The Mysterious House: Chapter 1

Alex Taylor stared out of the wide window of his family's RV. They had been driving from South Dakota to Massachussetts because they were moving, and they had been driving for almost two days. As you can imagine, Alex was bored. Even his younger brother, John, a chess fan, got tired of their daily games of chess in the RV. Also, their little toddler sister, Emily, couldn't entertain him. Alex's eyes began to droop shut. The book that he was holding fell onto the carpet, and he began to sleep. A few minutes, or even hours later, the voice of Alex's mom pierced his dream.1

"Alex! We're at our new house! Come on out and see it!" called Lauren, Alex's mom. He yawned, stretched, and slowly stepped out of the RV. Of course, Alex knew Lauren was being ironic when she said "We're at our new house!" Lauren, and Alex's father, Jacob, had gotten the bright idea of fixing up an old, historic, broken-down, dilapidated home in a historic district of the town, because they were both carpenters. 2

Alex looked around. His family was already assembled outside, sizing up the three-story house. He gasped sharply. Jacob and Lauren were right; the house was a mess! The yard was overgrown and full of weeds. The paint was peeling all over the house. Some of the window panes were busted, and even a few of the shutters had fallen. 3

"I can't believe we're really going to live here," muttered Alex to John.4

"I know. This place is a dump." said John angrily. As if reading the childrens' minds, Lauren strolled over to the brothers.5

"Now boys, when Jacob and I fix this place up, it's going to look really nice. We're going to be the envy of this neighborhood." said Lauren excitedly. They both smiled, even though they didn't believe her. 6

Jacob took a step closer to the yard and cracked his knuckles. "Well, family, our work is cut out for us!" he said energetically. Up in the sky, storm clouds had began to gather. There was a rumble of thunder in the distance. All five family members looked up to the sky as wind began to blow. 7

"All right, gang," called Lauren as she often did, "let's find a restaurant for dinner before the storm hits." She started walking briskly toward the RV, with Jacob's arm around her shoulder, with John and Emily following in their wake. Their was a flash of lightning and the wind began to blow even harder. Alex stared at one of the top windows of the house. He blinked, and could have sworn he saw a girl's face. Yes! He could see it right now! She was gorgeous, with silky golden-blonde hair and a pale face. She had blue eyes and a lonely expression on her face, and she was staring right at Alex!8

But he blinked again, and she was gone. Alex scratched his head for a moment. Was that an optical illusion he just saw? However, he simply shrugged and climbed into the RV as the storm started.9