When Sarah trudged through the door of her house, she automatically called out, "I'm home!"
Hearing her voice echo through the deserted living space, she wondered why she had called out like that. As usual, her parents were out of town, so she had the house to herself for a few days. Quickly, she made her way to her room, and after dropping her things unceremoniously on the floor, she flopped face-down on her bed. She winced at the impact. Her bed was harder than she anticipated.
Maybe she could use the wishing rock to fix that. Sliding off the bed, she knelt on the floor and grabbed her purse. Opening it up, she was horrified to find the rock missing! Then, she struck her forehead with her hand when she remembered that she had left it in her locker at school.
"Ugh, what a day," she groaned, burying her face in her hands.
A soft knock elicited another groan. "Don't come in!" She shouted.
Then, she froze. Jumping to her feet, she turned towards her door, only to find that she had left it open. Had she imagined the noise? Recalling the knock, she realized that her door did not sound like that. It was the wrong pitch. Yet, somehow, it seemed so familiar.
A shiver ran down her spine. Racing across her room, she closed her door. Then, she returned to her bed and hugged her pillow, wishing she could talk to someone. Digging out her phone, she dialed a friend's number.
Suddenly, an automated voice answered, saying the number was either disconnected or not in service.
Sarah hung up and looked at the number she had dialed. Karyn's number. Why would she call her?
She considered dialing up Tiffany, or even Biff, but something about their company repulsed her. Instead, she started in on her homework, which she finished more quickly than she expected. So, she watched a bit of television to pass the time.
