Book Creator

The Times Of Old

by Amelia Mayer

Pages 2 and 3 of 29

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Contents
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Copyright © 2021 Amelia Mayer
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Contents
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Chapter 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Chapter 1
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“Dog.” 
“ You’ve done that one already.”
“No, I haven’t. I did canine.”
“It’s pretty much the same thing.”
Natalie glanced down at the scribbles of writing on her Mad Libs book. The words scrawled on there in Jack’s unkempt handwriting mostly consisted of dog, puppy, doghouse, wolf, German Shepard, and doghouse. Seriously, Natalie thought. What else can he even think of?
Like most little brothers,(or, as Natalie’s friend would call little bothers) Jack was bored. Really bored. And Natalie’s mother wanted her to entertain him. However, Natalie’s attention was fixed elsewhere. Right now they were speeding down JFK Expressway, heading towards New York City, where Natalie’s grandparents lived. They lived in an old, old house, and, as Natalie often heard her parents say, “Right in the middle of a newly-built neighborhood. They’re really going to have to sell that house to the National Parks service someday, it’s probably a national monument.” 
It sounded glamorous. But, Natalie thought wryly, If you call glamorous arguing with your little bother in the backseat of a old Dodge Caravan circa. 1992, well, then, you don’t know what glamorous is. Natalie had long ago decided she preferred her home state, Virginia. It not that she didn’t necessary like to travel… she would just rather be going somewhere else. She liked the quiet, peaceful woods and the large, old houses.
Chapter 1
“Dog.” 
“ You’ve done that one already.”
“No, I haven’t. I did canine.”
“It’s pretty much the same thing.”
Natalie glanced down at the scribbles of writing on her Mad Libs book. The words scrawled on there in Jack’s unkempt handwriting mostly consisted of dog, puppy, doghouse, wolf, German Shepard, and doghouse. Seriously, Natalie thought. What else can he even think of?
Like most little brothers,(or, as Natalie’s friend would call little bothers) Jack was bored. Really bored. And Natalie’s mother wanted her to entertain him. However, Natalie’s attention was fixed elsewhere. Right now they were speeding down JFK Expressway, heading towards New York City, where Natalie’s grandparents lived. They lived in an old, old house, and, as Natalie often heard her parents say, “Right in the middle of a newly-built neighborhood. They’re really going to have to sell that house to the National Parks service someday, it’s probably a national monument.” 
It sounded glamorous. But, Natalie thought wryly, If you call glamorous arguing with your little bother in the backseat of a old Dodge Caravan circa. 1992, well, then, you don’t know what glamorous is. Natalie had long ago decided she preferred her home state, Virginia. It not that she didn’t necessary like to travel… she would just rather be going somewhere else. She liked the quiet, peaceful woods and the large, old houses.
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Natalie had always dreamed of living in one. Right now, Natalie lived in a boring old townhome.
“RATTY NATTY!” She heard. 
“Jack! Stop, fine, I’ll keep going..” She muttered.
“Jack, dear, don’t talk loudly in the car.” Natalie heard her mother say, not even looking up from the smartphone in her hands. Natalie sighed. She grabbed a ponytail holder from the side pocket in the car and pulled her dirty-blonde hair into a messy ponytail. A very messy ponytail. She was genuinely surprised Jack hadn’t died of laughter yet. 
The night before they had stayed in a sleepy town in a small hotel, which, in Natalies opinion, smelled like old people and stale saltine crackers. The inn, at least, had been quiet, except for the sound of her father’s snores and her brother’s kicking. 
Now she wished she was back at the inn. Natalie was NOT happy at all. She was slightly nauseous, brain dead, and annoyed. Her phone was also dying. But most of all, she was away from her friends and the public pool a block away from her house, which her mother let her walk to almost every day in the summer. For the whole entire summer she was going to be cooped up at that house. Not that she didn’t like visiting her grandparents. But she also didn’t even know these grandparents well. It had been at least three years since she had last seen them. 
It had been December, and they stayed for a week. Jack had been five. Natalie had been ten. All she remembers doing was going Christmas shopping and eating peanut butter bliss bars. 
Which wasn’t so bad. 
But it had been a very boring week. Jack had seemed to agree too because he made it very interesting by falling off the counter and banging his head on the hardwood floor, resulting in a trip to the hospital and a long night of waking him up every ten minutes to make sure he didn’t have a concussion. That was NOT fun. 
Natalie had always dreamed of living in one. Right now, Natalie lived in a boring old townhome.
“RATTY NATTY!” She heard. 
“Jack! Stop, fine, I’ll keep going..” She muttered.
“Jack, dear, don’t talk loudly in the car.” Natalie heard her mother say, not even looking up from the smartphone in her hands. Natalie sighed. She grabbed a ponytail holder from the side pocket in the car and pulled her dirty-blonde hair into a messy ponytail. A very messy ponytail. She was genuinely surprised Jack hadn’t died of laughter yet. 
The night before they had stayed in a sleepy town in a small hotel, which, in Natalies opinion, smelled like old people and stale saltine crackers. The inn, at least, had been quiet, except for the sound of her father’s snores and her brother’s kicking. 
Now she wished she was back at the inn. Natalie was NOT happy at all. She was slightly nauseous, brain dead, and annoyed. Her phone was also dying. But most of all, she was away from her friends and the public pool a block away from her house, which her mother let her walk to almost every day in the summer. For the whole entire summer she was going to be cooped up at that house. Not that she didn’t like visiting her grandparents. But she also didn’t even know these grandparents well. It had been at least three years since she had last seen them. 
It had been December, and they stayed for a week. Jack had been five. Natalie had been ten. All she remembers doing was going Christmas shopping and eating peanut butter bliss bars. 
Which wasn’t so bad. 
But it had been a very boring week. Jack had seemed to agree too because he made it very interesting by falling off the counter and banging his head on the hardwood floor, resulting in a trip to the hospital and a long night of waking him up every ten minutes to make sure he didn’t have a concussion. That was NOT fun. 
Because Natalie had been the one blamed for letting him get on top the counter in the first place, she didn’t get her allowance that week. She didn’t help him get on the counter, she just wasn’t paying attention. 
Her drowsy thoughts floated through her mind like a carousel: Carsick, Christmas, Jack, New York, and without knowing it, she fell asleep. 


With a jolt Natalie found herself awake, sitting in an empty car. Her first thought was that her parents and brother had gotten kidnapped. Then she came to her senses. Why would that happen? Looking around the car, she saw the old fabric seats, a pair of sunglasses, and… oh. The keys are gone. Natalie glanced outside and saw they were in the McDonald’s parking lot. Her family had gone to get food and had left her in the car to sleep. How did she even sleep through that? Natalie was a notoriously light sleeper. The smell of cooking burgers wafted through the air and into the open window of the car. 
HONK! 
Nat jumped. The car door unlocked and in bounded her father, mother, and little bother. Brother. Whatever. “Look,” said her mother, handing Natalie a paper bag. “I got your favorite.” “Thanks,” Natalie yawned. As Jack settled himself into his booster seat, (He almost forgot to buckle himself in) Natalie dug into the food. Inside were fries, a burger, and… “Here,” Said Natalie throwing Jack the blow-up beachball. “Mom,” she said. “How far away are we from Bronxville, NY.?” Her mother pulled out her phone. “About five minutes. That didn’t take as long as I had thought.” It did for me, Natalie thought. You’re not the one sitting in the back of a stinky old car with your annoying baby brother. 
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Natalie stared out the window. The scenery was truly beautiful, but Natalie couldn’t enjoy it right then. The green grass of the college village under the sunset didn’t even make her want to stop. Her stomach churned as she thought of what her friends might be doing right now. Having a barbecue at the park? Swimming in the lake? Just then the car slowed and they drove up a gravel driveway and into Natalie’s grandparents old home- it has got to be at least 100 years old. She knew her mother had grown up in it. Natalie had never really asked them about it. Oh well. Why should she? It’s just a old home. Probably haunted.

Just then Natalie’s Grandma jogged down the brick stairway (at a surprisingly fast pace) leading from the door and threw her arms around Natalie’s mother. “Amanda! It is so good for you to be home!” Natalie’s mother laughed and returned the hug. After a couple rounds of hugging and Jack pretending to fake-barf, they finally walked up the old brick stairway and into the house. Natalie gazed up at the enormous house. 
Natalie’s grandparents weren’t rich; they had inherited the home. The front door area of the house was Natalie favorite part. On the left, there was a parlor with lots of windows. On the right, there was Grandpa’s office. (Although it was more like a TV room). As they walked in, Natalie’s foot scuffed the hard, wooden floor. It was so old looking! She had always wondered if there were any secret passages in this house. She pulled out her phone and sat down and the old kitchen table which was in a small area straight in front of the kitchen. She connected to the wifi, and as she did, a text popped up from her friend, Evie. 
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