Ghost Soul

By Ana Bustos S.

The story begins with a normal 16 year-old girl (Sarah Anderson) who lives in Provo, Utah. She has good grades, her parents and teachers love her, and she is a jealous and a selfish girl. One day everything seemed to change when suddenly everyone start to treat her strangely and blame her for doing bad stuff. She figured out she had a strange rhombus mark in her chest. While she is in school, her friends are angry at her so she is alone. Until the most shy and mysterious guy (James Carter) in school decides to make her company. As time passes they form a very strong bond between each other. Sarah later figures out that James aunt doesnt want her near her nephew, but she doesnt listens. Later in the story they find out why everybody was blaming her for doing bad stuff. She was being controlled by a ghost (Sabina) from the Middle Ages who wanted to search for Allans reincarnation to get revenge. The rhombus in her chest was a portal to her soul and ghosts could cross it. Things change when they figure out that Allans reincarnation is James. Their goal is to defeat Sabina and stay together until the end.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Oct 8, 2009
• ISBN: 9781469122663

Ana Bustos S.

Ana Mercedes Bustos Strauss is a Venezuelan teenage author of Young-Adult, Fantasy and Romance novels. Ghost Soul is her first novel. She is currently living in Costa Rica with her parents, and she assists to Saint Mary School.

Book preview

Copyright © 2009 by Ana Mercedes Bustos Strauss.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2009907345

ISBN:      Softcover        978-1-4415-5772-8

                eBook            978-1-4691-2266-3

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

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Contents

PREFACE

1 My luck varies by time

2 That’s my mood?

3 What did I do?

4 They don’t trust me

5 James

6 The other side of the face

7 Thinking Through

8 Efforts

9 Park City

10 Visit

11 Unexpected

12 Weak Soul

13 Apparition

14 Possibilities

15 Past

16 Ghost Senses

17 Panic

18 Tears, darkness, and blood

19 Demise

20 Unique

Dedication

To my Mami Mariangel who always supported me and to my Papi Lázaro who was always realistic but never stopped believing in me.

PREFACE

WHEN YOU ARE condemned to something you can’t control, condemned to anxiety, condemned to the fear of hurting your loved ones, the efforts you make to stop it may seem too much. You just want to be free no matter what, but the consequence of looking for it—the freedom, relief, happiness, someone like me may turn out different from the person you were born to be. It isn’t you anymore, and the worst of all is that you have to deal with the consequences of your actions, even if it wasn’t your fault. As if it wasn’t you anymore, as if you were meant to suffer because something is certainly wrong with you.

1

My luck varies by time

LIFE’S SO BORING; nothing exciting happens to me. I wish something paranormal, weird, or totally different happened to me. But what could be different for a girl like me who don’t go out much? My sister, Nicole, always finds a way to get in trouble, but I would never do that. I am a coward.

These were the kind of things I thought very often, and as usual, Lily would interrupt my thoughts to say something, like now.

Oh, come on, Sarah! You still got one month left! You can at least throw a little party to celebrate your sweet sixteenth birthday! My best friend, Lily, had been pleading for ages to convince me to make a party, but I didn’t really care. I thought it was stupid to celebrate things like that.

The truth was that I never threw a party since fourth grade. All of them ended in a complete boredom of failure.

I stopped walking when I reached my locker.

Stop begging, Lily! I don’t want to make a party. You know that when I do, they are so boring that they make people cry, I told her (OK, I’m never this moody, I think so… well, I had like a bunch of homework this month. It’s normal that I’m so stressed).

A few seconds later, Lily’s green eyes made the puppy look.

Before any of us could say something else, a nerdy-looking tall blond guy and a short guy with a skateboard under his arm came toward us.

Hey, what’s up, girls? greeted Kevin. Kevin was not tall; Lily and I were slightly taller than him. His skin was a nice dark color, the one that you normally get from artificial tanning, though his was natural. His long black hair was almost all the time covered with a skateboarding hat. The almost applies because our high school didn’t allow hats. The principal thought we would seem part of a gang or something (I know, paranoid). It was a good thing he could at least carry his skateboard around the school.

Edwin is the nerd of the group. I don’t say it because he’s intelligent (because I’m smarter than him), but because he really looks like a nerd—pants up to his belly that’s way too short for his legs, colorful button shirts (horrible, by the way), a slather of hair gel, wide black framed glasses.

I turned to my locker to get my algebra book.

Kevin, Ed, Lily began talking, avoiding my eyes, don’t you think that being sixteen is a great reason to celebrate? She looked at them hopefully.

I snorted. Good reason to celebrate?

Well, I guess it is very exciting to start working, Ed was saying, but Kevin interrupted him. "Exciting to drive," said Kevin, pretending to turn a steering wheel.

I laughed. That was a good reason for turning sixteen (oh yeah, I’m picturing a BMW in my head).

Lily, just forget it. When you have your sixteenth birthday party, then I will go. I promise, I said to her. Then she shrugged with disappointment.

Lily and I have been in the same elementary, middle, and high schools (of course); our moms are very good friends, so they did us the favor to put us in the same schools. That’s great! In the first grade, Lily presented me to Kevin and Ed, but Kevin changed school when we were in third grade. Then we all rejoined in the first day of high school.

I closed my locker and looked at my watch. Let’s get to class, we are almost late.

Lily and I walked to Mr. Thomson’s class and sat on our usual desks in the middle of the class. We were the last to arrive, and Mr. Thomson was already giving out papers.

Sarah, it’s a pop quiz! Lily whispered nervously. I didn’t react as she did when I found out; I had always been good in algebra.

Um, just relax. Answer as if it was just a practice, and don’t panic, I told her, choosing my words carefully. Then Mr. Thomson came to my place and gave me the quiz.

I’m sure this will be a piece of cake for you, Ms. Anderson. Please enjoy it. When he said that, my face flushed with embarrassment. I mean, of course it would be a piece of cake, but could he say that where no one could hear? (And oh, did he say enjoy it? Yeah right.)

I started the quiz; it was as easy as I thought it would be. When I finished, I left it at Mr. Thomson’s desk and went back to my seat.

I thought I had been the first to finish, but I had been the second. A rather tall boy with straight black hair had finished first. I didn’t really know this boy; he never was with someone, or at least talked. I presumed it was because he was shy. I sighed; it was a shame a pretty good-looking guy like him didn’t have some friends.

When the class ended, Lily and I went to take our books for our next lesson.

Did you know the answer for the second question? Lily asked.

"Yeah, it was letter C," I told her.

"Oh, dang, I marked A," she said as she organized the books in her locker.

Wow, Lily! That was the one it would have been less. I tried not to laugh.

Sarah, you know it’s very hard for me, Lily said sadly.

I felt ashamed of myself to act that way. Sometimes I was rude without wanting to, so I told her I was sorry.

When school was over, I walked home with Lily, Edwin, and Kevin.

Nice girl you like, Ed. Kevin was congratulating him.

You know, the day when Kevin finally stops thinking about girls, that day will be apocalypse, I told them. Edwin laughed.

Yeah, you’re right.

Kevin took his skateboard and began making tricks. Well, that’s true. Girls love me, he said. I really had no idea how many girls he had critiqued this year; he said he had the eye to detect the good ones.

A minute later, I figured out Lily was quieter than usual, and her face was hidden behind her wavy short hair.

Lily, what’s wrong? I asked. I gestured to Ed and Kevin to keep walking.

It’s nothing, she said without looking at me. I knew she was lying; she always talked like a parrot in a regular conversation.

Lily, I know something’s wrong. Please tell me, I insisted. We were already in front of my house, so we stopped to face each other.

Sarah, please don’t be mad at me or anything, she said shyly.

Why should I be angry with her?

Sarah, I’m jealous of you, she said as fast as she could.

Lily jealous of me? Not that I blame her, but…

Why?

That’s all I’m saying, she finished.

"Oh, come on."

I really don’t want to tell you. Please don’t be angry at me, though I deserve it. I’m a terrible friend for feeling this way.

Lily, I’m not angry at you, and you are not a terrible friend. Don’t be jealous.  I was thinking of something else to say. I didn’t want to force her into telling me, but it made me sad. I didn’t like making her feel bad. You can’t be envious. You have everything—honesty, kindness, and you’re clearly more tolerant than I am, that’s why you are my best friend. I had to admit those were the things I envied her. I could be very intelligent, social, and everything, but I had problems with jealousy and mood, and I was selfish.

Lily is a very special girl, I thought. I’m so lucky she’s my friend.

Lily smiled and placed her arms around me. Thanks, Sarah. I think it’s stupid to feel jealous toward a friend. I’m sorry. Lily waved good-bye at me and ran to catch up with Ed and Kevin.

As I opened the front door of my house, I saw Nicole, my younger sister, sitting on the couch. My parents, Jonathan and Roxanne, stood in front of her with upset faces.

I wondered what she had done now. Push a teacher down the stairs? Take a little boy’s lunch?

You know you can’t skip school, young lady! You are just fourteen! It is dangerous outside! shouted Dad.

Dad, we live in Utah, one of the safest states in the country, said Nicole, annoyed.

I closed the door and hid silently behind the stairs to listen. This was always so fun.

What we’re concerned about is, where did you go? Roxanne asked her patiently.

Why do you care? she answered. Jonathan glared at her (the stressed glare).

Never talk to us like that! Go to your room this instant and think about what you have done. He pointed to the stairs. I don’t know why, but Jonathan reminded me of a character of a medieval play, a dramatic play, in which he was an angry policeman.

I wish she was more like Sarah, I heard him saying to Roxanne.

Before Nicole or my parents could see me, I ran to my room, shut the door, and began to do my homework. Half an hour later, someone knocked on the door.

Come in! I said. I turned to see my mother standing in front of the door.

Can I talk to you for second? she asked.

Of course you can, Mom, I told her. She entered and sat on the bed beside me.

I would like to ask you a favor, she said.

Anything for you, tell me.

I wanted to ask you if you could try to guide Nicole into a better direction. I feel that she just needs some help. Can you do that? she asked and waited for my answer.

Sure, I will. That will be easier than you think, I promised as I hugged her.

"Thank you, Sarah, dear. You’re a very good girl. You do deserve that car we bought you. She closed her eyes while turning red. This was one of her special" personality traits; she wasn’t very good at keeping secrets. I wonder why Jonathan told her about it.

You bought me a car? I asked with an amused tone.

Please, don’t tell your dad that you know. He is really excited to give you the surprise. Oh, I can’t keep my mouth shut! she said.

A car, cool.

It’s OK, Mom. I’ll act surprised, I told her, to calm her down.

That’s my girl! she said as she stood up. Well, I better start writing the new recipe for Jane’s wedding cake.

Jane was one of her colleague friends, who was going to marry in a few days.

My mom loved very much to bake, and she owned a little restaurant to sell cakes for special events.

I went back to my desk and kept doing my homework.

The next day, I woke up to get ready for school. I took a shower and put on my favorite beige sweater and a pair of jeans. I ate breakfast and headed to school.

I daydreamed about the days when I wouldn’t have to walk to school because I would have a car.

While I walked, I heard someone shout my name from behind. I turned around and saw Lily coming toward me. I hoped she didn’t feel the way she felt yesterday.

Hi, Sarah, she said as soon as she was by my side. About what happened yesterday… , she began, but I knew what she was going to say.

No hard feelings, I said.

Good, she approved.

At algebra class, Mr. Thomson was giving the pop quizzes with our grades. When he came to my seat, he gave me the quiz and looked at me, disappointed. I stared at him, confused, and then looked down to see my grade. I couldn’t believe it! I got a B!

Maybe he gave me the wrong quiz . . . no, it’s mine, I thought.

I tried to bring myself with an excuse to change it. I stood up and went to Mr. Thomson’s desk.

Um, Mr. Thomson, a B? There must be a mistake, I told him politely.

Actually, Sarah, there isn’t a mistake. I was surprised too. I guess you have to put some effort the next time, he said, not looking at me (he was writing something).

I went back to my seat, fuming. Feeling hopeful, I looked at the good-looking guy’s paper, to see his grade (that was going to be hideous) and to make me feel better about it. But it got worse; he had an A+.

Sarah, I got a C. What did you get? Lily asked enthusiastically.

I turned to her and showed her my grade. She smiled, but at the sight of my face, her smile faded. I thought it had been a very bad reason to be upset, but this guy—whose name I didn’t remember—getting a better grade than mine made me angry.

Sarah, it’s just a quiz! Don’t give too much importance to it, Lily told me as soon as we were out of the class. Maybe she was right, but it gave me the need to do better.

Lily, I’m changing my elective to Advanced Math. I decided quickly.

Why? Don’t you like Family Life? she asked, confused.

Of course I do, but I prefer math, I lied.

Nice, we’ll be together then. Edwin appeared like from nowhere.

"Were you listening to