The Hidden Door Read Online Free PDF Page A

distance between us in no time flat. He steadies me in the strong circle of his arms, and for some reason I let myself sink into his embrace. Lifting a hand gingerly a long my spine, Justin calms me.
    Then I remember what brought on this dizzy spell in the first place. I push Justin away. He curses under his breath but I don’t stop to demand a replay. Instead I stomp several feet down the sidewalk, trying to find my equilibrium.
    â€œWhat was that?” I say, cringing at my demandi ng tone.
    Justin runs a hand through his dark hair, ruffling it into disarray. He exhales, looking up at the dark night sky, t hen back at me. “You tell me,” h e says, his voice hard and resolute. The challenge is clear. We can’t dance around our past forever.
    â€œHave you been searching for the Hidden Door without me?” I ask. The question tumbles out of my mouth before I can stop it. I’m ashamed of the burst of tears that wells up in my eyes. An arctic wind blasts against us, and I pull my hands up into my sweater sleeves, balling them up in my palm to get even a tiny bit warmer.
    Narrowing his eyes, Justin watches me for awhile. Finally he says, “No. I haven’t been to look for the Hidden Door in over a year.”
    We step closer as a group of already drunk college students, probably fraternity guys, amble by us. I can’t tear my eyes away from his green-eyed gaze. We stand regarding one another until I say, “Oh.”
    I can hear all the unspoken things Justin wants to say and I feel both curious and annoyed. Turning away I take a steadying breath and say, “Let’s get started.”
    Wild excitement lights up Justin’s eyes. He loves this search. I wonder how he’ll feel when we actually find the door. Will he be fulfilled? Or disappointed? I think I’ll feel a little bit of both.
    â€œRemember the first time we searched?” Justin asks, his hands buried in his jacket pockets. He seems more relaxed.
    My heart starts to race. “How could I forget?”
    I’m about to say more when someone steps into our path. At first I think it’s just some drunken college student, but then I see the flash of silver…nails? He has on a black cape and a Phantom of the Opera style mask with his face painted in white makeup. When he sneers at us I see fake, but awfully realistic looking fangs jutting out from his teeth.
    That’s when I realize that this is him , The Vampire. My throat constricts, my brain screams to run. I want to yell out, to make a fuss, to do something. But I’m frozen, rooted to the ground, completely motionless. Thankfully Justin reacts. He grabs me quickly then shoves himself in front of me.
    The grab breaks the spell. I start to scream, the shrill sound filling the air around us. The Vampire lets out a terrifying growl, and says, “I know what you are looking for and I will stop you.”
    I don’t realize that I still am clutching Justin’s arm until The Vampire has retreated into the shadows and several people have run over to us to make sure we are okay. After multiple reassurances, Justin grabs my hand. We dash to the building we were headed toward in the first place. The warm glow of fluorescent lights greets us as we burst into a deserted hallway. At first I feel creeped out, thinking we are alone with some psycho chasing us. But then I hear the familiar banging from the engineering wing. Ah! Even on Halloween the engineering students can be counted on to be here, working.
    Breathing a sigh of relief, I look up at Justin for the first time since the incident. “Are you okay?” he asks, his voice full of such concern that for the first time in a long time I can’t remember why we aren’t best friends anymore.
    I don’t say anything, though. I just nod. But I slip my hand through Justin’s pretending I don’t notice his surprise. From the way his lips tug up into a smile, I think maybe