Illusory | ✓

i l l u s o r y : 01

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I L L U S O R Y : 01

P R E S EN T   D AY

Life is anything but a piece of cake.

Having the ability to see ghosts and communicate with them while still being in high school comes with a sacrifice. A social sacrifice. Bye, bye any chances of being Homecoming Queen or being in the 'in crowd', much less joining any club.

There are two types of people I've come across when it comes to telling them of my ability. The skeptics, and the believers.

The skeptics I can handle, I've dealt with them my whole life. If you don't believe in my ability then that's fine by me but if a ghost that used to be your family member or friend wants me to give you a message then you can at least sit down and keep your mouth closed for a few minutes so I can give you that message.

The believers are the ones that I find it harder to deal with at first. The ones who actually believe in my ability, are the ones that I have to take a step back and blink for a few seconds. After all, it's not that common that I can come across someone who believes me and lets me give them their message from their loved one. But, after the intital shock is worn through and breaks away, I'm back to being a messanger for the dearly departed.

So, believe me when I say that having a ghost become attached to a teenager while they are in school is anything but thrilling. And let's not forget to mention when the supposed teenager happens to be on the freshman cheerleading squad and is at the moment sitting on a box in a janitor's closet while staring at me with quivering lips and red blotted irises.

"W-what are you saying? T-that Aunt Nikki is actually with us?" Hillary asks me as she reaches one of her shaking hands up and wipes away the tears from her freckled cheekbones. In her freshman class t-shirt and dark washed jeans, along with converses she's just another face in her class.

Nikki, Hillary's great aunt, is standing next to her great niece with a soft smile across her red lipstick smeared lips. Her whitish blue tinted hair is pulled back in a tight bun at the bottom of her head and pearl earrings are in each of her ears. With stunning blue irises that are highlighted by her well done makeup, Nikki looks five years younger than her real age; which is ninety.

"Tell her that she looks more beautiful with each day that passes," Nikki whispers as she cranes her head to the side and reaches one of her arms out to touch the side of Hillary's cheekbone only to hesitate and bring it back to her side. In her white sweater and gray dress pants, it's apparent that even in death, Aunt Nikki was nothing short of elegant.

"She's here and she wants you to know that you look more beautiful with each day that passes." I flicker my eyes from Nikki to Hillary, seeing that there are more tears ushering themselves down her cheekbones than before.

"Are you sure that you aren't playing a prank on me?" Heartbreak is coated in Hillary as she examines the room around her, as if she can simply see her great aunt and tell her goodbye one last time.

"So she knows I'm really here, tell her that her locket that I gave her for her tenth birthday says: forever loved on the back. She tried to bring the locket with her to my funeral so that she could put it in my casket but I hid it underneath her mattress. I couldn't deal with the thought of her putting the locket in the casket with me. I want her to know that I'm always with her and that I'll always be watching her and I'll be in her heart," Niki hastily informs me this as I nod my head at her through her message, earning a worried look from Hillary.

"She said that she gave you a locket on your tenth birthday and it says forever loved on the back. You tried to bring the locket with you to her funeral so that you could put it in her casket but she hid it under your mattress. She couldn't deal with the thought of you putting your locket in the casket with her. She wants you to know that she's always with you and that she'll always be watching and she'll be in your heart," I relay to Hillary, earning widened eyes from Hillary.