Free The Ghost in Room 11 by Betty Ren Wright Page B

word ten times.”
    Later, when it was time to start their speeches, Mrs. Sanders called on Matt first. “I’m sure you have something interesting to tell us,” she said. Matt guessed she was sorry she’d made the class laugh at him.
    He didn’t smile back. His legs moved jerkily as he walked to the front of the room. When he turned to face the class, he couldn’t remember one word of what he’d planned to say. Then he glanced at Charlie Peck. Charlie snickered, and the snicker made Matt remember.
    â€œI’m not supposed to talk about this,” he began, “but I’m going to anyway.”
    The words were like magic. The kids stopped wriggling. Charlie’s grin faded. Mrs. Sanders looked as if she wanted to say something, but didn’t.
    Matt cleared his throat. “I’m going to tell you about my real mother and father.” For just one second he pictured his real mom and dad, and he felt guilty. But they were at work in Milwaukee, and he was here. Last night his mother had said it was his own fault if he didn’t make friends. She’d said he had to try hard. Okay , he thought, I’m trying .
    â€œMy real mom does stunts in the movies.… My real father is a treasure hunter.” He told about some of the stunts his mother did, including some new ones he’d made up in bed last night. He held up the “gold piece.”
    Matt hoped the class would clap when he finished, but they didn’t. They just looked at him.
    Mrs. Sanders asked if anyone wanted to comment on the talk.
    â€œIt was a bunch of lies,” Charlie said.
    â€œThat’s enough,” Mrs. Sanders said sharply. “You’re being rude, Charles.”
    â€œMatt talked in a nice loud voice,” Stephanie James said, after a moment.
    â€œThat’s better,” Mrs. Sanders said. “I hope everyone else will speak as clearly as Matthew did.”
    Nobody said, “You’re lucky to have such great parents, Matthew.” When Matt walked back to his seat, no one looked at him, except Stephanie. She smiled as if she were sorry for him.
    There were four more talks that day, but Matt didn’t hear a word of them. He kept trying to figure out what had gone wrong. It was Charlie’s fault, he decided. Charlie had called him a liar. He wished a bolt of lightning would shoot through the open window and hit Charlie. It could hit all of them, except Stephanie.
    At recess he told Mrs. Sanders he wanted to stay inside and read, but she wouldn’t let him. Charlie waited with his pals outside the door.
    â€œYou are the biggest liar I ever heard,” Charlie said. “You make up stuff all the time, and you’re a chicken besides. All you can do is talk.”
    Matt took a step backward. “I’m not a chicken,” he said. “My real mother’s going to teach me to do stunts someday. I’m not afraid of anything.”
    Charlie looked sideways at the other boys. “Prove it,” he said. Matt saw that he’d stepped into a trap. “Stay after school tonight and watch for the ghost. I bet you’re too chicken to do that.”
    â€œNo, I’m not,” Matt said, because there was nothing else he could say. “I’ll do it. Big deal.”
    He looked up, hoping again for a bolt of lightning. This time he wished it would crash down on his own head. He wanted to disappear in a flash of light and never come back.
    That would wipe the grin off Charlie Peck’s face.

3
    Hiding in the Closet
    â€œIt’s down there at the bottom of the stairs.” Charlie gave Matt a push. “Hurry up! Hide!”
    Matt looked longingly at the door to the playground. The few students left in the school were heading out, and there wasn’t a single teacher in sight. Where were they when you needed them?
    â€œWhat if a janitor comes to get a mop or something?”
    â€œThe cleaning stuff is stored up here,”