WHERE IS HELEN?

Chapter 4

     The third-grade class arrived at their picnic site, a lush green forest with tall trees and a bubbling brook. The students were excited to spend the day outdoors, and they quickly set up their picnic tables and began to explore the area. Helen and Stephanie stuck close to Mrs. Wilson, their favourite teacher. They loved spending time with her and felt safe when they were near her.

    As the other students started to explore the woods, some began setting up their tents and starting campfires to cook their food. Others played games or went for hikes.

Helen and Stephanie watched as the other kids ran around, laughing and having fun. They felt a bit left out but were glad to be spending the day with their friends.

Mrs. Wilson noticed the girls looking a bit lost and took them by the hand. "Come on, let's go explore the woods," she said. "We can look for some wildflowers or maybe even some animals."

   The girls perked up at the idea of exploring and eagerly followed Mrs. Wilson into the woods. They walked along the trail, looking at the trees and the plants around them.

Suddenly, they heard a rustling in the bushes. Helen and Stephanie froze, unsure of what was making the noise. Mrs. Wilson stepped in front of them protectively and peered into the bushes.

"It's just a squirrel," she said, laughing. "Don't worry my junior explorers, officer squirrel is not going to hurt us, he's just hiding from us."

The girls giggled, relieved that it was just a harmless animal. "You should have seen your face." Helen teased her friend.

"Oh come on Helen," Stephanie defended, "you looked like you were going to vanish, I was just waiting to see how you would disappear into thin air." Helen approached her and spread her hair over her face and ran to hide behind Mrs. Wilson.

They continued their walk, talking and laughing with Mrs. Wilson.

As the day went on, the girls had a great time exploring the woods and spending time with their teacher. They learned about the different plants and animals in the forest, and even found some wildflowers to bring back to their class. But their favourite part was, chasing around squirrels.

      As the sun started to set, the class gathered around the campfire to roast marshmallows and tell jokes. Helen and Stephanie snuggled up close to Mrs. Wilson, feeling grateful to have such a caring and fun teacher. The latter had no kids, so she secretly enjoyed their clinginess.

Helen had been holding in her urge to pee for some time, but with no bathroom in sight, she decided to go into the woods to find a quiet spot. She walked further into the woods, away from the rest of the class and found a small clearing behind a thicket.

     As she squatted, she heard a rustling in the bushes. Helen thought it was just an animal and tried to ignore it, but the rustling grew louder. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her ankle and pulled her leg, making her fall down. Helen screamed, but it was quickly muffled by a hand over her mouth. Her eyes widened in terror as she saw the ghostly figure standing over her. The ghost had long black hair and wore a white dress that fluttered in the breeze. Helen tried to move away, but the ghost put a finger to her lips, gesturing for her to be quiet.

Helen couldn't understand what was happening, but the ghost pointed to her dress, which was stuck on a branch. The ghost quickly untangled her, and Helen could feel her hand cold as ice. The ghost then leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear, "Don't marry him. He is evil."

Helen was shocked and confused, but before she could say anything, the ghost vanished. She was left standing there, shaking and wondering what had just happened. She quickly pulled up her dress and rushed back to where the picnic was.

When she arrived, she ran towards Mrs. Wilson, tears streaming down her face. Mrs. Wilson could see that she was upset and quickly took her aside to talk to her.

"What's wrong, Helen?" she asked, putting a comforting arm around the girl's shoulder.

Helen took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "I saw the ghost again," she said, her voice trembling.

Mrs. Wilson looked at her with concern. "What do you mean, the ghost?" she asked.

Helen explained everything that had happened, about how she had gone to the woods to pee and had seen the ghost again. She told her about how the ghost had whispered to her, telling her not to marry someone because he was evil.

Mrs. Wilson listened patiently, then gently asked, "Helen, are you feeling okay? Do you need to see the doctor?"

Helen shook her head, feeling embarrassed. "No, I'm okay. I just need to go home."

Mrs. Wilson knew that something was bothering Helen, and she promised to talk to her parents about what had happened. She also told her to always speak up if she ever felt scared or uncomfortable.

Helen nodded and hugged her tightly, still shaken by the experience. She couldn't shake off the feeling that the ghost's warning had been meant for her. She didn't know who she was supposed to avoid or why, but the ghost's words had left a lasting impression on her. "Can I sleep over at your place?" She asked Mrs. Wilson.

A smile escaped the corner of Mrs Wilson's lips, her biggest wish ever since she met Helen, was to adopt her, but unfortunately for her, Helen was someone else's. "Yes, yes sure, I'll call your Mom." She beamed.

"She warned me." Helen whispered.

"Who?" Mrs. Wilson asked, concerned.

"The ghost." Helen responded, rolling her eyes to the bottom.

" What did she say baby?" Mrs. Wilson replied, breaking out of the hug and finding a good spot on the floor for them to sit.

"She said 'Don't marry him, he's evil', "Helen quoted, "I swear she looks like me." She rested her head on Mrs. Wilson's lap.

"Don't marry him? Did she leave a clue, or a description or anything as to whom this him, is referring to?" Mrs. Wilson asked, hoping to be a good listener.

"Nothing." Helen responded. "She just helped me and gave that warning. What do you think it meant?"

Mrs. Wilson took a look around her for a while, trying to understand what the little girl was going through. Helen's parents had told all the teachers including her that these things Helen keep seeing are 'Traumatic episodes', but listening to the ghost's warning, and how Helen describes her using the words 'she looks like me, and sounds like me', "What if it's her ghost from the future?" She whispered to herself.

"Pardon?" Helen asked.

"Do you have a scar?" Mrs. Wilson asked, as an idea rang a bell in her mind.

"Naa," Helen whispered, "I'm too careful."

"No Helen, nobody can be that much careful." She replied, and started to search for a scar anywhere on her body. "There's gotta be something."

"You'll be surprised." Helen chuckled.

"Nope, surprised is what you're gonna be when I..." She paused as she checked around Helen's neck and found a scar which had been hidden thanks to her hair covering it up all the time "found it." She rejoiced.

"I have a scar?" Helen asked, amazed.

"Yup honey, surprise." Mrs. Wilson sang, gently caressing the spot, "And this, my dear, is how we will be able to prove that your look-alike is your ghost from the future, that way you won't have to be afraid of her anymore. What do you think?"

Helen got up gently, trying to hide her laughter as she did. When their eyes finally met, Helen's eyes widened and a silly look formed on her face, "Gosh you are so weird." she said and burst into laughter.

"Come-on Helen," Mrs. Wilson replied a silly squeezed up face, trying to look as funny as she could, "it's our little undercover mission. We'll call it, 'Catching The Pretty Ghost'."

Helen couldn't help but laugh at her teacher for having weird ideas. " We should go for marshmallows, that's much better." She proposed.

   Even though she felt idea was a good one to help them find out whom this ghost was, seeing Helen without worry or fear in her eyes but excitement, she felt happy and decided to put that conversation on hold. "I'm talking rubbish cos I'm hungry, and it's your fault." She said, spreading the little girl's hair all over her face, and got up to run, so she'd run after her.