The Ghost Of Love Read Free

door. It was her father who had answered, his expression seemed stale as his lips straightened, turning into a frown.
    "Alicia? What's going on? Your 30 minutes late... "
    "Yeah, I'm really sorry dad. It's just that I wanted to bring my friend Darren to the house. Darren, I'd like you to meet my dad, Chester."
    Darren smiled at her father, without saying a word. He was a very charming man and usually he never had to say anything when meeting but sometimes he would. This was a different story. He was extremely nervous in the presence of Alicia's father. Would her father approve of him?
    Alicia's step-father was a tall man with dark brown eyes and a built figure. He did have a belly somewhat, probably from having an occassional beer every other night. Everyone who knew him would call him Chester or just "Chest." It seemed like an odd name but Chester liked it. Chester shook his head in disbelief, glancing toward his daughter. He didn't even acknowledge Darren at this point and was incredibly frustrated with Alicia. She had been through so many things in her life but why is she making mistakes again? This was the exact thought that ran through Chester's mind. He motioned to his daughter, letting her in.
    Her mother was upstairs asleep at this time. She usually wakes up very early for work and goes to bed by 8p.m every night. Alicia really wanted for her to meet Darren but she dare not wake her up. Anytime her mother awoke, she was grumpy from being awakened from her beauty sleep. Even dad didn't bother to wake her for anything, out of fear for how she would act toward him. He knew not to get on her bad side. If you have a happy wife - you have a  happy life. Without that... well, you are just screwed.

Chapter 8 - Things get ugly
    Chester walked over to the dinner table and sat down, calling Alicia in. He watched her every movement, studying each action carefully. Had his step-daughter been drinking again? Why was she not making sense of things right now? Surely, there had to be something wrong with her. He looked at her and finally spoke.
    "Alicia...tell me the truth. Are you drinking or doing drugs? I need to know. I promise I won't yell at you."
    Her eyes widened slightly and she shook her head, beginning to shout at him and disbelief.
    "Are you serious?! How could you ask me that in front of my friend?! I'm not even your real daughter - so why would you care!!?" she had screamed, straining her voice.
    Chester suddenly felt sadness within his heart. He was the one who helped take care of her ever since she was ten years old. Ever since her coward father had walked out on the family, Chester was the one to take his place. He had loved Alicia just like his very own child. A soft sigh escaped his lips, looking down at the ground in disbelief.
    "Just go to your room, I'll talk to you tomorrow." he said in a firm yet calm voice. Alicia knew better not to disobey him. He was always a great step-father toward her and deep down inside, she had felt guilty for saying this to him. But how could he accuse her of doing such things? It was only one night that her girlfriend had given her some "E" last month. She was rushed to the hospital after this and when her parents found out, they had a feeling she could be a developed drug addict. Little did they know that this was the only time she had touched drugs. She never even drank before either. Alicia was a good girl but that was one of the biggest mistakes in her life that she had learned from.
    Alicia moved slowly upstairs, a feeling of dread consuming her. She was afraid of what her step-dad would say to Darren after she had gone...

Chapter 9 - The Haunted House of Aunt Milly
    Darren stood there in a mist of fog and it seemed to swirl around him in a strong, gravitational pull. Alicia's eyes widened, straining herself to look at him. Her feet shifted, moving toward Darren in slow motion and wrapping her arms around him. She kissed him softly, his lips planted firmly against hers. This