Sorry for the traveling break

We're back. Let the great experiment recommence!

I pounded frantically at Derek's door. Even now I remember not knowing what I was going to say when I saw my friend. How could I explain what I was running from? If I told him I was terrified of a spooky feeling I had encountered in the woods, I'd never hear the end of it. What was I going to tell him?

The door opened before I could come up with something. "Mitchell? What's wrong?", he asked. "Ghosts!", I blurted out. Maybe I should have just gone with the truth after all. "In the woods," I added hasitly in anticipation of his next question. "Don't stupid. There's no such thing as ghosts," he shot back as I pushed past him and into, what I believed to be, the relative safety of his house.

After I had a chance to calm down, I was able to shake it off and we played inside throughout the rest of the day. Of course, Derek made sure all of our games involved ghosts somehow, but I was able to keep a straight face about it. I knew it would only get worse if he knew how much it bothered me. I was almost able to convince myself that it didn't bother me even. Almost.

But as I lay in my sleeping bag that night, in the basement of Derek's house, my thoughts strayed once again to that fateful encounter in the woods. The memory almost seemed to feed off of the fear deep within me. I knew I wouldn't be free of it until I faced it again. I had to know, for better or for worse, what could cause such a thing.

I'm pretty brave, I thought. I'll bet Derek wouldn't want to face something like that. He'd be too scared for sure. I comforted myself with these reassurances as my eyes became heavier and heavier. He's not worthy, I added, before going on to think that it was a strange thought to have just as I drifted in unconsciousness and both thoughts escaped from my waking mind.