Don't Scream! Read Online Free

brown-uniformed soldiers were bayoneting a blue-uniformed soldier. The 3-D was amazing. It looked like you were gazing into a real world.
    â€œ3-D without glasses,” Eli gushed. “Best game-player ever?”
    â€œLooks good,” I said. “But —”
    â€œHere. Try it.” He pushed it into my hands. “There are no controls. It goes by finger motion. See?”
    He wiped his nose with the sleeve of his T-shirt. His nose always becomes a faucet when he’s excited.
    I pushed the GameFreak back at him. “Eli, give me a break,” I groaned. “I called you here for a reason.”
    His whole face drooped. “Sorry, dude.” He shoved the player into one of his two dozen pockets.
    I left the phone on the bed, and I pulled Eli into the hall. I didn’t want the girl to hear.
    â€œI’m totally stressed,” I told him. “I — I’ve got a real problem.”
    â€œYou need computer help?” Eli asked. “Did your laptop hard drive crash again?”
    I sighed. “No. This is a
real
problem. Like in
real life
.”
    Eli scratched his thick, curly hair. When he touched his hair, it bounced like springs. Not like hair.
    â€œI found a phone on the bus,” I said.
    He squinted at me. “Is it 5G?”
    â€œWho knows?” I snapped. “It … it doesn’t really work as a phone. I mean, I haven’t made a call. I —”
    He nodded. “You want me to fix it?”
    I shook my head. “No. Just give me a chance to tell you about it. Stop interrupting.”
    He took two fingers and zipped his lips. Music still chimed from the game-player in his pants pocket.
    â€œI found it on the school bus,” I repeated. “And as soon as I picked it up and held it to my ear, astrange girl started talking to me in this soft, whispery voice.”
    Behind the square glasses, his eyes grew wide. “Really?”
    â€œShe knew my name,” I said. “She said we were going to be best, best friends.”
    â€œCool!” Eli exclaimed.
    â€œNot cool,” I said. “I tried to figure out who she was. But I don’t think I know her. She’s a total stranger, and she’s weird. I tried to get rid of her. I mean, I powered off the phone.”
    â€œAnd then she was gone?” Eli asked.
    â€œThat’s what I’m telling you,” I cried. “I powered off the phone, but she was
still there
.”
    Eli chuckled. “No way.”
    â€œI’m not making this up,” I said.
    â€œYes, you are,” he replied, grinning. “What’s the joke, dude?”
    â€œNo joke, Eli. The girl —”
    â€œI get it,” Eli said. “It’s an exploding phone, right? You make up this insane story so I look into the phone, and it blows apart in my hands? I saw that phone in a catalogue.”
    I took a deep breath. Eli is a total genius, but sometimes he only listens to himself. He doesn’t really hear what I’m saying.
    I tried again. “The girl is in the phone, Eli. And she won’t go away. She says she’s going to be my friend
forever
.”
    He raised his eyes to me. He studied me for a long while. “You’re serious. You’re totally serious.”
    I nodded. “Just before you came, she shocked me. She sent some kind of horrible shock right through the phone. She says she can hurt me. She says she’ll hurt Rachel.”
    Eli bit his bottom lip. He kept staring hard at me. “Crazy,” he muttered.
    I think he finally believed me.
    He stepped back into my room and picked up the phone.
    â€œGo away, Eli,” the girl spoke up.
    â€œYAAAAAIII.” Eli uttered a cry of surprise. The phone started to fall out of his hand. He caught it before it hit the floor.
    â€œDid you hear me, Eli?” the girl said. She sounded cold, angry. “Go away.”
    â€œWh-who are you?” Eli stammered, staring into the