Waiting Spirits Read Online Free PDF

She kissed her on the cheek. “I won’t wait up for you. And your parents probably won’t get home until after you do. Your mother has cabin fever, too. She’s going to make the most of her evening out.”
    Lisa’s reply was cut short by a knock at the door.
    â€œThat must be Brian!” cried Carrie. “I’ll get it!”
    Lisa sighed. Why did Carrie always have to be so eager?
    Lisa sat glumly beside Brian as they drove back from the film.
    â€œWhat’s the matter?” he asked.
    â€œNothing!” she said, lying and flashing him a quick smile.
    Which was part of the problem. Everything was fine; too fine. It had been a wonderful evening, and now Lisa didn’t want it to end, partly because she had the feeling he would never ask her out again. The beach was filled with summer girls, and Brian could have his choice. Most of them were more sophisticated than she was, prettier, more interesting.
    Suddenly she felt very inadequate.
    â€œDidn’t you like the movie?” he asked.
    â€œIt was wonderful!” she cried.
    Brian looked at her and made a face. Lisa burst out laughing. The picture had been terrible, and they both knew it.
    â€œYou shouldn’t lie like that,” said Brian, smiling. “It damages your credibility.”
    â€œMy mother calls that a ‘little white.’ According to her little whites are ‘a necessary social evil.’”
    â€œWhat is she?” asked Brian. “A preacher?”
    Lisa smiled. “You might say that. Her sermons are all delivered in my bedroom, though. To an audience of one. Me.”
    Brian laughed. “My mother’s a preacher, too. Her favorite topic is how I should settle down and stop dating so many girls.”
    â€œSo, you’re a real heartbreaker, huh?” She tired to sound casual, but it didn’t quite work. Her stomach was in knots.
    Brian frowned. “I hope not. I just want to have a good time. Seeing one person all the time can get boring, don’t you think?”
    Lisa frowned, certain he was telling her he didn’t want to go out again. And she was sure it was because he knew he could find more interesting people on the beach, any day, any time. She had paid attention to the competition when she was working on her tan. Most of the girls summering on the island were from wealthy families. A lot of them went to private schools and took lessons of some sort—everything from horseback riding to karate. She could see why Brian wouldn’t want to bother with her. She was boring, boring, boring! She wished desperately she could think of something to make herself more interesting.
    â€œDo you believe in spirits?” she asked suddenly.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œYou know: ghosts, spooks, voices from beyond?”
    Brian paused. When he answered, Lisa was surprised at how serious his voice sounded. “I’m not sure,” he said slowly. “I plan on becoming a scientist—marine biology. I know I should be very rational. But, yeah, I guess I sort of do. The idea of a spirit world has always fascinated me.”
    Lisa felt a surge of elation. “Well, did you ever try something called automatic writing?”
    Brian shook his head. “I’ve heard of it. But I never tried it. Why?”
    â€œOh, we were fooling around with it yesterday,” she said casually. “My grandmother was teaching us how to do it.”
    â€œDid you have any luck?”
    â€œBelieve it or not, we did. I got a message from somewhere. And…” Her voice trailed off. She wasn’t sure how much she wanted to say about the table knocking or the other things that had happened.
    â€œWhat did it say?” asked Brian, a note of intense interest in his voice.
    â€œâ€˜Welcome home.’”
    â€œThat’s weird. What do you suppose it meant?”
    â€œI don’t know. I got scared, and we stopped the seance.”
    â€œDo you want to