Chapter 1

During my senior year of high school, I moved into an old house to save money, but I always had the feeling that something about the place wasn't quite right.

At first, things I'd just set down would vanish the moment I turned my back.

Then, items that didn't belong to me started appearing out of nowhere.

One night, I had just finished my schoolwork and was about to head to bed when a basketball jersey suddenly dropped from the ceiling.

I froze for a few seconds, completely dumbfounded.

I was just about to throw the thing out when I heard a voice shouting from thin air. "Who's there? What kind of creep steals a guy's jersey?"

*****

There was no way I was ever moving into some creepy old house nobody wanted, just to save some bucks on rent.

I stared at the jersey in my hand, still carrying a faint scent of laundry detergent, while the guy's voice kept ranting from somewhere unseen. I was at a loss for what to do next.

On a whim, I tossed the jersey up into the air, just to see if I could give it back. To my surprise, it actually vanished right before my eyes.

But the guy kept ranting.

He said, "Ouch. Who just threw my jersey at me? You little thief, now you've got an attitude?"

He kept ranting for a while, then suddenly went silent. After a long pause, he finally spoke again, his voice trembling.

He said, "Wait, there's nowhere in my house for anyone to hide.

"You, you, you... Are you a person or a ghost? Come out. I play sports, I'm not afraid of you."

I just sighed inwardly, feeling a bit exasperated.

I could hear him crashing into furniture and groaning in pain.

"Hey, I'm not a thief; your jersey just dropped into my room out of nowhere," I said.

When I suddenly spoke up, he went silent again. After a while, he tentatively asked, "Am I hearing things?"

"No, I..." I said.

Before I could finish, he started yelling, all worked up.

He said, "Are you a ghost? Where are you? Don't tell me you're trapped in my ceiling or something crazy. Is there some unresolved wish you need me to help with?"

He kept chattering nonstop, so I took a deep breath, grabbed an eraser, and tossed it into the empty air.

Three seconds later, I heard him let out a pained yelp.

I seized the moment and spoke up.

I said, "Quiet down and listen to me. I'm just a person, and so are you.

"Looks like we're caught up in some weird time-space mix-up.

"Not only can our stuff pass between us, but even our voices can cross over."

The guy slapped his thigh, and it finally clicked for him.

He said, "No wonder I keep losing things and finding stuff that isn't mine lately."

I couldn't help but curl my lips in a wry smile.

Seriously, was this guy for real? Only now he thought something was off?

Something else popped into his head, and he kept talking.

He said, "Hey, do you have my basketball over there? If you do, could you send it back? My parents gave it to me for my birthday, and I haven't even gotten to use it yet."

"I'll try," I replied.

I spotted the basketball in the corner, walked over, picked it up, and tossed it into the void.

Strangely enough, the ball just stayed put; it didn't disappear as the jersey did.

I wasn't about to give up, so I tried throwing it from a few different angles, but the basketball still wouldn't vanish.

I muttered, "Why isn't it working? It definitely worked a second ago.

"Maybe this time-space glitch just comes and goes whenever it wants? Or does it only happen at certain times?"

I was totally stumped.

The guy thought it over for a bit, but couldn't figure it out either. In the end, he just chuckled awkwardly and said, "No worries, just hang on to it for me, okay? Keep it safe."

Before I could respond, he suddenly perked up and slapped his thigh, clearly struck by another idea.

"If stuff and voices can cross over, maybe people can, too. Hold on, let me try," the guy said, his voice full of excitement.

He looked like he just stumbled onto a whole new world and started messing around, grinning from ear to ear.

I sat on my bed, listening to the clatter of him moving things around on his side.

I said, "The odds of a person actually crossing over are pretty slim, right?

"Otherwise, we would've already bumped into each other by now..."

I was just yawning when, out of nowhere, an arm dangled down from the ceiling. My hair stood on end. I was totally freaked out.

"Hey, I made it. But I think I'm stuck. Pull me up, will you? Let's see if I can get my whole body through," the guy called out.

Almost without thinking, I grabbed his hand and, doing as he told me, pulled as hard as I could.

But instead of him coming through, I was sent flying across the room, and the arm disappeared as well.

His voice came through again, sounding worried and apologetic.

"Are you okay? Did you get hurt? Sorry, I really didn't expect it to bounce you back like that," he said.

"I'm fine. Guess for now, this time-space glitch only lets stuff and voices through," I replied.

Hearing my answer, he let out a sigh of relief, then said brightly, "It's getting late, you should get some rest. And hey, I've decided; we're friends now. I'm Ryan Summers. What's your name?"

"Anna Frost," I replied.