New Chapter! Yay!
Disclaimer: I do not own My Babysitter's a Vampire
"I'm telling you that Cyborg Boy belongs with Genevieve!" Rosy insisted, defending her ship of two comic book characters in her latest favorite comic book, Cyborg Boy.
Betty was arguing against this romance as she walked with Rosy and Eden to their lockers. "Cyborg Man is an awesome, crime-fighting android. Genevieve is a rich, prissy, cheerleader who probably couldn't even score a white belt in karate."
"But that's the lowest belt," Rosy protested.
"Exactly!" Betty said quickly in an effort to pretend she had already known that. "My point is, she can't fight. And Cyborg Boy deserves to have someone who can kick butt alongside him and rescue him when he's in danger."
"And who do you want him to end up with? Sparkle Girl? That girl is so desperate."
"At least she can throw a punch!"
Rosy rolled her eyes.
Eden spotted Sam staring at them as they passed him. She debated acting like she had no idea who Betty and Rosy were before realizing that Sam already knew they were all friends. "Guys," she whispered, "can we please discuss this in a Sam-free zone?"
Betty noticed Sam's looks and giggled. "Why? Maybe he's into geeks."
"Um, if he were into geeks, I don't think his ex-girlfriend would be a vampire."
"Well, she's his ex for a reason."
Eden shook her head, but held out hope that Betty's words were true.
Sam was staring at Eden.
She had her short hair pulled into a frantic ponytail, with strands hanging loose from the front and back. She was wearing a more fitted shirt as opposed to her baggier ones. It showed off how skinny she really was. Sam thought it was a nice look for her.
He heard her and her friends talking about cyborgs and cheerleaders but could barely make out any of their conversation since he didn't understand "geek."
Sam tore his eyes away to give Eric his attention as he asked, "So, how was your date last night?"
"Great!" Eric exhaled. "There's something about Kate that's just so. . .appetizing to me."
Sam frowned at his choice of words.
"We went out for dinner, then we went to see Super Dead IV."
"And can I assume that dinner was in a restaurant and not in her neck?" Sam questioned.
Eric looked offended. "Maybe it was both. Why don't I leave you to wonder about it?"
Eric grabbed a textbook from his locker, along with a pen and notebook, and stormed off.
Sam felt bad for being so accusatory, but he couldn't help but be suspicious.
Eden, Betty, and Rosy were still have their Cyborg Boy debate when Eden saw Mr. G.
"Hey, Mr. G," she greeted.
"What ya doing, Mr. G?" Rosy asked, watching him pull out a small trophy from Whitechapel's nearly empty trophy case.
"Say goodbye, girls," he said. He had on his go-to necklace, the charm a classic silver peace sign and the rest a thin, brown rope. It went well with his sandals to give him that all-together hippy vibe. "I'm putting this old thing in storage," he explained, holding up the trophy and looking at it fondly.
"But isn't that, like, the only trophy this school has ever won? Ever?" Eden asked.
"Yes," Mr. G nodded, "But it sends a bad message. You know, it gives off a bad aura. Winning isn't everything."
Eden and Rosy made eye contact, silently communicating to each other that the both of them thought that was an odd way to look at it.
"We may come last in points," Mr. G went on, "But we come first in so many other areas."
"Like point avoiding?" Betty chuckled. Rosy and Eden laughed along with her.
"Here, can you hold this?" Mr. G asked Eden, handing her the trophy.
"Of course." The minute her fingers brushed against the cold, dusty, silver surface, this cold sensation swept through her entire body as a blue spark emitted from the trophy and a strange man in a muscle shirt with "Whitechapel" across the front suddenly appeared before her.
"I smell nerd!" he said, scrunching his nose as if taking in a bad odor. He had a whistle around his neck.
He ruffled Betty's hair. Betty immediately glared at Rosy who was busy picking dirt out from her fingernails. "Why'd you do that?"
Rosy stopped her task to shoot Betty a confused look.
The man walked past Betty and Rosy, straight towards Eden. He did a double take when she met his eyes. He had a short, black afro and a mustache. "Woah. You can see me, chicken legs?"
"Um. . .yeah, I guess. Who are you?"
He crossed his brown arms. "I am a winner, kid. You're probably unfamiliar with the term. Or actually, maybe you are. You seem like the kind of kid who'd spend all day in a dictionary."
Less like dictionary. More like comic book and romance novel.
"I was the best coach White Chapel ever had. That was before it was overrun by nerds." He nodded at Eden. "Like you."
Eden was offended. Yes, she was a nerd. But hey! He shouldn't go around making assumptions. Eden didn't say so, though, because she knew he had been right about her.
"Well, what do you want?" Eden asked him.
"Firstly, thanks for letting me out of that there trophy. It feels great after all those years. Now, I can finally do things like this." He snapped his fingers. A locker door opened from behind Eden and slammed into the back of her head.
"OW!"
After that fiasco, Eden, Betty, and Rosy went retrieve a yearbook from the school's library. Now, they were eating lunch in the cafeteria while Eden flipped through the pages.
"Here he is," Eden said, pointing to a picture of a coach. "Coach Ed. It says he was the gym teacher here thirty years ago."
"He's ancient," Rosy commented.
Betty and Eden, as well as the coach who was sitting in the table behind them, stared at Rosy with puzzled expressions. Thirty years ago was ancient? What would have been one hundred years.
Betty leaned in close to Eden and whispered, "Is he here right now?"
Before Eden could confirm, the coach stood up and slapped Betty's sandwich out her hand. "Nice sandwich, stripes," she said, referring to Betty's striped T-shirt. He sat back down, thankfully.
"I'll take that at a yes," Betty said, silently mourning the loss of her beloved baloney sandwich. "JERK!" she yelled to the ceiling, as if she thought the ghost was maybe floating up there.
Rosy protectively held her sandwich to her chest like it was her child.
"There must be some way to get him to move on," Eden sighed, staring at his picture in the yearbook.
"Fat chance," he scoffed. "I ain't goin' anywhere."
Eden struggled and struggled, but alas. . .she was stuck.
"Coach shoved you in here good," Rosy said, trying her best to squeeze her friend out of the locker. "Can I dislocate your shoulder to get you out? I promise to put it back in."
"NO!" Eden immediately denied.
As luck would have it, guess who decided to stroll by at that opportune time? Sam!
"Oh, hey, Sam," Eden smiled, as if she wasn't stuck inside a locker.
He stared at her, traces of a smirk on his face.
"Sam!" she yelled.
"I'm sorry. You just look so funny." Sam reached in and carefully pulled her out. "There you go. Now, tell me. Who put you in there?"
"Why? So you can thank him?"
He shrugged casually. "I just want to know."
Eden sighed. "There's this ghost gym coach following me around."
Sam raised his eyebrows. He certainly hadn't been expecting that answer.
Eden turned to Betty. "Come on, Betty, aren't there any spells that can get rid of ghosts?"
She heard a maniacal laugh from behind her. Low and behold, the ghost gym coach was standing there. "Nice effort, but my curse is ten times stronger than any little weenie magic show. Just give up."
"What is your deal?" Eden stomped her foot in frustration. "Is this all because of that stupid trophy?"
"THAT TROPHY IS NOT STUPID!" the coach yelled in her face. His powerful voice had gone supernaturally echoey. His tall figure loomed over her. Maybe if he was translucent like Eden thought ghosts were supposed to be, she wouldn't have been as scared of him. The ghost took a step back to regain his composure before talking to Eden once again. "That trophy represents this school's finest hour! This school's only fine hour!"
"Okay, I'm sorry. If I get it back in the trophy case, will you leave me alone?"
"The only way I'm movin' on is if you win me a shiny, new trophy," he smirked.
"What?" Eden looked to her friends. "He wants me to win a trophy. For sports!"
Sam laughed, and Eden hit his arm. "Sorry," he said, "But that's not happening. Not in a million years."
"A million years?" The coach smiled. "I can do that."
He snapped his fingers, and for the second time that day, a locker door slammed into her head. Only this time, it was face first.
What was with this ghost and terrorizing her with lockers?
"Are you sure you're good? That locker hit you hard," Sam said as the four of them walked out of the school.
"I'm okay." Eden took a second to ponder those words. "No, actually. I'm not okay. There's a ghost who's sole mission is to humiliate me, and the only way I can get rid of him is by doing the impossible. Sam, can't you do something?"
He threw his hands up. "What do you want me to do? It's a ghost. I can't punch, kick, or bite him."
"True," Eden admitted in defeat.
"Look, I'll talk to you about his later. I want to help you. But right now, I'm busy." He gave Eden's shoulder a long squeeze before walking ahead of them.
"That boy's way out of your league." Eden heard the coach's voice. "If I were him, I'd way prefer that girl over you."
Eden looked around to see who he was talking about. She eventually spotted a girl with a gorgeous face and long blonde hair, wearing a white cropped top and jean shorts even though it was chilly outside. She was leaning against her red sports car she had parked in front of the school.
Eden wouldn't admit it out loud— she barely wanted to admit it to herself— but she was so Sam's type.
"Come on, what would anyone seen in her?" Eden asked the coach who had suddenly appeared beside her. "I mean, besides looks."
Betty walked up next to Eden. "Kate Lochner. Conway Collegiate's three-time city wrestling champion."
"Her name's Kate? She's on the wrestling team?" asked Eden.
Rosy let out a short laugh. "You don't know who she is? I'm surprised."
Betty nodded. "Even geeks like us know who she is."
"I heard the last girl she fought had to have her teeth realigned."
The coach pointed at Kate as she flipped her hair. "Now, that is a winner. If I was coaching you, I'd turn you into her. Or at least less of you."
"Then why don't you coach her and leave me alone?" Eden already knew the answer. The ghost couldn't coach someone who couldn't see him. Besides, she Kate wasn't a student at Whitechapel. "I can't help you. I'm sorry. If you wanted me to rewire something or build a computer or give you an update on the Dusk series, then maybe we could work something out."
Eden walked away, defeated and angry.
Why me?
Eden searched for information about the coach who was haunting her. She found an article that gave details on his disappearance and controversial coaching practices, like making the team run laps until they needed an oxygen mask. But there was nothing specific about his death.
"What is that called again? Innerfishnet?" the coach asked, gesturing to the computer screen.
"Internet." Eden felt like she was having another long discussion with her grandmother about computers. "It's a global network of computers and data servers. It can take you anywhere in the world to find any information you want."
"We had something like that in my day." The coach shot Eden an unimpressed look. "It was called shoes. But anyway, back to what's important. You winnin' be a trophy, or not?"
Before Eden could even think of her answer, Betty burst in. "I've got it!"
"What? Really?"
"Yeah." Betty was hopping on the balls of her feet, excited and restless. She must have found a good spell to handle this situation. She handed Eden a camera. "Here, video it when the ghost explodes."
"Explodes," the ghost repeated, unfazed by the word.
Betty looked around the room. "Where is he?"
"In front of you."
Betty opened up her spellbook and started reciting a bunch of words in Latin. "Quamobrem anima. . ."
The ghost squinted his eyes, now seeming more worried than before. No, not worried. Angry. "Cut it out. I'm warning you, you better stop this now." He spoke calmly, but Eden could hear the edge in his voice.
Betty finished her spell, unable to hear the words of warning. ". . .non cogetur e mundo moveri!"
A blast of purple light shot out of Betty's hand and zapped the ghost.
It served to fry his hair, so much that smoke rose up from it, but other than that the ghost remained intact. And still a problem. Actually, a bigger problem than before. Because being hit with magic did not make him happy.
"So you wanna play hardball, let's play hardball." He tilted his head and Betty flew to the side. She slammed into Eden's bookshelf and knocked down all of the Dusk novels, comic books, and stuffed animals that had been sitting there.
"Not cool!" Betty yelled as Eden helped her up. "I'm sorry, Eden. I really thought it'd work. Maybe you should give the ghost what he wants."
"I like your friend's thinking," the coach said, hair still smoking.
"No!" Eden insisted. She was not humiliating herself.
"Bye, ghost coach," Betty laughed nervously as she opened the door to walk out Eden's room. "Nothing personal about the whole quamobrem anima thing, right?"
Eden was soon left shaking her head at the coach. He was out of his mind if he thought there was anyway Eden would win the school a trophy.
"So, honey. . .how was school?" Eden's mother asked.
She was staring at Eden in concern as she passed the bread around the table, and Eden didn't blame her. She was trying to eat her chicken leg, but the coach kept pulling it away from her face. Since she was the only one who could see him, of course this would be a weird sight to behold. "You know, learning and teachers and ghosts. I mean, grades! Learning, teachers, and grades."
Her mother turned to her father. "It's just puberty. Right? Tell me it's just puberty." She was whispering, but Eden could still hear.
"Yeah," he nodded. "I hope, anyway."
The coach reached for the bowl of mashed potatoes. Eden was quick to grab the spoon before he did. "Don't even think about it!" she berated. The last thing she needed was her parents freaking out because the mash potato spoon was floating.
The coach pulled the spoon towards himself and Eden pulled the spoon back. When Coach Ed let go, the mashed potatoes flew off the spoon and hit her father, leaving a mess of white on his face.
Everyone gasped, mouths hanging open, except for Coach Ed who was laughing his pants off.
"Sorry," Eden said, wishing that it was puberty and not a ghost.
Eden walked into her room, contemplating if it was possible to live like this for the rest of her life, when her computer beeped.
It was an email from Sam.
Are you free Saturday? Keep it open.
"What's that about?" she asked herself.
The coach laughed. "I forgot how naive you little nerds are. It's date."
Eden's heart froze on the word "date." Could it really be?
"Don't make a lick of sense to me either, but that's what it is."
"Really?" Eden asked hopefully.
"Yeah. A date. Just you and him. . ." He smiled maliciously before finished, ". . .and me."
Eden shivered. "Don't you dare touch Sam! And quit messing with me. I've been bullied since kindergarten, so I can handle anything you have to throw at me. If you're such a good coach, you should know when you're going to lose."
Just when Eden had grown some nerve, she began to lose it again as Coach Ed grinned that evil grin of his and leaned in close to her face. "Lose? Me?" He was speaking slowly and drawing out his words. His brown eyes faded into a red color as he made his face slightly deformed with his cheekbones popping out of his skin. "I play to win."
He took a quick step back, his eyes and face becoming normal again all within a second. "One of the winning techniques I utilize is visualization," he explained with enthusiasm, as if her were a normal teacher. "So let's visualize your future."
Coach Ed placed a hand on her shoulder and Eden soon found herself standing in her living room. It was a mess, much messier than Eden knew her mother would ever allow.
"It's ten years later, shortcake, and guess what? You're still living at home. Impressive, huh?"
That would only be impressive if they were living in a mansion.
"It's not all bad, though. At least you've got a job. Look at your uniform."
The ghost snapped his fingers and a McFingers shirt appeared in his hand. McFingers was a fast food place that sold mediocre chicken. Their fries were awesome, though. But no matter how tasty those fries were and how much Eden loved their chicken burgers, she would hate having to work there.
"Why McFingers?"
"It got pretty hard for you to find a job after getting kicked out of college."
"Kicked out of college? For what?"
"Filling your prof's car with doggy doo doo."
"I'd never do that!" Eden protested.
"No, not you. I did that," he laughed.
Eden didn't think it was so funny. "Your supposed to be a teacher and you're getting me kicked out of school?"
"I'm not a teacher. I'm a coach. There's a difference."
He was making that difference wider than it was meant to be.
The door to her house opened to reveal Eden's dad wearing a McFingers uniform. "Dad works at McFingers, too."
"Yep. Ever since he was fired for insurance fraud. I accidentally set your house on fire."
"Doing what?" Eden shouted.
Eden's mom was next to walk in the house. She, too, had on a McFingers uniform. But that was less disturbing than her pushing Betty through the door in a wheelchair. Betty's hair was a mess. If it was truly ten years later she should have been twenty-six, but Betty looked closer to forty. She was coughing and wheezing heavily.
What had he done to her? "You put Betty in a wheelchair?"
"Me? No," he denied. "She was the one that bought that turbo unicycle. All I did was cut the brake line."
Eden turned to carefully examine the scene before her. Her family and best friend miserable all because she refused to participate in a dumb sport.
"You're seein' it now, ain't you? You're gonna ruin your life. . .and theirs."
Eden shook her head. "No, you're lying." Why should she trust this ghost? Everything he was showing her was an illusion.
"Hey, Mr. Morgan."
Eden turned at the sound of Sam's voice. She was met with the awful sight of Sam walking into her house with Kate on his arm.
"Kate and I are going off on a romantic tour of France." He stared at Kate in a way that Eden dreamed of having him stare at her. "Can you tell Eden to mansion-sit for us again?"
"Make sure she feeds our dog, Poodles," Kate said.
Poodles? How original, Eden scoffed inwardly.
Kate threw her house keys, or rather mansion keys, at her father. "Come on, babe," she giggled at Sam as they left.
"Wait, Sam!" Eden tried to grab his hand, but she was suddenly in her room again. "Sam marries Kate?" she asked Coach Ed, hoping that she had misunderstood.
"Yeah. He picked a good one, don't you think?"
"Fine!"
"Oh, not just a good one. A fine one. I agree."
"No, I mean, fine! I'll win you a trophy. In girls wrestling. And I'm going to beat Kate Lochner."
"Whoa, kid!" Coach Ed said, halting Eden in her enthusiasm. "I just want you to win a trophy, not get put into a body cast." He watched Eden carefully for a minute. "But I like your gusto."
Eden nodded, feeling encouraged.
"Tonight, you rest," said Coach Ed. "Tomorrow, you train."
"Hey, Mr. G, can I be on the wrestling team?" asked Eden as Mr. G saved up some basketballs.
"Of course, you can," he smiled. "I mean, as long as you believe you can."
Eden was relieved he hadn't laughed at her.
"Here," he said, handing her a clipboard with a sheet of paper and pen on it. "Fill this out."
"So. . ." she began as she wrote down her name, "Does this mean I can fight Kate Lochner?"
"Oh, yes," he answered, that smile dropping into a frown. "I'm afraid so. If you could just make sure to fill out the emergency contact and the blood type part of the form."
Kate was starting to have second thoughts, but she had already made up her mind.
Meanwhile, Sam was watching Kate laughing with her friends. She didn't seem any more aggressive or bloodthirsty than usual. Then again, he didn't know her well.
"What are you doing?" Eric asked, having sneaked up from behind him.
Sam fumbled for an excuse. "I was just. . .I was. . ."
"Don't bother answering. I already know. You still think I turned her, don't you?"
"Eric, I just. . ."
"Forget it." Eric walked off, strutting in that cool fashion towards Kate.
"Hey," Sam heard him say to Kate. She fluttered her lashes and kissed his cheek.
He left her soon after, having made his point to Sam.
Sam huffed. He was really going to have to flirt with Kate, huh? That was the only way to get close enough to her. He groaned.
So be it.
"I was watching them. There they were. . ." Betty said dramatically, setting the scene. ". . . laughing, talking. Intimate and close. One might call it. . ." She held a pause ". . .knoodling."
Eden glanced at the drawings Betty had done of Kate and Sam "knoodling" as she had phrased it. "Betty, you're drawing sucks. I can barely tell what I'm looking at."
"Vampires don't show up on camera, so I did my best."
Eden crumbled up the drawing in anger, even more fired up to take on Kate Lochner. "That's it! Kate Lochner's in for it. Big time!"
The next morning, Eden succeeded in doing one push-up! And that was with Coach Ed sitting on her back. She tried to lift a heavy weight in the school gym but almost broke her nose in the attempt.
It was after she shot a basketball, it hit the backboard and smacked her in the face that she questioned if she would live long enough to make sure Sam didn't marry Kate.
"In the spirit of non-competition," Mr. G spoke into the microphone. "I pledge to be a non-partisan referee for tonight's match. May every man win." Mr. G looked to Kate Lochner practicing her punches from the side. "Or at least survive."
There were many people in the gym bleachers, more than Eden was comfortable with. This was it. In only one minute she was set to wrestle Kate Lochner. She felt like throwing up and wetting herself at the same time.
"Representing Conway Collegiate, we have Kate Lochner."
There was loud applause and cheering as Kate made her way to the mat. It would have been nice if Eden had that kind of support.
"And representing Whitechapel Highschool, we have. . ." Mr. G stopped as Betty reached for the microphone and grabbed it from him. He didn't fight her. He was curious to see what Betty had to announce.
Even Eden didn't know what Betty was thinking. Maybe she was going to claim that Eden had broken her leg and had no choice but to withdraw from the match.
"From a land of fear and nightmares comes a warrior born to destroy. She speaks only violence. She knows only hatred. Her headlock is a crime against humanity."
Eden slapped her forehead. If she survived wrestling Kate, Betty was next on her list.
"Behold. . .the Edenator!"
After that introduction, Rosy ran across the gym with sparklers, which was probably a fire hazard.
Seriously? Rosy too?
Eden half-heartedly jogged to the mat as the people in the bleachers booed her. She made sure to stand as far away as she could from Kate. Unfortunately, their distance was short-lived as Mr. G took her arm and had her shake hands with her competitor. Eden could hear her knuckles cracking in Kate's grip. She thought Kate was going to break her fingers.
The coach appeared before her and rested his arm over her shoulder. "Here's my pep talk, sunshine. Win. That. Trophy. Or else."
Just think about Sam. Sam is your motivation.
Eden heard a whistle blow. It was time to wrestle.
Eden tried to get the first blow in. She ran at Kate, but the girl easily lifted her off her feet and swung her onto the ground. It felt like Eden's lungs had gone into her throat. To think, she could have been playing video games right now.
It was like this the entire match. Every hit Eden took ended with her on the floor in pain. She was fighting so poorly that at one point, Kate was signing an autograph while pinning Eden down.
The whistle blew again.
The humiliation had been postponed.
Kate carried Eden over to her side of the mat and dropped her on the hard gym floor. Betty and Rosy were there for moral support. Rosy was still holding sparklers.
"There's your friend," Kate sneered at the two. Then she looked down at Eden. "See you in round two, geek."
Eden crawled up onto the bench that was on her side and tried to recuperate.
Trophy? Eden would be lucky if she left this match without having to stop by the hospital.
"You survived a whole round," Rosy cheered optimistically. "That's impressive."
"I think impressive is that last word anyone in those stands would use to describe me," Eden replied, glumly.
Betty pulled out her camera. "Hey, would you be mad at me if I videoed this? I love you, Eden, but this is kind of funny to watch."
Good to know Eden had these two to count on when she was getting her butt handed to her.
"Eden!"
Oh, no. Sam? Sam was here?
"Are you insane?" he said, running up to her. "You don't know what you're up against. You can't take on that girl. She's unstoppable."
Eden rolled her eyes. "Is that why you like her?" she mumbled, bitterly.
"What?" He scoffed. "Please, she's not my type."
"But I saw you watching her. And talking. Laughing. Knoodling!"
"Mad knoodling," Betty accused.
"Noodling? Look, I thought Eric turned her, so I was checking her for bite marks. That was no easy feat because of how ticklish she is. But the point is, I do not like her."
Ticklish, Eden thought, Weird to think Kate would be ticklish.
"You can't win by points anymore," the ghost told her, all of a sudden standing in front of her. "You're going to have to pin her."
"I have to pin her." Eden shook her head. "That's actually impossible."
"Ooh! My magic could help!" Betty suggested. "We can see how well she wrestles with worms in her ears."
Eden smiled, hopeful at last, but the ghost said, "No! That's cheating. You either win that trophy fair and square or not at all."
Eden relayed the news to her friends. "No magic. We can't cheat."
"Betty," Sam began, "do you have magic that can take away a ghost's intangibility?"
"Why?"
"So I can punch Coach Ghost in the face." He sighed and turned back to Eden. "Come on, Eden. Just forfeit. We can find another sport for you to win a trophy in. One that doesn't involve you having to fight."
"I have to do this, Sam," Eden said. "My sanity's at stake."
"Well, so is your life."
Eden still refused. She was going to take care of this ghost. Right here. Right now.
Sam groaned, realizing he wasn't going to change her mind. "Fine. Then, think of something. You're smart, Eden. Everyone has a weakness, right? Find one and use it to win."
Eden didn't know if Kate had one of those. And she didn't have long to figure out what it was.
"Maybe you need a little heart," the ghost smiled, picking Eden up by her shoulders. He reached into her chest, and Eden felt her heart being squeezed. She gasped in pain but couldn't pull away until the coach let go. She crumpled to the ground.
"Eden!" Sam knelt down beside her, along with her friends. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Eden ignored him. "Just leave me alone. Please!"
"Are you practicing new ways to beg for mercy? Smart!" Rosy said.
Eden stood up as the pain diminished, her friends following her lead. "It's no use! I've never won in a fight. Ever."
"That's not true," Betty countered. "Remember that time I took your Pokemon lunch box in grade two? You whipped me hard. I cried." Betty frowned, remembering that day.
Eden, on the other hand, was smiling. "Grade two. That gives me an idea. Thanks, Betty." Eden adjusted her wrestling helmet and ran back to the center of the mat.
The whistle blew again, but this time, Eden had a plan. She dived under Kate's legs and turned to lock her arms around her waist from behind.
"What are you doing? Are you hugging me?" Kate asked as she struggled to get free.
Instead of laughs, Eden heard whistles and cheers. That was a good sign. "I'm wrestling old school. Oakwood elementary to be exact."
Betty clapped. "Yeah, Eden. The snuggy bear hug has no escape!"
Sam was watching Eden in confusion and surprise. He couldn't recall any other wrestling match looking quite like this one, but Kate was for once struggling to free herself from a grip.
"Let go!" Kate was yelling, looking to the referee to do something.
"Fine!" Eden yelled back. She pushed them both to the ground and quickly sat on top of Kate. "Someone told me you were ticklish!" she said, wiggling her fingers around Kate's neck.
Sam was laughing and slapping his knee.
"Stop! I'm. . .going to. . .break you!" Kate was giggling hard in between her words. She was squirming from under Eden, but couldn't breathe long enough to throw her off.
Eventually, the referee hit his hand against the mat, signalling that the match was over and Eden had sealed the victory. "Our new champion!" Mr. G announced, holding up Eden's hand proudly. The crowd was whooping for her.
Kate punched the air in anger and stomped her foot.
Mr. G handed the trophy to Eden. "Here you are. But remember, it's not about winning."
Eden bellowed out a victory laugh as she took hold of the trophy. Mr. G could say it wasn't about winning, but Eden had indeed won. She won. She actually, somehow, by some miracle, won!
Eden ran to her friends who were jumping up and down, except for Sam who was simply smiling.
"What? That's it! You've got to be kidding me!" the ghost shouted in her ear, frowning in disappointment and anger.
"Yeah, I won the trophy," Eden beamed. "A deal's a deal. Time for you to move on."
"Bear hugs? Tickling? That's not wrestling. Forget it! The deal's off! I'm going to be on you until you're final breath."
"What?" Eden yelled. He couldn't do that.
Sam placed his hand on Eden's shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"He's backing out of our deal!"
"He can't!" Betty claimed. "A supernatural pact is binding!" She waved her hands around to stress her point.
"Tough tortillas!" the ghost shouted. "I ain't going anywhere. And you nerds can't make me!"
Without warning, the room went dark and a huge locker fell into the gym, blue lightning surrounding it.
Eden looked to her friends, but they seemed undaunted. They must not have been able to see it.
The coach recoiled. "But maybe those nerds can!"
"What is that?" Eden asked.
"I crossed a lot of nerd souls in my day," he explained. His eyes were shimmering, as if he were ready to cry. "And I suppose those souls had to go somewhere." He gestured to the locker. "Behold! The Locker of the Damned."
The "Locker of the Damned" opened. All that could be seen inside was a mysterious blue light. A surge of it zapped inside the ghost's chest and started pulling him towards the locker, like a fishing line. He was struggling hard and convulsing but whatever that light was, it was too strong for him to fend off. He soon disappeared into the locker and the door was slammed closed. Then, it lifted up into the air.
Eden didn't know what to think of that scene, but she felt relieved.
"You know what?" Kate screamed. "I will not be beaten by a geek!" She let out a battle cry and ran for Eden. She never made it to her, though. Sam stretched out his arm for Kate to run into, and she fell back against the floor.
"Sorry, I was yawning and didn't see you. And by the way, you already lost. Give it a rest," he told her.
She whimpered and crawled away.
"I could've taken her," Eden said.
Betty and Rosy snorted. Even Sam was laughing at her.
"By the way," Eden began, changing the subject. "What are we doing Saturday night?"
"Oh, I thought if Kate was a vampire, I'd need backup to take her down. But she seems human, so we're all good."
Eden forced a smile. "Good." She knew she shouldn't have trusted that coach. Why'd she let him get her hopes up? "I figured it was something like that."
"But if we're not catching vampires, we might as well catch a movie," Sam grinned.
Eden tried her best to look casual. "Just us two?"
"Sure. Unless. . ." He turned to Betty and Rosy ". . .you guys want to come."
"Uh. . .I have to feed my goldfish," Betty lied.
"I can come," Rosy said.
Betty immediately jumped in. "No, Rosy. You have to play Bingo with your grandma."
"No, I—"
Betty slapped her hand over Rosy's mouth. "We're both busy."
"So just us then," Eden said. "That's sounds good. I should have the feeling back in my fingertips by then."
Sam chuckled. "Cool. I'll text you the details."
Once Sam had left, Betty pulled Eden into a hug. They were squealing and giggling.
Eden was going the movies with Sam!
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