An Empty House
It was a sunny day with just a slight breeze. I could not wait to go to the beach. I decided to surprise my friend, Alicia, by dropping by her house and asking her if she wanted to go to the beach.
When I reached her house, I pressed the doorbell and waited. I hugged myself in excitement as I knew she would be very surprised to see me. To my bewilderment, no one opened the door. I knew that Alicia usually stayed home on a Saturday morning as both her parents were working. I began pounding on the door.
“Perhaps she’s still sleeping,” I said aloud.
Just then, Alicia’s neighbour poked her head out of her gate. I was stunned when she told me that the whole family had moved away in the middle of the night.
I did not go to the beach that day because I was both worried and upset about Alicia. All the way home, I kept thinking of what had happened to her family. Just as I reached home, I remembered overhearing Alicia telling our teacher that she wanted to apply for the School Pocket Money Fund. I knew that her father was a compulsive gambler. I wondered if the family had left their house because they were running away from debt collectors.
