Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Read Online Free

guys. How do I get down?”
    Below me, the gym had suddenly grown very quiet.
    “Max, get your butt down here, okay?” Coach Freeley's voice broke through the silence. “Other people want a turn.”
    Get my butt down there? Okay. I'd love to.
    But how? I didn't have a clue.
    I clung to the rope. My palms began to sweat and my hands started to slip. My legs began to shake. I was losing my grip. I couldn't hold on much longer.
    “Nicky? Tara?
Help!
”

7
    I SWALLOWED. M Y T HROAT felt as dry as sawdust. I was trembling so hard, my knees were knocking together. Could everyone see that?
    How could those two stupid ghosts leave me up here? I really had no idea how to get down. I knew there was no way I could slide down without ripping my whole body to pieces.
    And then I realized something else—
I'm afraid of heights!
    As I gazed down, the gym started to spin. The kids, Coach Freeley, the bleachers, the gym floor—it all became a whirling blur.
    Fighting off my dizziness, I raised my eyes to the ceiling. And felt my hands slip a little more. My heart pounded in my chest.
    Coach Freeley is going to have to call the fire department, I thought. That's the only way I'll ever get down. But how can I hold on long enough for the firefighters to get here?
    Coach Freeley turned and headed across the gym to get his clipboard. That's when I saw theladder at the side of the gym start to move. It was a tall metal painter's ladder that had been leaning against the far wall. As I stared down, the ladder lifted itself away from the wall and appeared to move on its own—sliding toward me.
    Yes—!
    Kids let out startled cries as the ladder edged across the gym floor. They scrambled to get out of the way. The ladder moved past them and came to a stop at the wall beneath me.
    Okay, okay, Max. This should be a piece of cake. Just hold on to the rope and lower your feet to the ladder. No prob, right?
    Well, it sounded easier than it was.
    I held on to the rope, lowering my hands inch by inch until my sneakers bumped the top rung of the ladder. Then slowly, slowly I lowered myself. With a final step of courage, I let go of the rope. I quickly grabbed the ladder's sides with my hands. Then I climbed down the rest of the way.
    When my shoes hit the gym floor, I let out a triumphant cheer. I stopped when I realized everyone was staring hard at me.
    “Max, that ladder,” Traci said, pointing. “It—it walked across the gym on its own!”
    Think fast, Max. Think fast.
    “Of course,” I said. “It's a
step
-ladder!”
    Groan.
    Well … that was the best I could do.
    Up in my room that night, I waited for Nicky and Tara to appear. Why didn't they help me down the rope? I wanted to know. Why did they make me flunk the rope test?
    But more important than that, I needed to tell them about Phears. I had to tell them about the Berserker Ghoul he was going to send to break me.
    Break me.
    I don't want to be broken, I thought, shuddering. I want my life to be normal again.
    Nicky and Tara had to step up. They had to help protect me from Phears and this ghoul he was sending. After all, whose fault was it that I was in this mess?
    I didn't ask to be haunted. I didn't ask for any of this. And if I was going to protect Nicky and Tara, it was only fair for them to protect me.
    But where were they?
    They didn't show up all night.
    I tried to write in my journal. But everything I wrote about my day sounded like some kind of scary novel. No one would believe any of it. I tore out the page and promised myself I'd think of something to write tomorrow.
    Finally, I tucked myself into bed, shut my eyes, and tried to forget about this awful day. But just as I started to drift off to sleep, I heard a low howl.
    And then a long, shrill cry.
    The cat. Again.
    “Where is that cat?” I bolted up in bed.
    Another low howl. Sounding so sad and lonely.
    “Where are you, cat?” My muscles tensed.
    Wait a minute. Maybe I'm hearing Edgar, the Swansons' black cat next