Ghosts - part 1

"If you don't do it, I'll - "
"What?" Peter says, grinning.
"I'll - be very angry with you!" I finish lamely.
He laughs and claps me on the back. "Relax, Belle, of course I'll do it."
I smile, feeling my shoulders relax. I have been promising Johnny for a week that Peter will take him hunting for his birthday. I probably should have told Peter about it sooner, but who would have guessed he'd be resistant?
"I'll do it... in return for payment," he continues.
"Payment?" I say blankly.
"I'll do it if you put in a good word with Harriet for me," he says.
I grimace. I have no idea why my mum doesn't like Peter - we've been friends for years, but she's never warmed to him.
"She'll kill me," I say warningly. She hates me even talking about Peter. She has no idea that I've been seeing him almost every day for as long as I can remember.
"Do you want your brother to go hunting?"
I sigh and nod. "Why do you care what she thinks, anyway?"
"She's your mother. I want her to approve of me."
I don't really understand, but I nod anyway. He's right in that there is no good reason for her to dislike him; it really isn't fair.
"Ok, why don't you come over to my house and we'll talk to her?"
Peter pales slightly. "Maybe you should do it yourself. I don't think my presence will help."
"Ok," I agree. "See you later."
"See you." His hand brushes my cheek as he walks off, leaving a warm trail across my face. I shiver slightly. I don't know how long I've been thinking about Peter differently for, but I haven't seen any sign that he feels the same. Not wanting to ruin our friendship, I haven't said anything.
When I get home, I take a deep breath and stride in. My mum is in the kitchen, as I knew she would be.
"Alright, mum, this thing with Peter has gone on long enough," I say firmly before I can lose my nerve. "He's been my best friend for years and has never done anything to deserve your suspicion. I'm not going to waste my time again asking you what it is you don't like about him, but I am telling you right now that I am not going to stay away from him. If you try to push him away, you'll push me away with him."
She gapes at me. "You don't understand," she says softly.
"Too right I don't! What has he ever done to you?"
"He will bring trouble down upon this family," she says.
"Where do you get that from?"
She just shakes her head. "You're not to see him, I've already told you that."
"Well, too bad, because I've been seeing him in secret for years and it's not going to stop now!"
I expected my mum to be angry. What I didn't expect was for the blood to drain from her face. For a second, she looks like she is going to fall over. Then the anger I was expecting comes. Her face goes bright red and she strides forward grabbing me by the arm.
She marches me up to my bedroom, slamming the door behind me. "You'll stay there until you've forgotten all about that boy!" she yells. "I will not let you be drawn into this, not my only daughter!"
I yell and bang on the locked door, but to no avail. Fuming, I pace until the sun has gone down. My mum opens the door briefly to push a tray of food in, but I am so mad that I throw it away before even considering whether I'm hungry or not.
Finally, the moon has risen and I know my mum is asleep. I open the window and climb down the thick creeper. Sneaking between houses, I make my way three streets up, to Peter's house. I am so upset that I don't notice anything until I am in the tree next to his window. A strange white light is coming from his room.
I crawl to the overhanging branch and tap on his window. The light is so bright compared to the night around that I squint, trying to see what he's doing in there. Slowly, my eyes adjust and I see Peter surrounded by shapes.
Then I scream.

To be continued