Dare to Read It!: Moving Into a Haunted House

Richard and his little brother, Jeff, are very excited about moving into their new house with their family. Everything about the house seems great ... until things start getting creepy. As the days go by, Richard begins to notice more and more strange things. At first he believes Jeff has simply become more of a prankster, teasing his brother from the shadows and making Richard think he's seeing ghosts. But things are getting worse, and it can't all be blamed on Jeff. As the oddities begin to escalate, Richard tries to tell his parents he believes there may be something wrong with the house. They don't listen to him, however, and the strange happenings continue. With his parents' reassurance, Richard begins to doubt that there are ghosts in his new house after all. His doubt is short-lived, however, for his suspicions are soon proven correct when he notices a girl he's never seen before in a family photograph taken in the house. Can this be the ghost-the cause of all his bad luck? And if so, how can he get rid of her?

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DARE TO READ IT!Moving into a Haunted HouseBy Lee Ching KaiTrafford PublishingCopyright © 2012 Lee Ching KaiAll right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4669-3146-6Chapter One If you are reading this book, you are brave enough to read it, because you, Richard, are probably in danger. Want to know more about what will happen to you? Good. Just continue reading. The Sunday evening sun was shining feebly in the navy blue sky. Sometimes, the grotesque clouds overhead blocked the sun, causing mild darkness to sweep over the area. At other times, the clouds moved away, and the beam of golden light poured over the land and gilded the surfaces of gnarled branches, rocks and roofs. Then, the drowsy silence that hung over the Napolian Neighbourhood was shattered by the crunch of gravel and clunk of car doors being closed. "Yay!" I shouted with joy. "We're moving into the new house!" Jeff, my brother, who always liked to make funny faces, trod up the road and opened the wrought-iron gate which was hot due to the heat from the sun. Jeff had a pair of blue eyes, a pointed nose, blonde hair and fair skin, and so did I. My friends always called me `bluey' because of my blue eyes. It was a nice nickname. Besides, I was kind of headstrong. Mom walked into the yard and opened the panel door for us with the keys. "Come sons, let's go into the house and explore what is inside there!" said dad, closing the car door with a solid bang. Jeff and I bounced into the room with immense joy. I walked into the living room and it was pitch-dark inside there. The light was not open yet. Thus, I groped for the switch on the wall and switched it on. Tuck! Wow! It was nicely decorated! There was a soft sofa at the centre of the living room and a jet black television behind the wall. In addition, there was a lacy-covered coffee table in front of the squashy couch. A bead pendant lamp was dangling under the ceiling. It was very beautiful. Suddenly, Jeff pinched me on my back and a flash of pain coursed down my back. "Ah!" I moaned impatiently, rolling my eyes anti-clockwise. "Whatcha doing, huh?" "Serves you so right," said Jeff, making a funny face at me. "Rat face." "Come Richard and Jeff, stop playing around with your rat face. Help me out with these stuffs," said dad who was carrying a box of accessories out from the car. Help him to carry the box? It's a piece of cake. Jeff and I quickly rushed to the yard at dad's command and helped him out with the box. Urgh, it was quite heavy. Not good. It's not a piece of cake. It's ten pieces of cakes. Meanwhile, mom was surveying the kitchen thoroughly. Mom was our homemaker and she liked to cook delicious food for us. "Health is wealth." This was what she always said. Yes, I thought that it was very true, as health is the most important thing in the world, no matter how high-heeled someone was. To mom, health was much more important than wealth. Also, she liked to wear her pink blouse and slim-fitting quarter pants that she had bought during Christmas last year. They had become her trademark. She said that `pink' was her most favourite colour. What about me? I liked `blue'. Why? Don't ask me why. I was born with it. Dad, Jeff and I carried the box and we put it onto the table in the dining room. Dad opened it—it was packed with shampoos, clothes and many others. I walked to the kitchen to wash my hand, but there was something that scared me ... something which was creepy ... something which was frightening ... A hand stretched out from below the kitchen sink and crawled up my leg. It was a ghost. If it was not a ghost, it must be a spirit ... I was petrified ... My heart was thumping madly ... My throat tightened and my blood was running cold ... what could that be ... "HA!" said Jeff who had hid himself below the kitchen sink. I gave him a small kick on the bottom and he groaned with pain. My face had gone very yellow. "Hey, don't play under the sink, it's filthy!" said mom, warning us impatiently. "Okay, mom," said Jeff in a perfunctory tone, climbing out from under the sink with a suggestion of laughter. I felt kind of bored. So, I went to the end of the living room, faced the kitchen and closed my eyes. I walked on the floor slowly, counting my footsteps until I reached the kitchen. "One, two three, four, five, six ..." There were sixty steps in total! That meant our house was quite big! And what's more, I felt an urge to survey my own bedroom upstairs. "Hey Jeff, why don't we have a look at our bedrooms?" I said joyously. Jeff nodded without saying anything. Thus, Jeff and I trudged up the stairs to have a look at our bedrooms. I opened my room, and it was full of spider webs. It was impossible. I had just cleaned the room a fortnight ago, it could not be so dirty now. Without bothering to find its cause, I fetched a pole from the bathroom and swept away the webs. During the process, I was so sloppy that I had breathed in the webs into my nostrils, causing me to pick my nose immediately. `Yuck, disgusting!' I complained to myself, a frown between my eyebrows. After sweeping away the webs, I put the pole back to the bathroom and washed my hands thoroughly. Then, I splashed some water onto my face and let the water drip down my cheeks. Ah ... so very refreshing ... I trod out of the bathroom and looked at my own bedroom. There was a plush bed sitting at one corner, a dark brown wardrobe which was newly bought, and a writing desk which was painted brown. Besides, a hazel portrait was hanging on the wall. "RICHARD AND JEFF! COME DOWN! WE'RE GOING OUT FOR A LUNCH!" said dad from downstairs. Alright. I was living in a single-storey house before, so dad would call me softly. But now, I was living in a double storey house, which meant dad would call me loudly whenever he felt he needed to do so. Fine. I rolled my eyes. Jeff and I walked down the stairs and went to the yard straightaway. Chapter Two Dad and mom got into the car too. We fastened our seat belts and dad turned the key in the ignition and started the car. Vroom! "Where are we going to eat?" asked dad. "In Katie Restaurant!" said Jeff excitedly. "Okay," said dad. During the journey, I could see a few people on the road. Just a few. Not more than ten people. What a strange neighbourhood. I looked out the window; the surrounding whirred past in a blur of grey. Sunlight bounced off the window like ping pong balls. After five minutes, we arrived at the Katie Restaurant and got out of the car. Several people were eating in the restaurant. They were talking and exchanging remarks. Some were as silent as cats. When we sat at a table at one corner, the waiter shuffled towards us and handed us the menus. I flipped the pages over and over: Food Chicken chop ABC sauce chicken chop Fried chicken chop Lamb steak Excel One lamb steak Three mixed lamb steak Fried rice Fried noodles Mutton rice Ostrich meat rice Drinks Plain water 100 plus Coca cola Pepsi Sarsi Orange juice Watermelon juice Honeydew juice Iced lemon tea Apple juice Refreshments 1-scoop ice cream 2-scoop ice cream French fries salad I picked one food that piqued my interest. "Chicken chop please," I said to the waiter, and the rest of my family members ordered theirs too. Then, there was a young man who was wearing white clothes and white pants walking up the platform in front of the restaurant. He sang a song to us. Wow! His voice was just nice! I meant he could create albums and sell them in the CD shop! We clapped our hands to congratulate him. "He can sing kinda well, right?" I said, a smile playing over my face. "Yeah. He can really sing. He's a great voice," said dad, agreeing with me. After ten minutes of waiting, our food was served one by one. My chicken chop smelled very nice, and when I tasted it, I found that it was the most delicious chicken chop I had ever eaten. Then, a waiter passed by and whispered at my ears, "It is a human flesh, enjoy it." I was astonished to hear that. "What are you talking about? It's not funny!" I said, rolling my eyes at his sarcastic joke. I was quite sure, no, should be very sure that he was only joking to shatter the ennui, and it was absolutely not funny at all! I cut the chicken chop with the knife and shoveled it into my mouth. Jeff sipped at his orange juice with pleasure. After fifteen minutes, we finished our lunch and we got out of the restaurant. I had just got my driving license, so it was my turn to drive the car. "Hey dad, let me drive the car, okay? I want to give it a try," I said. "By all means!" said dad with a sweet smile. "Come, take the keys, boy." He flung the keys at me like a boss and I took it. Then, I got to the front seat and positioned myself into a comfortable posture. I turned the key in the ignition and the car engine thrummed into life. We reached our new house within five minutes. But I felt that this house was a little too creepy. `A waiter told me that I was eating human flesh in the restaurant just now,' I thought with fear. `And now I felt that the house is a little too creepy. Am I thinking too much?' Perhaps I got to find some friends so that I would not think too much. So, I got out of my house and had a slow walk along the road. There was a row of knee-length, well-trimmed hydrangea bushes along the road, and the house some way in front of me was full of lush greeneries. On my way, I saw that the light in my neighbour's house was on, so I went to the house and knocked on the door, hoping that I would be able to make some new friends today. Tok. Tok. Tok. The door opened with a creak. It was a lady standing in the doorway. She was wearing a velvet blouse and a pair of silver hoop earrings. She had long dark hair and a pointed chin. "Hi auntie, nice to meet you. I'm your new neighbour. I'm Richard." "Hi, nice to meet you too. I'm Jane. Come in please," she said with a companionable smile. Then I heard applause and cheers from upstairs. They were having some sort of party up there, I guessed. "What are they playing up there?" I asked Auntie Jane out of curiosity. "Oh, they're playing cards. You can join them if you want to," she said with a smile. So, I walked up the marble-white stairs. There were four bedrooms upstairs, and there was an aquarium on the passageway which was quite dark. The fishes were very colourful. Judging by the source of the sound, I could know that the noise came from the first room. Thus, I knocked on the door. "Come in," someone said from behind the door. I opened the doorknob. Creak. Several young boys were playing cards in the medium-sized room. They were friends to one another, I thought. I walked to them confidently and introduced myself. "Hi, everyone. My name's Richard. Nice to meet you all." "Nice to meet you," they said almost in unison. "Can I play with the cards as well?" I asked them politely. "Sure!" said one of them. "Let me introduce myself. I'm Hugh." "I'm Kerlin." "I'm John." "I'm Wong." "I'm Lee." "And I'm Sam." I grinned to them awkwardly. I sat beside Wong who had Asian black hair and brown skin. I loved brown skin. Of course. Because I had fair skin. "Do you know the rule of the game?" said Kerlin kindly to me. "I know. Of course I know," I said with an overdone grin. Chapter Three I sat down on the floor and joined them in the game. After playing for half an hour, I felt thirsty and I wanted to have some drink. Hence, I asked them, "I'm thirsty. May I have some drink? "Yes," said Lee directly. "There's a kettle in the kitchen downstairs. You can have some water in there." "Okay. Thanks," I said, a smile playing over my face. I walked out the room and much to my astonishment, I saw the door of the third room was ajar. Immediately a thought flashed into my mind, `There's no one else up here except for my new friends in the first room, and the door was not open when I walked up here just now. Who could that be?' Just that moment, I saw a shadow moving in the room. Prompted by immense suspicion, I walked towards the room and approached the door ... I was scared ... I was devoured by sense of fright ... Who could be inside the room ... I put my hand on the door. I shoved it open ... No. There was no one else in the room. It was totally weird. I felt as though I was inside a haunted room. My hair was bristling with fear. Was it a ghost or something? I was scared. I felt cold and warm at the same time. I swallowed hard. I felt the heat of fear expanded in my body. Very quickly, I walked out of the room with utter fear and closed the door. Then, I walked down the staircase and treated myself with some plain water in the kitchen. `Who could that be?' I thought, the fear still lingering in my mind. `It can't be a ghost!' Ignoring the question that whirled in my head, I walked up the stairs again to join them in the first bedroom. I tried to forget about what I had seen just now by immersing myself in the game and it was so fun that I had successfully forgotten it, though it was just temporary. "Hooray! I'm the winner of the day!" yelled Wong with pleasure. Kerlin and Wong slapped each other a high five and a low five. I felt happy for him. After that, all of us walked out of the room. Lee, John and Wong bid auntie goodbye. Only that moment I knew that Hugh, Sam and Kerlin were actually brothers. Lee told me that he lived in the Polin Neighbourhood which was quite far away from my house. After bidding farewell to all my friends, new friends of course, I trod into my house and got straightaway into Jeff's room. I told Jeff what I had seen just now and he was scared to hear that too. "What? A shadow? There's no one else in the room?" he said incredulously. "It's not funny at all." I rolled my eyes clockwise. "You think I'm joking?" I said with wrath. "I really saw that just now!" I swung a bolster at him and he let out a painful `ouch!'. I reached out my hand to take the pillow but he hauled it so hard that it nearly tear. "Hey! Stop that, bro! You're tearing it!" said Jeff crossly. I let the pillow go and he was hauled backward by the inertia. He slumped onto the mattress with a sickening thud, just short of knocking his head onto the wall. "Ah!" he moaned. "It's your fault!" "It's your fault. Who asks you to not believe me?" I said, and stuck out my tongue to taunt him. Chapter Four I was inside the school again. I was listening intently to the lesson conducted by our Chemistry teacher, Madam Helena. She was a nitpicking spinster who was partial to finding flaws in other people and criticizing them sharply. All of us called her `Madam Criticize'. I hated her. Of course. If she was not a teacher, I would have shouted `you're a jerk!' right into her face. She was the teacher, the merely teacher in the school, who I detested. When she was teaching, I gazed outside the windows. `How beautiful the scenery is ...' I thought. `How nice it'll be if I can walk out of the school right now.' After a moment or two, she managed to chance a glance at me and noticed that I was not paying attention. "I suppose none of you in this classroom will dare to let your attention wander courageously in your own daydream," said Madam Helena. "Are your ears at me, Richard!" My spirit rose a further few notches. Her words had as though transformed into something which made me jump out of my wits. "Y—Yes, madam," I spluttered, my hands trembling with slight fear. "You're not paying attention," she warned. "If I ever see you divert your attention again, you'll be put in detention, understood?" "Yes, madam," I said fearfully. I could see the two friends sitting in front of me sneering at me as though I had done something very terrible in the classroom. They were Fred and George. I hated them too. If I was given a chance to say which one I hated the most, I could hardly choose one as I hated three of them more than anything else. I rolled my eyes impatiently and sighed inwardly. The rest were listening to Madam Helena very intently. Joyce was the apt student in the classroom. She always scored very high marks in examinations. I envied her so much. I liked her. She was very hardworking. I would not have the chance to see her scoring lower than ninety marks in exams in my entire life. Don't laugh. It's the truth! If you're laughing, you're underestimating her ability. On the other hand, Alfred was the worst student in my class. He always got low marks in the exams, to put it mildly. If I wanted to say it directly, he failed in almost every one of his tests. What about me? It was a good question. I was a moderate student. I often scored about seventy marks in exams. I was satisfied of the score. I did not have high expectation when it came to the matter of scores. (Continues...) Excerpted from DARE TO READ IT!by Lee Ching Kai Copyright © 2012 by Lee Ching Kai. Excerpted by permission of Trafford Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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