Dead and Alive

Chapter 17

Alison looked way different.

They were in an empty conference room down the hall from the ED, and Reggie was kind of glad that everyone was sitting down. He'd thought Alison was going to faint when she'd first recognized Alex, and he'd looked like he was going to throw up. Reggie wouldn't've been terribly surprised if Alex had passed out right there, and Ray would've needed to pick him up off the floor.

Reggie tried not to stare at her, but it was hard. She was so different when he'd last seen her. She had total mom hair, cut in a bob to her chin instead of the long, golden locks she'd had before. Her face was wrinkled now, too, and she held herself differently. Like she was both more confident and less free at the same time. She was still beautiful, though. Her eyes were exactly the same as he remembered. A sparkling, bright blue, just like her brother's.

He'd been in awe of her when he was younger, and maybe he'd crushed on her a bit, too. But he'd forgotten it pretty quickly when she went off to university and he'd barely seen her. It was so weird, how different she looked now, when he was exactly the same.

It was pretty obvious that Alex was feeling the same way. He was sitting on one of the conference chairs with his knees drawn up to his chest, so tense that he was practically vibrating. He kept looking at his sister and then looking away, like he couldn't process what he was seeing.

Alison was practically staring at Alex, her face a perfect mix of joy and devastation. Reggie couldn't even imagine what it would be like for her to see them like this, after thinking they were dead for the last twenty-five years.

We are dead, he reminded himself. The fact they were visible right now was because of Julie's Gift. It would be gone by morning.

"How are you here?" Alison said finally. Her eyes were shiny with tears that she kept blinking back.

Alex looked like a deer in headlights. His eyes searched out Luke's, clearly asking for help.

"They came in my car," Ray said, a question clear on his face. "Why does that matter?"

"She means here, here," Reggie said, trying to be helpful. "Like, here on the planet."

Ray frowned at him and Reggie snapped his mouth shut.

Alison's brows drew down in confusion. She turned to Alex. "He doesn't know?"

"It's kind of a weird thing to tell someone," Luke said, since Alex still seemed incapable of speech.

"What don't I know?" Ray sounded like he was getting angry. Reggie huddled lower in his chair. "I just want to hear about Julie so I can take her home!"

"She's well," Alison said. "And as soon as her IV is finished and she's eaten something, we can discharge her."

Ray visibly sagged in relief. "Thank God."

"How's Willie?" Alex asked, voice shaking. He was twisting his fingers together where they wrapped around his knees like it was the only thing holding him inside his own skin.

"The other boy? He's awake and his heartrate has stabilized. We're just keeping him for observation now, but he'll probably be able to go home sometime later today. He'll need some follow-up tests, but his prognosis is very good."

Alex nodded and Just broke. He covered his face with his hands, shoulders shaking. Luke moved his chair closer and put his hand on Alex's ankle in a show of support. The room went quiet.

"That's good news, right?" Reggie asked. He just wanted Alex to feel better.

"Yes, Reggie," Alison said, gaze still on Alex where he was trying to pull himself back together. "That's good news. Willie is going to be just fine."