Chapter Three

I was being stared at. I had made my way to the public library to find some info. I was sitting at one of the study tables and noticed a couple of people shot glances at me.

It was unsettling. I self-consciously touched my grey hair. Two rowdy college guys bumbled into a table next to me. They eyed me.

"Freak," one of them chuckled.

I shot daggers out of my eyes at them.

It successfully caused them to stop laughing and really take in my appearance. Grey hair. Pale skin. All black clothes and boots.

I growled for extra scary emphasis. They looked at me and then each other. Then decided to sit far, far away. In Eerie, people scurry from weirdness like rats from water. It was unsettling to know I was now an official weirdness attraction.

Geez, no wonder Dash is such a jerk sometimes. If I had to deal with obnoxious idiots like that I'd be cranky big time.

"You all right, kid?"

I looked up. It was one of the library clerks. She seemed pretty young. College student, maybe. She was average height with black hair pulled into a pony tail.

"Yeah," I answered.

"How you been? I haven't seen you in awhile," she said sitting down at the table with me.

Whoa. Dash actually has a friend. Someone he constantly engages in conversation without some dubious intent.

"Ummm..." I replied hesitantly. I had no idea what her name was. But she was most likely used to Dash not being particularly polite because she continued on.

"Here's some Doritos I owed you. I gotta remember to bring some lunch. I'm so damn airheaded sometimes," she rattled on, talking to me. Talking to Dash. I guess miracles happen in Eerie too.

I chowed down on the Doritos, while she chattered.

"Well, you're being uncharacteristically nice and quiet today. You usually tell me to shut up by now," she said jokingly.

I smiled. She must be pretty cool if she tried being a friend to Dash. "Yeah, I guess so. I got a lot on my mind. But thanks for asking," I responded.

The girl touched my arm concerned. "Are you sick?"

I swear I was about to laugh in her face. Oh, if you only knew. If you only knew.

"No, I'm good. But do you know of any strange...occurrences on Friday the 13th in Eerie? Y'know over history?" I asked anxiously.

She laughed. "You're on that whole "this is weirdsville" mode today, are you?"

I shrugged.

"I'll humor you today. Hmm...Friday the 13th. There's only a stupid myth I've heard. If the last word you say is '13' before going to sleep the night before then you'll have a flip day. Something turned upside down in your life on Friday the 13th," she said.

That was it! The last word I had said was "thirteen" to Simon on the phone before I went to sleep. Dash could have said it too for some reason and we switched bodies!

"How do you fix it if that happens to you?"I asked.

She rolled her eyes obviously becoming annoyed with the stupidity of the story. "You just say the word '13' at the stroke of midnight at the end of the Friday."

Midnight! Well, I've got time to get in touch with Dash.

"Uh, what time is it?" I asked.

She looked at her watch. "It's 1:15," she said.

Drat. I missed lunch time at my school. I guess I'll catch up to Dash at the end of class.

"Becky, hey Becky! Is your break over? I need some help in stocking," called another clerk.

So, that's her name.

"Thanks for the info, Becky," I said.

"No prob–" She stopped in mid-sentence and looked over my head.

"What is it?" I asked.

"A cop just came in, Dash. You got to get out of here," she whispered hurriedly,

"What? Why?" I asked turning around. The cop was at the circulation desk.

"What do you mean why? You're a petty thief. Mr. Radford has put the cops on a look out for you. Not to mention you're a minor not enrolled in school," she answered while her eyes searched the area.

Oh. Duh. I started to get up and head for the exit when Becky grabbed my sleeve.

"What are you doing, idiot? Take the backdoor!" she said steering me down the rows of bookshelves.

Two other cops came in as we started our escape. What was it National Cop Reading Day?

"If they catch you , it's straight to juvy!" she said as we speed walked to the back.

But her words caused me to stop in my tracks. The reality of my situation was beginning to dawn on me. Arrested? Jail? Oh, man. I'm too young to be a wanted criminal!

"Why are you stopping!" Becky exclaimed and pushed me further along.

"Hey, gray haired thief! Don't move! I've got criminal acusations that have been made about you!" called a gruff voice.

I'd been spotted! My heart nearly died as I saw the policeman's eyes frankly looking at my face.

Becky suddenly jumped forward and opened a door. "Here, you better not show here for awhile. They'll probably stake out the library for a few days. So, take care," she said in a rush.

Marshall, get it together! I shouted to myself. I took a deep breath and went to the door. "Thanks," I told Becky. She nodded and shoved me forward.

I took off at a sprint. Cops are not in shape right? I wish I had my bike. I mean it's not like I'm not in good shape but still. I looked behind me.

One of the cops (of course I had catch the attention of the athletic one) was in hot pursuit.

The day was officially reaching above weirdness to nightmare proportions.