I walked off the bus and onto the cold, gray sidewalk. It had been an unusually cold day for beginning of summer, but it was also the last day of school. I didn't like the last days of school because they're depressing. I'm going to have to leave everyone! All of my friends, the guy I likes (Johnny Greyborne), and my poor little dog Sebastian that I have to leave with my 21 year old brother and his stinky apartment. This summer I am going to my great aunt Ella's house because my parents were going on a cruise and leaving me at great aunt Ella's to rot!
As I was packing my bags I thought about how the next year I would officially be an 8th grader. The thought of being older made me think of my great aunt Ella with her gray hair and wrinkles. I shuddered at the thought of spending a whole summer with her. Then I went into the bathroom to brush my long blonde hair. I shut my eyes to try and imagine some good points of this trip. "Well I haven't seen her house yet. Maybe it's an old English house like down on main street. Or maybe she has a pet."
These thoughts made me feel a tiny bit better. I took the duffel bags down the stairs and set them by the door. "Terri are you ready to go?" Emily (My mom) asked.
"Yeah mom just let me get my two other backpacks." I exclaimed while walking up the stairs.
"Well hurry up, you know your great aunt Ella doesn't like people being late. She's 'too old fashioned for you' remember?"
I tried to walk trough the mess I call my bedroom to find the other bags. I stepped on something squishy. "EW what is that?" I screeched.
It turned out to be a half eaten turkey sandwich from the previous week. I knew I shouldn't have fell asleep with my sandwich next to me. When I grabbed my bags I noticed something on the floor. (Which was very hard considering how messy it was in my room) It looked shiny so I walked over to it and yanked it on the ground. "Wow this is cool! Its… its…what is it?"
It was a ring detailed with rubies and sapphires with a gold band. It was the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. I put it on my right hand ring finger. "It fits! A little tight, but oh well." I happily said.
" Come on Theresa!!!" Emily yelled from the bottom of the stairs.
Terri quickly brought her bags down to the door and prepared herself for her last time being in her house this whole summer.
The ride there was really anticipating. I was listening to my ipod the whole ride. Trees flew by the window, and I said goodbye to all of them as we rode past because I wouldn't see them until the end of the summer.
When we arrived at Ella's house I felt hesitant for some reason about going in. there were no other houses around. It was just woods, woods, and more woods. Except for one other gloomy house across the way behind a bunch of trees. I didn't know what it was but it just felt weird. The house was nothing like I expected it to be.
It was an old dark gray house with black shutters and a short chimney sticking out of the top. "A little gloomy don't you think?" I said, but my mom obviously wasn't listening because she walked straight up to the porch and hit the knocker on the door.
A wrinkly old lady opened the door. "Hi Emily how are you? OH this must be Theresa!!!" she exclaimed.
"Hi. Most people call me Terri." I said annoyingly.
"Well that would be unladylike of me and I am very strict about that. You are getting so big!" Ella said.
She squeezed my cheeks. I hated it when my family members do that. It bugs me a lot and I was about to rip her hands off of my face with my nails when my mom gave me a look that said be nice. I shrugged it off and waited for her to stop. "Well I seem to have everything under control so you can be on your way Emily. Have fun on the shmansy pantsy cruise." Ella said.
My mom left to the car and I almost ran after her. How could she leave me with this crazy old lady? "Let me show you around Theresa."
"Ok well first show me my room so I can put my things in there." I said
"Sure." She said in a weak voice.
We started walking down a dark hallway and we stopped at a small door. She opened it and I couldn't believe it. I was going to sleep in a... a. BASEMENT? A scary, dark, and cold basement? Was she serious? "Bring your stuff down there. There is a bed in the corner and there are shelves and a bathroom down there. When you're ready I will show you around." Ella said while walking in the other direction.
I was shocked. I turned on a light that was at the bottom of the steps. It was dim and looked old. I carefully walked down and looked around for the bed. Is this what she calls a bed? It was a tiny wire headboard, olden times bed. It had a thin sheet on the top. I set the duffel bags on the floor and dropped my backpack on my bed. Dust flew everywhere. I coughed loudly and dropped to the floor. My finger was stinging and was searing in pain. The ring was tightening around my finger. "AHH it burns!" I screeched.
I scrambled to the stairs and fell on the first step ending up hitting my head sharply on the corner of the step.
When I awoke it was dark outside so I couldn't see anything. The light must've gone out. I reached to my head and felt the blood on my fingers. I needed to get upstairs. I stretched my arm out for the railing and walked up the cold steps. I opened the door and walked through the hallway to the kitchen. I took some ice from the freezer and put some in a paper towel. I lifted it up to my head and looked at my ring finger. There was a scar there but the ring was gone! Where could it have gone? I looked on the ground to see if it had fallen off in all of the confusion. It was gone.
Where is Ella I wondered. How could she not have heard me scream? Wouldn't she have been wondering where I was the whole time? "Ella???" I yelled.
Nothing. The only thing I heard was the echo of my own voice. "Ella where are you?" I screamed again.
Still nothing. Then I walked up the creaky stairs and looked in every room. When I came to the end of the hallway I walked into the master bedroom and I couldn't believe my eyes.