Revised: The Typical Change

My name’s Kate Louinstan. Just an ordinary girl from Texas. Dancing is my passion, art is my thrill, and adventure is my name. I love going on hikes and trips down mountains on my bike. I guess you can say I was born an adventure. My life always has new things going on. I always encounter obstacles but I open up easily. Speaking of problems, as a 17 year old girl, I have friends that I don't know too well. People I don't understand. There's this girl that has been in my school since 2nd grade.

Her name was Natalie Wilson. She moved from Alabama, and by the first week she was already popular. Natalie was a brunette with almost short, wavy hair. She had brown eyes with a tint of hazel that you can see sparkle when she's out in the sun. Just one thing, I hate her. Okay, maybe I should say this, we used to be really good friends in 4th grade. But then that typical dramatic thing had to happen, the thing in the movies. Where one girl changes and the other is left all alone because she was almost too close to the girl that left her.

I didn't see her that summer break and she was a completely new person at the start of 5th grade. She dyed her hair blonde and started to wear all of this makeup, like she wanted to become one of the popular girls. I noticed her new looks, and they seemed way off than what she used to be like. Over summer vacation, I always tried to contact her but I would get her “Sorry I'm busy” or “Can't hang out” text messages. After a long summer without seeing each other, I happily skipped over to her with a huge smile on my face because it's been so long and I was happy to see her. She was facing the other way back turned to me. I came up from behind and tapped her back, “Hey Natalie!” She turned around, looked at my face with the world's dirtiest look ever. I was so confused by what that look may have meant.

“Was it her birthday?”

I thought to myself for a quick second but realized it wasn't because her birthday is in the winter and it's only September. I bugged her again and asked her about her new look. She looks over at me and says “I'm talking to Sophia right now, so bye.” My gosh, that was absolutely rude behavior, especially since we were great friends. Not only great friends, we were best friends. Without saying anything. I gave Natalie a blank face and walked away. Now my mind was boggled up, nothing added up to what just happened. I started feeling a slight headache. We didn't talk at all that day, and for the next week, and then for a few months (yes, even past her birthday). We never said words to each other, we never worked together for an assignment, we tried to not even exchange looks.

That brings me back to the present. Junior year in high school, and still no words. I've moved on from that period of my life where I was unbelievably lost as to how I lost my best friend but looking back at it, it seemed to be because she wanted to be a popular. What even is popularity? It makes no sense to me.A bunch of girls who wear excessive makeup, dress too fancy to go to school, and hang out with other people who do the same thing? Popularity is the most talked about conversation is high school, everyone talks about. Whether you're at the bottom of the “high school social pyramid” or the top, it's basically all all gossip.

Speaking of gossip, Natalie started gossiping a while back. She told all the other popular girls all about us. She made up a stupid story about me. The rumors just started spreading all over the school. I mean that's so far off from what she can do. Natalie had a desire to ruin my life and make sure everything about my personal life was known worldwide. How can a person change over one summer? I got carried away. These were the thoughts going through my mind while sitting in Spanish class. I was perfectly fine with not having her in my life. She wasn't a real friend anyway. She sits in the third row to the left in Spanish. I sit in fourth row to the right. At Least I don't have to be up close to her. She often uses her phone during class and takes selfies, probably to post on Instagram later. Then puts a caption like “Ugh spanish class was so boring today!” I don't know her anymore. I have my own friends, friends I know I can trust. Well, high school has been great for me so far, just one more year and I'll be out of here forever! That also removes me from the “high school social class girls”. I hate how freshman come into the building on the first day knowing who stands where, who can sit with who at lunch. It's not a rule to sit with someone new, but if that happened I bet the girl who sat down would have gotten eyes from all around the lunch room. I hate high school.

I got carried away. These were the thoughts going through my mind while sitting in Spanish class. I was perfectly fine with not having her in my life. She wasn't a real friend anyway. She sits in the third row to the left in Spanish. I sit in fourth row to the right. At Least I don't have to be up close to her. She often uses her phone during class and takes selfies, probably to post on Instagram later. Then puts a caption like “Ugh spanish class was so boring today!” I don't know her anymore. I have my own friends, friends I know I can trust. Well, high school has been great for me so far, just one more year and I'll be out of here forever! That also removes me from the “high school social class girls”. I hate how freshman come into the building on the first day knowing who stands where, who can sit with who at lunch. It's not a rule to sit with someone new, but if that happened I bet the girl who sat down would have gotten eyes from all around the lunch room. I hate high school.

Fingers Crossed

A young girl, about 11 years old, living in a small town in the suburbs of Tennessee. Her name was Jackie and she lived with her family which included, both of her parents. She was an only child, and frankly she didn't mind it, Jackie loved having her parents to herself all the time. She enjoyed getting some privileges like having a room all to herself. A wide room with pretty lavender colored walls, beige curtains with purple polka dots all over. The curtains matched the drapes quite well. The house we live in is pretty old, mostly everything squeaks and creeks. The door hinges make noise every time it's opened or closed. The rims of windows are chipped to the wall. Every room has an antique color or an old style of housing except for my room.

After my grandma passed away we had an extra room. I felt bad for taking grandma’s room, and changing it to be my own. I Always have a way of wondering so far into things it feels like it's reality. I wonder about grandma all the time, and I miss her so much. She always wanted the best for me, and wanted be to be very successful. My room, which was grandma's room, used to be painted and decorated just like the rest of the house until she died. When she passed away, I got her room and I changed it all up to be colorful and more appealing to me. The chipped paint, the old stains, the rusted hinges were all re-done.

My friends don't like coming to my house, they think it's creepy because of all the noise. They tell me that I have a ghost in my house haunting us or something stupid like that. It's not even believable, ghosts aren't real, obviously they're made up for horror movies and stuff. My friends are just paranoid because they love to watch horror movies and freak themselves out, then they come to my house and try to convince me that it's haunted. I never believed them because I've never done anything that could haunt my own house, well that's what I thought until last month at least.

It was just an ordinary day in my hometown and I was walking back home from school. The place I live in is the countryside, so country that seeing a cow on the street is completely normal. As I was saying, I was walking home with my backpack filled with textbooks and assignments all due the next day. The amount of homework I get is ridiculous I don't think teachers understand that students have more than just one class. My backpack was weighing down on me like a rock over a pebble. On my way home I kept feeling weird, as if someone was following me. I thought I saw a shadow but every time I turned around there was nothing at all. It was just me and the rocky dirt road ahead.

After the long walk back home, I still felt something in my way as if the air surrounding me was a big block of shaped air curving in onto me. It was hard to do other things, it was hard to move, it was hard to think when all I could wonder about was the fact that my body felt trapped. Maybe I was getting sick or something.

Three hours passed and I finished my work and chores right before my parents came home from their long day at work.

“Hello sweetie, how was your day?”

“It was fine mom. I just need to tell both of you guys something and it's kind of weirding me out a little.”

“Okay go ahead honey, we're listening.” My dad said to me as a way to comfort me because I told them everything and they knew that. They know I tell them everything about my life, no lies, no secrets. My parents were my best friends, they've always wanted the best for me.

“Well… as I was coming home I started feeling something around me. I kept seeing shadows but they kept moving when I turned to take a better look. I think there might be a ghost or something coming for us.” The second those sentences came out of my mouth, I could tell my parents had the most confused expression on their faces. They probably think I'm insane or something now.

“Sweetie, I think you're just seeing things. It's okay, help me and dad make dinner and get your mind off of this.”

I helped them make our dinner and we ate it together around the dinner table. Couple hours later it was time for bed. School nights are the nights I have to get a goodnight’s sleep for all the work I do everyday for 7 hours. I head upstairs and tripped on the way up the stairs. I checked the stairs to see what I tripped over, but there was nothing there. My brain started thinking back to earlier this afternoon with the ghostlike things happening. I hoped with my fingers crossed that it wasn't what I thought it was but my mind was racing, so fast, I knew it the ghostly figure that came back.

While brushing my teeth all I was thinking about was “why me?”, “what did I do?”, “why would I be haunted?” I spit out the foamed up toothpaste into the sink and washed my face. I looked at the mirror and stared straight into my eyes for a few seconds telling myself to relax, it's probably nothing at all. Then I looked further into the mirror, which were the shower curtains. They moved. I swear on my life they opened and closed themselves. I ran out of the bathroom and into my bedroom, closing the door behind me. I laid back against the door, my head was facing the ceiling and I told myself to go to bed. I must be over thinking for the tests I have tomorrow at school. I walked and bounced onto my bed, closed my eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.

Wind blowing, trees swaying, floors creaking, I awoke to all of this, all so suddenly. As I opened my eyes and turned to my side I saw a big shadow climbing itself up the side of my wall, getting bigger and bigger I looked at it, stared at it.

“Eyes open dearrrrrrrr.”

It was a squeaky voice of an old woman. I was terrified and I didn't know what was happening. I kept my eyes open for a while, I couldn't close them I was too scared to.

“I've come back to take back what's mine.” Said the old voice.

It was definitely an old woman. Definitely someone I knew. She wanted something from me, but what do I have that is hers?