Stephen was a nine-year-old boy who always told lies and teased other people. Many people disliked him. One day he went to an amusement park with his classmates and teacher. He wanted to go inside the haunted house. However, it was out of order and the teacher would not allow him to go in. So Stephen lied that he wanted to go to bathroom and left the group. He sneaked into the haunted house and found that there was no one inside. He walked along the route through the house and saw many ghostly dolls. He made fun of the dolls and teased them. When he walked pass a witch doll, he laughed at her appearance.

 

‘Wow, this witch is really ugly! Look at her mouth! It’s very big. I bet if she could speak, it would definitely smell bad.’ Stephen laughed and laughed.

 

Stephen laughed until, to his surprise, the witch doll spoke to him. ‘Stephen, you are really very rude,’ said the witch. ‘From now on, you will not be able to speak to anyone at all.’ The witch waved her wand and a white light surrounded Stephen. He found he could neither speak nor move. He had become one of the dolls! He was trapped and could not even shout for help. He tried to move and call out but nothing happened.

 

After a long struggle, he decided to give up. He did not know how much time had passed when the haunted house was re-opened again. Many people came and among them were some children like Stephen, teasing and making fun of the dolls. Some of them even threw rubbish at Stephen.

 

Now, Stephen finally understood what he had done was wrong and he was very regretful. However, he could not return to his original appearance. One day some technicians came and took Stephen away because he was badly damaged. They planned to dispose of him as landfill for a new reclamation project. Stephen was very frightened but of course there was nothing he could do because he was trapped in the doll.

 

It was while he was suffering this helpless torment he heard a voice calling. It was the voice of his teacher. Finally, he opened his eyes and realised that after he’d sneaked into the haunted house he must have fallen asleep on one of the moving seats. The seat-belt had been fastened to him and that was the reason why he hadn’t been able to move in his dream. Stephen decided not to tell lies or tease others anymore.