The clock rang out. It was time for the first ghost to appear.

The apartment was silent. I could hear a ticking of a clock. Nothing stirred.

And then ten minutes later, I was still waiting for the ghost to arrive. I sighed. There's nothing worse than a tardy spook.

Finally, at 30 minutes passed the hour, the ghost came through the door. "Sorry," he said. "I went to the wrong address." He slapped at the alligator holding on to his garment. "Why does Brain have alligators under his lab?"

"I know! Right?"

"Let's get this started." He suddenly looked more dead than normal (quite the trick for a ghost). He seemed paler and almost looked like what a ghost zombie would look like; his face seemed to be decaying. His otherworldly glow faded a couple degrees and his voice became more gruffy and sickly. "Joe Rover, I am the Ghost of Christmas Past. Take my hand and we shall journey into the years gone by."

I took his hand. Suddenly, we were transported to Brain and my first Christmas. We'd only been friends for a few months. Danny had moved away about a year or two earlier...maybe it was three.

"I challenge you to take a peek at your present," said Young Brain.

"But that's wrong," Young Joe said.

"What is the malfunction? Are you a domesticated fowl?" Young Joe shook his head furiously. "Then stop being such a Peter Perfect."

The younger me reached for one of the brightly colored packages under the tree. He slowly slid it over to his chest and began to peek in. He gasped. It was the latest trending toy. I can't remember what it was called.

Younger Joe turned to Brian. "You were right! That was fun!"

In a flash, the ghost and I were back at my apartment. He dusted sparkles off his ectoplasm. "So what did we learn?"

"That me taking peeks at Christmas presents is all Brain's fault."

The ghost groaned.

I folded my arms in a pout. "He dared me."

The ghost groaned again then started to fade away.

"Where are you going?"

"My time is up. Brain paid for an hour, and I have other appointments."

"You were late!"

"Don't worry," said the ghost, his eyes and mouth the only thing visible, "he'll get a discount."

"Hmm," I groaned.

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