Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ My Ghost ❯ Chapter Eighteen ( Chapter 18 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Ohne Sie 
Miscellaneous: Original Stories Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Supernatural / Romance / Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 06.24.2009 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.3K | Visits: 244 | Status: Completed
Miscellaneous: Original Stories Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Supernatural / Romance / Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 06.24.2009 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.3K | Visits: 244 | Status: Completed
My Ghost
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Chapter Eighteen
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© 2009 Ohne Sie
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Chapter Eighteen
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© 2009 Ohne Sie
Callie woke up with a headache the next morning. She groaned, looking at her clock. It was 8:00. "No wonder," she mumbled. "I slept for twelve hours." She closed her eyes, letting the darkness relieve her headache a bit. Unfortunately, it just got worse when her sister started to scream. Callie screamed back in frustration. "Carrie, shut up!" she shouted. The baby didn't listen.
Callie practically fell out of bed, sliding her feet into her slippers. She hadn't even bothered to change out of the clothes she was wearing the previous day, before she went to bed. She grabbed her towel from te top of her dresser and headed toward the bathroom to shower. The baby was still crying.
"Mom!" Callie called, but then she noticed the note on her door.
Callie,
I had a doctor’s appointment this morning. I meant to tell you yesterday, but you were asleep and I didn’t want to wake you. Could you please watch your sister for a few hours until I get home?
Thanks,
Mom
Sighing, Callie entered her sister’s room. “Care Bear,” she called, trying to calm her. She picked the baby up out of the crib and rocked her gently. “Shh, it’s okay. Let’s go get you a bottle.” She carried the baby downstairs and entered the kitchen, only to be greeted by Will.
“You’re pretty good with her,” he said as Callie prepared a bottle for her sister. Carrie had calmed considerably since Callie had picked her up.
“Well, she is my sister,” Callie said. She picked the bottle up and started to feed it to Carrie, but noticed that the girl had already stopped crying. She looked at the baby, who was staring at Will with an intense look of fascination. Carrie reached her hands toward Will and cooed. Callie looked at Will, whose face displayed the same sense of confusion that she felt. “Can she…see you?”
Will shook his head. “I don’t know…it seems like it.”
Carrie fussed, pushing the bottle away. Still, she reached for Will. “Come toward her. See if she responds,” Callie said.
Will obeyed. He leaned forward, so that his face was inches from Carrie’s. The baby laughed. “It looks like she can,” he said, standing up again. He smiled at Carrie, who grinned back.
“Amazing,” Callie mumbled. “But no one else has ever been able to see you?”
“No one,” he said, shaking his head, “Except you.” He waved at Carrie, who was still grinning at him. “Maybe it runs in your family.”
Callie shook her head. “But my parents don’t see you, so how can that be it? I’ve read that children are more likely to be able to see ghosts than adults, but then why couldn’t any other children see you? And at sixteen, I’m not really that far from adulthood.” She looked at Carrie, who seemed to finally be losing interest in Will. She shoved the bottle in Carrie’s mouth. “Maybe we’re just strange,” she said.
“Not strange,” Will said. “Different, but not strange. I’m really glad.” He smiled. “I was trying to tell you last night…”
“Will,” Callie said, sighing, “I don’t want to get into this.”
“I was doing some thinking last night, after you kicked me out. Because, you know, that’s all I really can do anymore.”
“What about?” Callie asked, trying to hide her nervousness. Something about the conversation was making her very uncomfortable.
“I think it would be best if we tried to solve my…problem,” he said, fishing for the right word, “As soon as possible, before issues complicate things.”
“I’m not sure I understand what you’re saying,” Callie said, frowning. “I mean, yeah, I understand trying to solve your murder quickly, but I don’t get–“
“I mean,” he said, interrupting her, “That I feel like I’ve become more human since knowing you, and that if I stay here, in this form, with you, for much longer, that I might become attached and never be able to leave.”
Callie shook her head. “I’m still confused. You mean that if you stay a ghost for much longer, you think you’ll be stuck as one?”
“Yes.”
“For how long? A few years, or…?”
“Possibly forever. Maybe until you die and I forget what it’s like to have someone to talk to.”
Callie was silent for a moment. Carrie had fallen asleep in her arms. She looked down at the sleeping child. “I suppose there’s no way to know for sure.”
“Right,” Will said, “But it feels like something is wrong. I feel…strange. I have thoughts and feelings I haven’t had in ages, and I think it’s because of you. It would be best for both of us if I could leave.”
“But if that happens…” She hesitated. “I would never see you again, right?”
“I think you know more about this than I do. You’re the one with all the ghosts stories. Isn’t that how it works? You help the ghost cross over to the next life, and you never see them again?”
“Yes, generally,” Callie said, “And we’ve been working on it. But you were saying before that it was okay if it took a while, because as long as I was here to talk to you, you would be okay with it. What changed?”
It was Will’s turn to be silent. “I think,” he said quietly, after a moment, “That you know what has changed.”
Callie’s nose wrinkled. “What? Aaron?”
Will shook his head. “No, not Aaron, but…” He sighed. “Forget it. Just…promise you’ll try to get this done as quickly as possible.”
Callie paused. How can I promise that, when I’ve been hiding his brother’s journal upstairs? She looked away from him, staring at the floor. She said nothing.
“Callie,” Will said. “Look at me.”
She tried to avoid his gaze, but she couldn’t resist for long. She looked into his eyes, unable to hide the guilty look on her face.
“What is it?” he asked. “What’s wrong?” There was a distinct sound of concern in his voice.
“I lied,” she said quietly.
“About what?”
“I know where the journal is.”
A look passed over his face briefly. It was too sudden for Callie to interpret. “Where?”
“It was under the floor…where I thought it would be. I hid it under my mattress, and I lied to you.”
“Why would you do that?”
“I don’t want you to go away,” she said, “Not yet.”
“But you knew…”
“I’m sorry,” she said. She felt tears coming to her eyes, but she fought them back. “I was being selfish. But you’re my best friend, Will.”
“You don’t have to be sorry,” Will said, smiling. “It’s okay. I understand why you did it. But we should read it. I have to know.”
She nodded. “I’ll put Carrie in her crib and then we can look at it.” She carried the still-sleeping baby upstairs, with Will following. As soon as Carrie was in her crib, Callie and Will went into Callie’s room to look at the journal.
Callie practically fell out of bed, sliding her feet into her slippers. She hadn't even bothered to change out of the clothes she was wearing the previous day, before she went to bed. She grabbed her towel from te top of her dresser and headed toward the bathroom to shower. The baby was still crying.
"Mom!" Callie called, but then she noticed the note on her door.
Callie,
I had a doctor’s appointment this morning. I meant to tell you yesterday, but you were asleep and I didn’t want to wake you. Could you please watch your sister for a few hours until I get home?
Thanks,
Mom
Sighing, Callie entered her sister’s room. “Care Bear,” she called, trying to calm her. She picked the baby up out of the crib and rocked her gently. “Shh, it’s okay. Let’s go get you a bottle.” She carried the baby downstairs and entered the kitchen, only to be greeted by Will.
“You’re pretty good with her,” he said as Callie prepared a bottle for her sister. Carrie had calmed considerably since Callie had picked her up.
“Well, she is my sister,” Callie said. She picked the bottle up and started to feed it to Carrie, but noticed that the girl had already stopped crying. She looked at the baby, who was staring at Will with an intense look of fascination. Carrie reached her hands toward Will and cooed. Callie looked at Will, whose face displayed the same sense of confusion that she felt. “Can she…see you?”
Will shook his head. “I don’t know…it seems like it.”
Carrie fussed, pushing the bottle away. Still, she reached for Will. “Come toward her. See if she responds,” Callie said.
Will obeyed. He leaned forward, so that his face was inches from Carrie’s. The baby laughed. “It looks like she can,” he said, standing up again. He smiled at Carrie, who grinned back.
“Amazing,” Callie mumbled. “But no one else has ever been able to see you?”
“No one,” he said, shaking his head, “Except you.” He waved at Carrie, who was still grinning at him. “Maybe it runs in your family.”
Callie shook her head. “But my parents don’t see you, so how can that be it? I’ve read that children are more likely to be able to see ghosts than adults, but then why couldn’t any other children see you? And at sixteen, I’m not really that far from adulthood.” She looked at Carrie, who seemed to finally be losing interest in Will. She shoved the bottle in Carrie’s mouth. “Maybe we’re just strange,” she said.
“Not strange,” Will said. “Different, but not strange. I’m really glad.” He smiled. “I was trying to tell you last night…”
“Will,” Callie said, sighing, “I don’t want to get into this.”
“I was doing some thinking last night, after you kicked me out. Because, you know, that’s all I really can do anymore.”
“What about?” Callie asked, trying to hide her nervousness. Something about the conversation was making her very uncomfortable.
“I think it would be best if we tried to solve my…problem,” he said, fishing for the right word, “As soon as possible, before issues complicate things.”
“I’m not sure I understand what you’re saying,” Callie said, frowning. “I mean, yeah, I understand trying to solve your murder quickly, but I don’t get–“
“I mean,” he said, interrupting her, “That I feel like I’ve become more human since knowing you, and that if I stay here, in this form, with you, for much longer, that I might become attached and never be able to leave.”
Callie shook her head. “I’m still confused. You mean that if you stay a ghost for much longer, you think you’ll be stuck as one?”
“Yes.”
“For how long? A few years, or…?”
“Possibly forever. Maybe until you die and I forget what it’s like to have someone to talk to.”
Callie was silent for a moment. Carrie had fallen asleep in her arms. She looked down at the sleeping child. “I suppose there’s no way to know for sure.”
“Right,” Will said, “But it feels like something is wrong. I feel…strange. I have thoughts and feelings I haven’t had in ages, and I think it’s because of you. It would be best for both of us if I could leave.”
“But if that happens…” She hesitated. “I would never see you again, right?”
“I think you know more about this than I do. You’re the one with all the ghosts stories. Isn’t that how it works? You help the ghost cross over to the next life, and you never see them again?”
“Yes, generally,” Callie said, “And we’ve been working on it. But you were saying before that it was okay if it took a while, because as long as I was here to talk to you, you would be okay with it. What changed?”
It was Will’s turn to be silent. “I think,” he said quietly, after a moment, “That you know what has changed.”
Callie’s nose wrinkled. “What? Aaron?”
Will shook his head. “No, not Aaron, but…” He sighed. “Forget it. Just…promise you’ll try to get this done as quickly as possible.”
Callie paused. How can I promise that, when I’ve been hiding his brother’s journal upstairs? She looked away from him, staring at the floor. She said nothing.
“Callie,” Will said. “Look at me.”
She tried to avoid his gaze, but she couldn’t resist for long. She looked into his eyes, unable to hide the guilty look on her face.
“What is it?” he asked. “What’s wrong?” There was a distinct sound of concern in his voice.
“I lied,” she said quietly.
“About what?”
“I know where the journal is.”
A look passed over his face briefly. It was too sudden for Callie to interpret. “Where?”
“It was under the floor…where I thought it would be. I hid it under my mattress, and I lied to you.”
“Why would you do that?”
“I don’t want you to go away,” she said, “Not yet.”
“But you knew…”
“I’m sorry,” she said. She felt tears coming to her eyes, but she fought them back. “I was being selfish. But you’re my best friend, Will.”
“You don’t have to be sorry,” Will said, smiling. “It’s okay. I understand why you did it. But we should read it. I have to know.”
She nodded. “I’ll put Carrie in her crib and then we can look at it.” She carried the still-sleeping baby upstairs, with Will following. As soon as Carrie was in her crib, Callie and Will went into Callie’s room to look at the journal.