Unbelievable by Derek H.

Jim and Della woke up early to go for a walk through the town common. They both got ready and then ate breakfast together while they read the newspaper. It started out like any other morning.

That was when they left for their walk just like they did every morning. They walked down the street and to the town common, which they crossed every morning never being disturbed. That was where the morning became different from every other morning.

They got about half way across the common when it got very cold. Then Della suddenly fell. Jim helped her up, wondering what just happened.

“Are you okay,” asked Jim.

“Why did you hit me,” cried Della.

“What,” Jim said confused. “I didn’t hit you.”

“Then who did,” asked Della. She looked around at the empty common, but while she wasn’t looking at Jim, she was hit again. “What is wrong with you,” she cried.

Jim didn’t say anything. Della turned around and began to run away. As she was running she ignored the voice she heard because she thought it was Jim, but Jim still didn’t say anything. He wasn’t the one yelling. He looked around and there was still no one there. He didn’t understand who was yelling or who hit Della.

He turned around and watched her run away. That was all he could do. Nothing would bring her back. Jim slowly started to walk back home wondering what had happened.

He thought about it for a long time. Then he remembered some rumors they had heard when they first moved here. He heard that the common was haunted by a ghost. Jim had never believed in ghosts. Neither did Della. They ignored all of the rumors. They thought it was impossible for ghosts to haunt the common. Jim still didn’t believe, but he couldn’t think of anything else.

The next day, Della realized she had to go back home to get some of her things. She decided to go through the town common to get one last look at it. She didn’t want to leave, but she thought that Jim would keep beating her if she stayed. She didn’t know that Jim really hadn’t hit her. She had never even thought about the rumors for years.

As she was wandering slowly through the common, for what she thought was her last look at it, it suddenly got very cold all around her. She started walking a little faster to get out of the cold. Then it got warm again, but Della didn’t understand why the temperature was changing so fast for no reason. She walked even faster now that she was getting scared.

Then out of nowhere she was hit over the head with a stick. In pain, she slowly got up, not knowing what happened. She gazed around at the common until she spotted the stick on the ground. She looked around again and couldn’t understand how the stick had gotten there seeing how there wasn’t a tree around and she was still the only one in the common.

At that very moment Della remembered the rumors about a haunting in the town common. She began thinking about the rumors and how she just ignored them. She and Jim thought nothing of it because they thought it wasn’t realistic. Then, while she was lost in her thoughts, she was pushed to the ground. The next moment, when she saw a foggy figure walk by, was when she finally accepted that ghosts existed.

Della got up and began running home to Jim. She wanted to tell him everything that had happened. She didn’t know that it wasn’t over yet. All at the same time three things happened. She began hearing the voice that she thought was Jim’s voice earlier, it got very cold again, and there was a very strong wind, but it was only blowing in the common and nowhere else.

These things all happening at the same time made Della very scared. She didn’t think she would make it. She wanted to be home with Jim. She wished that this was just a nightmare that would be over soon. She couldn’t take it anymore. She fainted in the middle of the common, but no one was around to help her.

The next morning Della woke up at home with Jim. She found him making breakfast for both of them.

“How did you find me,” asked Della.

“I saw you on the ground while I was going to the store,” replied Jim.

Jim and Della ate breakfast and went for a walk together again. They don’t walk through the common alone any more for the fear that they could be hurt worse than before. If they do go through it they make sure that there are other people around to witness anything that could happen and help if something goes wrong.