Haunted Halloween 2011: Guest Post - Marie Lu + A Giveaway!

I've never experienced anything supernatural when growing up. No strange sounds in the night, no monsters in the closet. No weird spooky visions. So I always had a very stereotypical view of what supernatural events might be like: you know, freakishly pale kids hiding under your table! Possessed people! Twins in vintage clothing in narrow corridors!

It wasn't until I got together with my current boyfriend that I had a run-in with a few weird events. Boyfriend always told me stories about a water spirit that he suspected followed him around. When he was little, faucets would turn on unexpectedly, or a faucet would be turned off that he'd sworn he had left on. Things like that. I listened, and sort of believed him, but I never really thought much of it.

But then, I experienced it for myself. One afternoon, we were chatting in our bedroom. From where I was sitting, I had a clear view of the bathroom and could see the sink from the corner of my eye. Right in the middle of our conversation, the bathroom faucet turned on. Not just a slow drip of water, either. The faucet went on full blast. We both turned to look at it with wide eyes. Then I shrieked a little, and Boyfriend exclaimed, "You believe me now?! You believe me now?!"

Afterward, I tried writing it off as some sort of pipe backup. It was possible, right?

We moved to a different apartment several months later, when our lease was up. For a while neither of us thought about the event, and nothing else unusual happened.

One day, when I was home alone, I went into the bathroom and washed my face. I turned the water off. I spent a few seconds in the bedroom, then went back into the bathroom to brush my hair. When I went in, I
paused. The faucet was on. For a while I stood there, trying to remember if I had actually turned it off. But there was no question about it--I did, I know I did. I turned it off again, and then spent the rest of the day eyeing the bathroom on and off. A couple of months later, the same thing happened: this time, Boyfriend and I were already tucked in for the night when we both heard a trickling sound coming from outside. "Is that one of the dogs?" I said. Boyfriend got up to check.

Sure enough, the bathroom faucet was on again.

Other unusual things have happened since then. One morning, Boyfriend was feeding the dogs. We keep all their kibble in this big plastic jug, and so he unscrewed the jug's plastic cap and put it face up on the counter. Then he turned away to pour in their kibble into their bowls, and put the bowls on the ground. When he went back to the counter, there was a chapstick sitting inside the face-up plastic cap. How could that possibly happen naturally? The cap has sides--it's not like a chapstick could just roll in there. And there was no one else around.

Then, the very next day, I walked into my bathroom and there was a pair of my fake eyelashes sitting right in the middle of the sink counter, all by itself with nothing near it, out in plain sight. I hadn't used fake lashes in about 6 months. They are stored away under the sink cabinet.

Finally, a couple of months ago, I was in the shower when I heard the front door open and someone come in. It sounded just like Boyfriend, and it was indeed around the time when he usually comes back from work. I shouted out a greeting from the shower. He came into the bathroom, and through my blurry vision and the shower's foggy glass, I could see and hear someone wiping his hands on the towels and then
stepping back out. But when I finished up and walked out into the house, no one was there. Boyfriend came home half an hour later.

Can I explain all these things? Maybe. Pipes can occasionally back water up, causing some water to come out of faucets. The chapstick...well, maybe it had somehow rolled into the jug's lid. Maybe I forgot I took the fake lashes out. And maybe I had just imagined Boyfriend coming home that one day, because I'm so used to his routine.

Maybe these were all illusions, and even if they weren't, they certainly aren't freakish to the level of creepy twin ghosts in corridors or possessed girls doing the crab walk down the stairs. But now I keep a wary eye on things in the house. If it is a ghost, it's been a benevolent one so far, and I'd like to keep it that way.

Happy Halloween!

Available November 29th, 2011 from Putnam Juvenile!

Synopsis: What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

Pre-Order Legend Online:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository

Find Marie Online:

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Legend Series Website

Enter to WIN ONE of TWO SIGNED AUDIO BOOK copies of LEGEND!

TWO WINNERS!

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Giveaway ends: November 6th, 2011

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Marie, Thanks so much for sharing your true scary story. This brought back memories for me and something that happened long ago at a friends house with water and having a mind of it's own. Also, a HUGE thank you for donating the two audio book copies of Legend to giveaway.

*I am not compensated at all for any of the links within this page.