"Mom, why are we moving so far away?" Lindsay loved asking questions, and she was a very good kid, top marks in her class and she never misbehaved. She was known as the 'Golden Child' she didn't have many friends, so she didn't mind moving.

"Honey, your dad has a great work opportunity in Texas, and we don't really have much going for us here." My mom proclaimed as we packed some clothes in the car, the moving vans were already on their way too our new home. Our drive was long we were going to live in Jefferson, Texas a small down close to the Louisiana border. We drove for about 5 hours from New Orleans. I didn't mind the drive and I got to sleep. I was an only child and my parents loved me dearly. When we arrived at our home it was a 2 bed roomed bungalow. Our family weren't rich and wealthy,, but we were stable. I walked into the house doors while my parents unloaded the moving truck. When I walked in I felt a cold shiver down my spine, it was summer, so I got an uneasy feeling. The place looked a lot bigger on the inside than the outside seemed. She went to go look at the bedrooms they were at the back of the house near the garden. They were pretty similar in size and both had a window either to the side of the house or the garden. It was a really nice place. As she went to enter the bathroom attached to one bedroom she felt a gust of cold air rush through her. It unsettled her a lot and she took a seat on the carpet of the bedroom floor.

"What was that" she stuttered as she spoke trying to catch her breath. Her uneasy feeling made her feel slightly sick, but she didn't want to bother her parents with a burden. She went outside and asked her parents if they wanted help they put a few kitchen boxes in a pile and asked her to carefully stock the shelves with cups and plates etc. She did as they asked but when she was putting some of the last plates away she dropped one. As the plate scattered, she screamed then began to cry. Everyone came rushing in, her parents and the moving people. "Honey are you okay, you're not hurt are you?"

"Oh you'll be fine shake it off"

They were her adoptive parents, and they were so kind, normally she would have been screamed at for dropping something. They helped her up and cleared the plate up, the moving people had already got back to work.

Her dad walked away and helped the moving people while her Mom decided to talk to her

"You don't need to be upset, we understand your past and you are safe with us" We had a short talk, it was mainly her talking about safety and trust but Lindsay always nodded and agreed but her reactions never changed.

It had come close to 9pm and I set myself off for bed. I'd been doing my research about this small town and its the most haunted city in Texas. I layed down under my quilt, my bedroom was pretty empty I had my bed and boxes. I felt a gust of cold air sweep against my face, so I put the covers over me more. I believed I saw something in the corner but I must have imagined it. I turned my body too my left facing the window. When I saw a white figure standing in front. I was about to scream when it put its hand over my mouth and said,

"Don't scream, I'm not going to hurt you"

He slowly began to move his hand away, I didn't scream, and I just stared into his light blue eyes. He looked around the same age as me - 14 - but his expressions looked life-less.

"Who are you?" I asked him I was still majorly under my quilt.

"My names Johnny, I'm one of the many apparitions of this town"

"Why are you in my bedroom" I began to lose myself out of the quilt.

"Well this was my bedroom a year ago" Johnny looked quite modern he was a pale boy with dark brown hair and wore a Nike shirt with a tracksuit bottoms.

"And what happened a year ago?" We sat talking till around 3am when I fell asleep I had learned so much about his life and how he died August 2023. When I woke up he had gone, it was around 11am when I woke up, this was the earliest I've ever slept in. I wandered across the hall to find most of the house fully furnished, all that was left was a few boxes for my parents room and mine.

"Wow how is the house done?"

"We woke up at the crack of dawn unlike you" My father chuckled to himself, they were now sat watching a cooking show in the living room and my father didn't enjoy it much, so he went on his phone. My mother always leaves me something to eat in the microwave, I turned it on and let my pancakes warm up. I began to wash my hands when I see Johnny's smiling face in the reflection of the mirror. I smiled back and took my pancakes to eat them in the living room. As my Mom began to talk about school I felt sick to my stomach.

"You start tomorrow you don't really need anything new so you can keep your school stuff from last year" I nodded along as she spoke, I didn't want to go to school, I didn't want to be a loner again. I had a strike of idea, I thanked my mom for the pancakes and went to my bedroom and began to research: How to be popular in a new school, how to be pretty in one day! Not much of it was very entertaining, but I didn't want to be an outcast. I saw Johnny in the reflection of my mirror, and he spoke,

"What are you doing to yourself?"

"I have to look good for school"

It was now the morning before school, I was ready, and I was feeling pretty confident. Although, I haven't seen Johnny this morning, it was kind of concerning, but I didn't take it to thought. I wanted him to come with me to school maybe show me around the town for a little while. The bus too school arrives 10 minutes later, and my stomach begins to turn. New school, new me. I repeat this in my head several times, my hope to be that someone likes or atleast acknowledges me. "I sound pathetic" I say leaving my house and locking my door. Then a little voice chirps from behind me

"No you don't" It was Johnny he walks me to the bus stop, and we talk about the school and some of the people that go there. He said it was a relatively nice school, and people mainly kept to their own groups. The bus arrives, and he leaves, my hands shake as I take a seat right at the back. The bus is packed, but I keep my head down and play on my phone. However, not long after, a girl with space buns and Nike tech clothing comes to sit next to me. Everyone cheers as she walks in - she must be well known. She smiles at me and then looks down to my phone "Oh I've played that game before, what score are you on" I look at her in awe before I reply "I-I" my words stutter slightly, I can feel a flush of embarrassment go over my face. She's popular, pretty, and she's very extroverted. "I've just started, it's a fantastic game though" I can feel a peering eye over me, I turn around to look and Johnny is there staring at me, teary eyed. I can't help but feel bad but what can I do, if I start talking to him everyone will think I'mm crazy. At the next stop I run off the bus, Johnny coming with me. I begin walking and Johnny walks with me a while not saying anything. "She was my girlfriend" It'ss still silent for a while after he says this. "The girl that was talking to me?" I say, when I turn over to see his face he seems happy "You should be friends with her, I visited her a while after my death. She can see me, I wanted her to live her life though. We walk in silence, school is close,so I know it won't be long to get there. Iand Johnny walk in silence and I don't notice when he disappears till I get to the school gates. As I arrive everyone is getting off the bus, Johnny's girlfriend runs up to me "Are you okay, why did you run off the bus?" I begin to stutter before I speak,

"Sorry, I felt a bit sick and needed air, first day anxiety" I giggle, Shes kind and I hope to become friends with her throughout my time here.