Ghoul

'Thank you, Timmy. I don't believe it, but thank you for trying. Nobody else has paid much attention to me during this whole thing.'

He was surprised. He'd always thought the Moores doted on their youngest daughter.

'Not your parents?'

She shook her head. 'Nope. Too worried about Karen, I guess. It's like I'm invisible.'

Timmy was speechless, and Katie misinterpreted his silence as disapproval.

'I'm sorry. That probably sounds horrible, doesn't it? I don't mean it to be.'

'I don't think it sounds horrible at all.'

'I'm just hurt, you know? It's like I don't exist. They miss Karen, and want her to come home, but they forget that I' m feeling those things, too. Your parents are supposed to make you feel better. They 're supposed to tell you everything's going to be all right. The only person that's told me it would be okay is you.'

'Yeah, parents are weird sometimes. I'm learning that more and more.' They walked on, still holding hands and a little closer together. Katie smelled good, like strawberries and shampoo, and Timmy shivered a little. He wondered what he could do to cheer her up.

'Karen used to play EasyBake Oven with me,' Katie said. 'We'd make cupcakes and little pizzas and stuff. I keep making things now, hoping she' ll come back. Isn 't that stupid?'

'I don't think so,' Timmy said.

They started down the cemetery's rear pathway. Farmer Jones' s cows stood grazing in the field. As they passed by, the cows raised their heads and stared at them blankly. Timmy noticed that none of the animals would come near the fence line, which was unusual. Most days, they ' d stick their head under or through the fence, trying to feed on the cemetery 's greener grass. Now, it was as if they were afraid to draw near. Timmy spotted the Dugout's stovepipe sticking up out of the ground, and suddenly, he had an idea of how to cheer Katie up.

'Want to see something cool?'

She smiled. 'Sure.'

'Okay. But it's a secret, so you've gotta promise not to tell anybody. And you have to close your eyes, too.'

'Is it your clubhouse?' Her voice was innocent but her eyes glinted mischievously. Timmy gasped. 'How do you know about that?'

'Everybody knows about your fort.' Katie shrugged. 'Erica Altland told me about it at school.'

'Ericahow does she know? It's supposed to be top secret!' Katie giggled. 'I think Doug let the secret slip.'

'Oh, man.' Timmy groaned. 'That dipshit.' Immediately, he felt his ears burning, and worried that he'd offended her. But Katie was laughing.

'I'm sorry,' Timmy apologized. 'I shouldn't have said that.'

'That's okay. I don't mind.'

He smiled, relieved. 'So… you want to see it?'

'I better not.' She squeezed his hand reassuringly. 'Not today, at least. If what Erica said is true, your clubhouse is underground, and if my dad comes looking for me and can't find me, he'll be mad. Maybe you could show it to me during church some Sunday?'

'Sure. But won't he be looking for you then, too?'

'Not if we play hooky from Sunday school.'

She shoved him playfully, and then dashed off through the graveyard.

'Hey,' Timmy shouted. 'Where are you going?'

'To show you something else that's top secret. Catch me if you can.' Curious, Timmy ran after her. She led him on a chase around the graves, weaving around tombstones and darting behind statues. When they reached the older portion of the cemetery, she slowed down. Timmy caught up with her, winded, but trying hard not to show it. He reached out and tapped her shoulder.

'Tag. You're it.'

'You're out of breath,' Katie teased. 'What took you so long? Can't keep up with a girl?'

'No. Just didn't want to make you look bad.'

Laughing, she took his hand again and led him forward. Their fingers entwined. No longer stunned by the display of affection, this time he was able to enjoy it more. It was quite possibly the best thing he ' d ever experienced. He liked how soft her skin was, and how tiny her fingers felt next to his, and the way her red fingernails brushed against his skin when she moved.

They came to a circular depression, almost thirty feet in circumference, where the ground had collapsedtapering from several inches on its outer edge to three or four feet in the center.

The grass in the circle was wilted and brown.

'Wow,' Katie said, 'what is this?'

'Sinkhole,' Timmy said. 'Haven't you noticed how some of the graves are sinking?'

'Yeah. My dad was complaining about it earlier. He said he needed to talk to Mr. Smeltzer about it. What's making it happen?'

'We think there's a cave underneath the cemetery. Barry, Doug, and me found a tunnel.'

'Really?'

'Uhhuh. We were gonna explore it, but then…'

'What?'

'Well, some other stuff came up.'

Sensing his sudden sadness, she led him onward, skirting around the edge of the sinkhole.

'So, what's this big secret?' Timmy asked. 'Don't tell me you've got a clubhouse down here, too.'

Katie giggled. 'Not quite. My clubhouse is in our garage. But there is something cool that I've always wanted to show you.'

She stopped in front of two old gravestones, which had also begun to sink. The lichencovered limestone surfaces were pitted and worn by time and exposure to the elements. The dates of births and deaths were faded and unreadable, but the names and epitaphs were still apparent.

'Timothy Rebert,' Timmy read out loud, 'and Katie Rebert. Beloved husband and wife.'

He scratched his head.

'Don't you see?' Katie said. 'They have the same names as us.'

'Kind of creepy.'

'I think it's sweet.'

'If you say so.'

'I do. It's sweetjust like you.'

Timmy fumbled for words. 'So, does this mean… like… you want to…' Katie laughed. 'It doesn't mean anything, other than I noticed the names a long time ago, and I always thought it was nice. They were married and they had the same names as we do.'

'So why didn't you ever tell me before?'

'I was afraid you didn't like me. You never talk when I'm around. Barry always talks more.'

Timmy blushed. 'I didn't talk because I was afraid you didn't like me. I figured you liked Barry more.'

'I don't. I like you.'

Timmy swallowed, and his stomach fluttered. 'You do?' Katie nodded.

'Um…'

'Well,' she tapped her foot, 'is that all you can say?'

'No,' he blurted. 'I… I like you, too. I have for a long time.'

'Good.'

'It's kind of like that note you made for me when we were little.' He blushed, immediately regretting saying it. She probably didn't even remember what he was talking about.

Katie smiled. 'I was in first grade and you were in second. It said 'I like you, Timmy,'

right?'

'Yeah. Wow, I'm surprised you remember it.'

'I'm surprised you do, too.'