Chapter 3

I didn't want Mom and Dad to worry, so I saw a therapist without telling them. The doctor said the hallucinations were due to anxiety.

I took the diagnosis home, thinking maybe I should take a trip to clear my head. But when I got home, I saw Mom with her back to me, chopping cucumbers.

I frowned. She knew I was allergic to cucumbers. I hesitated for a second but figured she probably wanted them for herself, so I didn't bring it up.

I went to my room, trying to figure out how to tell them I wanted to take a trip.

I'd never gone far by myself. Mom and Dad were always overprotective. They never let me go more than ten miles alone because they were always worried something bad might happen.

While I was thinking of how to convince them, my phone lit up with a WhatsApp notification. I thought it was just a friend asking me to hang out, so I opened it without thinking. But then, I frowned.

It was a message from Mom.

I hadn't greeted her when I came in, so maybe she thought I was still out and was just calling me home for the meal. But when I read her message, my eyes went wide.

"Lily, hide! There's a ghost in the house!"

What kind of prank was this? Why would Mom suddenly try to scare me? But then, I remembered how sweet and gentle she'd always been. She wasn't the type to pull a stunt like this.

Could someone have hacked her account just to mess with me? The idea started to seem way too possible. I was about to tell Mom about it when another message popped up.

"Lily, don't go out! The person outside isn't me!"

My heart started pounding. How did she know I was about to leave my room? It felt like she was watching me.

I looked around my tiny, cozy room. My bed and my white desk took up most of the space. There was definitely no room for anyone to hide.

Then, I remembered that weird presence I'd been feeling lately. Could it be that "ghost" messing with me?

I swallowed hard, trying to stay calm. I had to keep myself from panicking, knowing that the more I feared something, the more likely it was to happen. Still, cold sweat was already creeping down my back.

Suddenly, there was a knock on my door, and Mom's voice came through, "The meal's ready, sweetheart. Come on out."

That familiar warmth in her voice eased my nerves a bit. I jumped off the bed and headed for the door. But just as my hand reached for the doorknob, another message popped up on my phone.

My breath caught, and I froze, not sure what to do.

Despite everything, I hit play on the message, and a frantic voice came through the speaker, "Trust me, Lily. I'm your real mom! The one out there is a ghost! Run!"

Terror seized me. The voice was exactly like Mom's. Which one was the real her?

Another knock came. This time, the person outside sounded a little impatient, though her tone was still gentle.

"Come on out, Lily. Or the food's going to get cold," she said.

I stared at the white door and took a few steps back. I was too scared to even think about what I'd find if I opened it. A shiver ran down my spine.

No more texts came in, and the silence outside seemed to stretch on forever.

Not hearing me respond, Mom giggled from the other side of the door and said, "I'm coming in."