The Paranormla College Essay

The Paranormal College Essay

I've never talked about this with anyone, not even my shrink, but I swear, everything I'm about to say is the truth. I realize writing a college essay about a paranormal experience might harm my chances of being accepted; I only ask that you read my essay with an open mind and a non-judgmental heart.
My story begins on a Halloween eve, just over six years ago when Carly, Ellie and I arrived at Dora's house to trick-or-treat. Everyone knew Dora gave out full sized candy bars, the expensive kind, and Carly insisted we go to her home even though Ellie and I were scared. There was something off about that place, and as we approached, all my hairs began to stand on end.
It was rumored Dora was a witch and many of the parents in town, including mine, forbade their kids from going anywhere near that house. Nine years earlier a girl had disappeared while trick-or-treating, and though there was no evidence Dora had anything to do with it, the last place she had been seen was near her house.
As we turned to enter Dora's walkway, a lump formed in my throat and I choked out, "I can't do this, Carly. My parents are gonna kill me. I'll wait for you across the street."
Carly grabbed my arm and sneered, "Maya, you're such a baby. You wanna go home and cry to mommy? Boo hoo hoo." She dragged me behind her holding tight to my arm.
Now here's the thing. Carly was not my friend. She was the school bully and if I didn't do what she said, she made my life miserable. I don't know why she picked me to be her stooge, but it was like I was trapped in the clutches of a loan shark and I couldn't get out. She was crushing my soul, and even worse, she was making me hurt other kids.
At first, I tried to fight it. Like when Carly told me to pour my bottle of water over Hannah's head, I flat out refused. Carly quickly grabbed the water bottle out of my hands and poured it all over my pants. Then she told everyone I pissed myself. The rest of the semester kids called me Pissy Pants and drew pictures of diapers on my locker. I told my home room teacher but there was nothing she could do because Carly's dad was the principal and he was scary as a rattlesnake.
So, there I was, terrified to continue up the walkway, but even more terrified of Carly to stop. Ellie trailed silently behind us whimpering. She was as scared of Carly as I was. The three of us were dressed as demon hunters, not because we wanted to, but because Carly made us.
When we reached Dora's front porch, we saw she had put a Rubbermaid container full of large sized candy bars on the top step. A super creepy porcelain doll sat next to the container, guarding it like a treasure. The doll had long black hair and coal black eyes that seemed to follow us. There was a sign taped to the container which read, "It's Halloween eve and I hope you have fun, but if you know what's good for you, ONLY TAKE ONE."
Carly cackled as she read the sign. She began rubbing her hands together in delight. "C'mon girls," she demanded, "Let's dump all the candy into our bags. I don't see any security cameras, not even a ring doorbell. That stupid witch won't have any idea who took it."
"Umm, let's just each take one and go," I pleaded. "I swear that doll is watching us."
Carly sauntered up to the front step, flicked the doll on the forehead and plucked out a candy bar. She threw it at my head. "You're so stupid Maya. You better do what I say or you'll be sorry."
I don't know what came over me, it was like an explosion went off in my head. I turned to Carly and with rage bursting out of every pore, I screamed, "No!" I clutched Ellie's shaking hand and roared, "We're leaving."
As soon as we turned our backs, Carly began pelting us with candy. Handfuls of it. It just made us go faster. As we came to the end of the walkway, we heard an ear-piercing scream. It sounded like someone's fingernails were being pulled out. We spun around to see where it had come from and gasped in horror. Carly was gone and sitting next to the container were two creepy porcelain dolls. The new one had blond hair and green eyes, just like Carly. It's mouth was open as if it were in the middle of a scream.
 I stood there, frozen like a block of ice, until Ellie shouted, "Run, Maya, run."
And we did. We ran past all the other trick-or treaters, we ran past all the houses, we ran until we could run no longer. When we got to my house, we dropped to the ground and panted for what seemed liked hours. As our breathing regulated, Ellie asked, "What just happened?"
"I don't know," I whispered. An overwhelming feeling suddenly came over me and I began to cry. Deep gutteral sobs racked my body and I wasn't sure why until Ellie spelled it out, "We're free Maya. We're finally free."
I looked at her and my sobs turned to laughter. She joined in and we laughed maniacally until the tears drenched our clothes.
Afterwards, we made a pact to never tell anyone what happened. A pact we were too young to understand.
The next morning, Ellie and I were questioned by the police. We had agreed to keep our statements as close to the truth as possible. We told the officers we went to Dora's together but ran away when Carly began throwing candy at us. We both swore we knew nothing about her disappearance.
For the next few weeks, the police department and the whole town searched for Carly. Dora was questioned, but she had an alibi. She was out of town for Halloween. As time passed, the search dribbled down and Carly's folks moved out of the area. Ellie had to take a few months off from school due to depression. Everyone assumed it was because her friend went missing. When she returned, she treated me like a stranger. I was hurt, but I accepted it. Meanwhile, with Carly's dad out of the picture, the school hired a new principal, and I felt like a hundred-pound weight had been lifted off my shoulder. I could breathe again.
I'd like to end this essay by saying that Gavriel University is my dream school and if I am accepted, I plan on majoring in education. My ordeal has led me to want to become a teacher, and a community leader who empowers children to feel good about themselves. Using my own experience to guide me, I will do everything in my power to eradicate bullying, both in person and on social media. It is the least I can do.