Genres/Tags: Paranormal, Ghosts, Romance,High school The house on Elm Estate had been abandoned for years, its grandeur and beauty slowly being consumed by the passing of time. The once-manicured lawn was overgrown, the sound of crickets and the rustling of leaves the only signs of life. But on this day, a sense of excitement and nervousness filled the air. A moving truck pulled up to the curb, and a family of four stepped out onto the porch. The parents, laden with boxes and luggage, exchanged a hopeful glance, while their two children, a boy and a girl, looked up at the house with a mix of curiosity and trepidation. The girl, with her bright smile and curious eyes, felt an inexplicable pull towards the house. She sensed that something was waiting for her inside, something that would change her life forever
Chapter 1 STRANGER IN MY ROOM
"I hope we are able to spend at least a full school session here before our parents get transferred again. I'm fucking tired of moving," Augustus complained as he helped drop the box in his hand, together with Hannah.
"You are just angry because you had to break up with your girlfriend. Stop acting like you really care," Hannah scoffed.
"And you are just angry because you are jealous. You don't even have any friends, not to talk of a boyfriend," Augustus said.
Hannah rolled her eyes at him, her long lashes batting under her glasses, and she turned away.
Even though they'd arrived hours ago, the cleaners still weren't done. According to whoever rented the house out, it had been abandoned for a good two years. Hannah wondered why nobody came before them-the house was really big, large with amazing settings.
The compound was satisfying too, but the flowers surrounding it were all dead. Hannah already thought of ways to bring them back to life; she loved flowers so much.
The Xavier family were used to changing environments. Sometimes they moved three times a year because of their parents.
Both were great surgeons, constantly transferred from one country or city to another.
As a result, Hannah never got a chance to make friends. Aside from that, she was an introvert, and it took time for her to get close to anyone. Since her parents' job kept them moving quickly, her relationships with others slowly deteriorated.
She had even experienced bullying countless times, always an outcast wherever she went. Unlike her brother Augustus, who was always the popular kid-even if they only stayed somewhere for a week, Augustus would have already gotten a girlfriend.
Augustus was just sixteen, two years younger than Hannah, but his face and body were deceiving-perfect face, perfect height, and built up. Both younger and older girls were always around him.
But Hannah was different. A nerd with no fashion sense, always wearing those big ugly glasses, baggy skirts, and blouses with shoes-the same old, ugly style.
That was why she never had a boyfriend, not even girlfriends. Who would want to walk with someone so weird-looking? And ugly, as they said.
Her curly hair made things even worse.
The cleaners gathered in the living room after they finished up the whole house, making everything look new. Those working outside and around the compound finished up as well, leaving everything clean-nothing like the dirty-looking mansion from a few hours ago.
Hannah watched as her dad paid each of them before they left.
"Kids, it's time to pick your rooms!" They heard their mom's voice from upstairs-Mrs. Xavier.
Augustus winked at Hannah and ran upstairs, probably to pick the best room.
Hannah rolled her eyes and followed, dragging her box with her. Augustus had already picked his favorite, so she chose from the remaining rooms.
The last room along the passage looked really lonely-exactly what Hannah loved. A smile escaped her lips as she opened the door.
"Whoa," she mumbled as she stepped inside.
Everywhere was neatly arranged, except for the empty wardrobe and study table. She closed the door and fell on the bed first.
"Fuck, I'm tired. So tired," she groaned.
She removed her glasses, rubbed her eyes, and checked the time. It was past 3 p.m.
"Gosh, I need a nap," she yawned, then drifted off to sleep.
☕☕
A loud shout of her name made Hannah open her eyes. To her surprise, the whole room was dark-it was late.
How long had she slept?
Getting out of bed, she turned on the light and checked the time. It was past seven.
"Gosh, I should take my bath," Hannah mumbled.
"Hannah! Come down for dinner!" Mrs. Xavier shouted from downstairs.
"Yes, Mom!" Hannah replied, slipping on her flip-flops before running out of the room. Everyone was already settled around the dining table, so she joined them.
"I already made a good search for the best school in this town, and I was told to check out Greenville High School. Let's visit the school tomorrow so you two can start immediately and catch up-no time to play," Mr. Xavier said.
"Yes, Dad," Hannah muttered and glanced at Augustus, who didn't reply-he was on his phone.
"Augustus," Mr. Xavier called.
"I heard you, Dad," Augustus muttered.
Dinner was quick. Hannah washed the dishes alone after losing to Augustus in a rock-paper-scissors game. By the time she was done, everyone was already in their rooms. She made sure the door was locked and the lights were out before heading upstairs.
After locking her own door, she undressed and went into the bathroom to take a cold shower.
Hannah spent almost thirty minutes in the bathroom before finally stepping out, drying her hair with a towel-until she suddenly noticed a figure sleeping on her bed.
It was a boy.
At first, she wanted to ignore it, thinking it was Augustus-but no. Augustus wasn't that tall. His hair wasn't blonde. And also...
"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!" Hannah screamed as she finished analyzing.
A total stranger was sleeping on her bed!
She ran out of the room and bumped into Augustus-the only one who heard her scream.
"What the fuck happened? You gave me a heart attack," Augustus snapped.
Hannah jumped on him, and he caught her.
"Someone... there's... someone in my room," she stuttered, breathing heavily.
Augustus frowned.
"Are you dreaming?" He dropped her on the floor and opened the door, stepping inside, but Hannah remained outside.
"No one is here," Augustus said after checking the whole room.
Hannah walked in slowly and looked around, but again-she saw him.
The strange boy.
Standing and leaning against the wall just beside her bed.
"Augustus! There! Right there!!" she screamed, pointing.
Augustus followed her pointed finger, but all he saw was the wall. Then, he burst into laughter.
"I think you need to start wearing your glasses to sleep now, Hannah. Your eyesight is getting worse every day. There's nothing there-what the fuck?" Augustus laughed.
Hannah swallowed hard. The boy was standing right there, staring back at her-so why was she the only one seeing him?
"You disturbed my sleep. Gosh," Augustus scoffed and left, closing the door loudly.
Hannah rushed to the nightstand and picked up her glasses. After putting them on, she checked for the boy again, but he was gone.
Maybe Augustus was right. Were her eyes getting worse? She needed to tell her parents as soon as possible.
She was still deep in thought when suddenly she felt someone behind her.
Her blood froze.
She couldn't breathe.
Slowly, she started turning-and as soon as her eyes met the boy's, those green sparkling eyes-she lost her balance and fell roughly onto the bed, her eyes still wide.
"You really can see me," his voice came out soft, calm, and cold at the same time.
Hannah swallowed.
"Who... who... who... are... who..." she stammered, unable to form words.
"Hi, I'm Baron," he smiled and waved at her.
Hannah blinked, taking her time to stare at the boy standing in front of her.
From the looks of it, his face was quite young-seventeen or eighteen, maybe. He was about 180 cm tall, his hair was burnt blonde, almost orange. His eyes were a mixture of green and grey, his lips so red, and... wait.
Was he an alien?
Nobody could be this perfect, right?
"Hello?" Baron waved, stepping closer-but as soon as he did, Hannah felt cold, almost freezing.
"Sorry," Baron moved back, and the warmth returned. Now, this was getting even weirder.
"Who are you? What are you?! What are you doing in my room?!" she yelled.
"I've been here for..." Baron paused.
"Wait, it's been six months already. Wow," Baron muttered.
Hannah was confused.
"I don't understand. You've been staying here for six months? How? The house was really dirty. We were told nobody lived here! And besides, how come my brother didn't see you??"
"I'm a spirit," Baron said.
"Huh?" Hannah blinked.
Baron said nothing.
"Can you just explain properly?" Hannah asked again.
"I'm a ghost," Baron said softly.
Hannah's eyes went wide-then she passed out right on the bed.
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