Britney

I am on eBay shopping for a Ouija board. I’m excited by the idea of contacting a spirit, but a little scared, too, because you don’t really know what you’ll get. Finding one is hard—it seems like the ones that aren’t too expensive have a note from the current owner warning buyers not to use them. Suddenly, my best friend Polina sends me a message via online chat saying that she has an idea. I abandon my search and ask her what’s up.

“We should get a Ouija board,” she says. “I used one last year and it was fun.”

I’m momentarily stunned by the scary coincidence. Then I say, “We should! I’ve wanted one, but I hear a lot of stories about bad things that happen when you use one.” I think about all of the scary Ouija board videos I’ve watched and the creepy stories I’ve heard, and my second thoughts turn into third thoughts and I just don’t know what to do. I tell Polina about my unfruitful search, and I confess that I’m paranoid about using a Ouija board in my house.

“Maybe we can use it in school,” she suggests.

“It would be cool to see if there were any spirits in school,” I say, but I’m worried. We decide that since Halloween falls on a Wednesday—the only day that we’re both free at lunch—we should use the Ouija board then, if we can find one.

I’m still not sure about getting one. I think it might be a bad idea. ♦