent walked inside with a handful of books and dropped it on the desk. The class who began to notice her started whispering to each other and eventually became quiet as she turned around facing the crowd who was now starring at her.

She gave a big wide smile like she knew what everyone was thinking, her pink lips glossed in light red lipstick and her eyes were of chocolate brown and with a hint of blush and eye shadow she looked amazing to the viewer’s eye.

“I am Miss Claire Dustan,” she broke in the silence, “your substitute biology teacher for this year.”

She paused for the class to get over the excitement and another new face appeared through the doorway.

The new kid excused himself inside and she welcomed him warmly and showed him to a seat next to where Rachel was.

Everyone’s eyes were suddenly fixed on him as he slowly made to the back and settled down and back to Claire.

She clapped her hands loudly to grab attention and within the rest of the time period got to know the class and by which time the bell rang.

Claire distributed some books she had been asked to give before she packed her things up and glanced at her silver wrist watch and then looked at the boy who was seated next to where Rachel was in the far corner as Robert and Emma were about to leave after Rachel.

The boy was checking his timetable when Claire called him. He looked up in surprise, his dark glossy hair shined in the light amongst his fair skin and hazel eyes.

“Aren’t you getting late?” Claire asked him.

He stood up and threw his bag over his shoulder in a rush.

“Just about to,” he replied back and went after Robert and his friends.

“Wait up!” he called out to the trio who were headed towards the library as it was their free period.

He paused in front of them as the three of them looked at him in amaze.

“Can I join you guys,” he asked them.

“Of course you can,” said Emma immediately before the other two could say anything and put an arm around his and led him to the library as Emma turned her head slightly and gave a sly smile.

“She never changes,” said Rachel nodding her head and the two of them walked on as well.

“This is David Clayhill,” Introduced Emma to her friends, “new kid on the block.” “Hey,” said David, “I just moved in from Ireland  ...my father had a transfer so we moved here.”

“That’s great,” said Robert starring at Rachel who didn’t even smile at the new guy.

“What’s wrong?” he asked her, “are you still mad at us after what happened in the morning?”

The three of them starred at Rachel waiting for an answer until she finally broke in.

“No!” she replied and started opening up to them about the weird hallucination she had experienced last night and didn’t forget to tell them about her brother’s accident that happened this morning.

“I can relate everything but what exactly happened in the kitchen?” mused in David who had a deep interest in things like this and Robert and Emma were even curious to know as well.

“What did the thing whisper into your ear?” asked Emma loudly unable to resist the temptation, causing the librarian to yell out a warning sign.

‘I don’t know’ was the long awaited answer from Rachel and the threesome suddenly went “WHAT!” and four of them were sent out by the librarian.

“Much awaited call!” blurted Emma throwing her hands up in the air.

“It’s ok… you take your time and think and we’ll pretend to believe you,” said Emma again but sarcastically and left.

“I’m not making this up!” Rachel yelled after Emma.

“We know you aren’t,” eased in Robert and took off with David.

As school hours were about to end for the day Rachel received text message from her sister with the name of the hospital and the room number in which their brother was in and was asked to come immediately.

The minute the school bell rang Rachel was out. Nobody saw her leave.

She took a bus to London and headed straight for St. Mary’s hospital in the city.

“Where’s Rachel?” asked David.

Robert Shrugged his shoulders and waved to Emma as she came running towards them.

“Sorry guys I have to go home, have work to do,” said Emma looking at Robert’s questionable expression before he could say anything. She, Robert and Rachel were childhood friends who grew up in the same neighborhood.

“I promised to see my grandfather and he’s really expecting my so called ‘friends’,” he snapped.

“No worries we can come,” David put a smile on Robert’s face as Emma gave him a blank expression.

Rachel was forgotten for a few hours within the ride to St. Mary’s hospital until after they had met up and bid goodbye to George McFinn, Robert’s grandfather, David saw Rachel’s image disappear into a corner when the three of them were walking down the hallway.

“Rachel,” he called out to her but she didn’t hear him. He ran after her but she wasn’t there.

“You must have seen someone else,’ assured Emma and the three continued but David was sure he saw Rachel.

“Hey isn’t that Mr. Reynolds’s!” cried Emma pointing to a room to their left.

Robert peeked through the glass on the window.

Dan Reynolds’s was inside, lying sick on his bed and when Robert opened he found Rachel seated aside him.

They were all surprised to see each other in an unexpected moment but before they could ask or tell each other anything a nurse who had been following them behind their backs came in and chased them out all at once and called security to make sure that they were out of the building.

“Do your parents know you are here?” asked the security officer who led them out, “or should I call a cab?”

“Option two will be nice,” jumped in Emma quickly

The security officer waved his hand to a police car that was on patrol and brought it over.

He asked the officer to drop the four teenagers off at home and he agreed.

The officer looked at them from head to toe before he asked them to get in.

No one spoke a word to each other though they had a huge urge to do so. David and Rachel were the last to get off as they lived to opposite to each other.

As Rachel sped towards her house all the lights were switched off and the doors were locked. She ran around the house calling for her sister but there was no answer.

She thought of going into David’s house but again turned around and went towards the back door which led to the kitchen. She suddenly spotted a half cracked window and threw a stone at it and broke the rest of it. Rachel put her leg in first and then tried to squeeze her self in but to her hard luck she accidentally slipped on some over flown water from a leak tap in the sink and fell down inside cutting her arm to a jagged end of glass from the window. She lay unconscious on the floor for five minutes and woke up when she felt someone tugging at her. She blinked several times as she came back to her senses and saw Frasier starring at her with his emerald green eyes glowing in the dark.

She moaned as she pulled herself back up but before she could succumb to her injuries, Frasier jumped onto her and started scratching her madly.

“Frasier it’s me!” she screamed blue murder as she tried to pull him off her.

Rachel toppled over a few chairs finally managing to stop him.

“Shame on you Frasier!” she yelled at the cat, breathing heavily whilst shivering, holding him tightly in one hand but dropped him the instant she heard a firecracker exploding outside and Frasier ran away like a scared rabbit through the broken window.

Ignoring the pain for a few seconds Rachel reached for the lights and made her way up to her room.

Another five or six firecrackers went off in the same distance and dogs started barking as Rachel viewed white smoke rising in the mid air amongst the night sky as she fell back onto the floor and eventually fainted.

 

Author's Note

Thanks to all those who read and review:-)

Reviews

[Eric Cox]

Excellent write. I like your pen on the dialogue + story within and suspenseful ending.

[Thea]

This is just SUPER! XD
Very enjoyable! And every scene you put in here is flawless!
What a chapter!
:)))

[EMF]

Each character, each action makes the story grow and be stronger. A superb chapter. Great job.

[Leslie Philibert]

What you do very well is to base your work on what you know well,that`s why it`s a good read, ....a page turner of the future.

[Coyote Poetry]

The chapter was very entertaining. I like the thoughts in the classroom. Then the story got stronger with each situation. A lot of action in this chapter. A hard day for Rachel. A excellent chapter.
Coyote