H A U N T E D

f o r t y - t w o

Carlisle peeks his head out of his office, smiling at me and nodding at Flynn in acknowledgment.

"Ophelia?"

I grab my tote bag and swing it over my shoulder, glancing back at my grandfather. Flynn gives me an encouraging smile and a thumbs-up, letting me know that I'm going to be okay. He doesn't follow me in, and I watch him return to paging through the one of the worn magazines in the reception area.

I follow Carlisle into his rooms, and take a seat on the high bed, which allows me to swing my legs. The doctor closes the door behind me, and walks over to a small basin where he washes his hands thoroughly. A tension headache starts to form behind my eyebrow, and I instinctively raise my hand to touch the area, using my index finger and thumb to massage the space.

"Nervous?"

Carlisle steps forward and rub his hands together, probably trying to make enough friction to create warmth. The corner of my mouth lifts into a smile, hoping to ease away some of the tension. The vampire doctor chuckles lowly as he gently pushes my chin up, and force it down to touch the cold, metallic neck brace.

"Don't worry, I promise you'll be safe. I won't hurt you - deliberately", he promises me. I lick my lips, knowing that I gnawed them raw this morning and wincing at the slight burn of an open wound.

"Hospitals tend to have dead people", I force the words out. After a week of silence, it doesn't pain my throat to talk any more. Carlisle, although impressed with the recovery of my voice, seems to take my words into account.

"Ah yes", he tries to sympathize.

"In all my years, I naïvely never thought about the possibilities of ghosts existing, even though I am one of the Supernatural", the doctor admits and reaches around my throat to pull at the Velcro of the brace. I flinch at the hard, ripping noise that follows, but the relief that follows soon as Carlisle takes it off, is everlasting. His words surprise me, as I always thought him to be open-minded and accepting that most supernatural myths do exist. It is fascinating to know that there are more layers to the vampire patriarch than I originally thought.

His cold fingers press on the sensitive skin of my throat and I instinctively move my neck back, trying to escape the stinging sensation that follows once pressure is applied to my neck.

"Sorry", he mutters as his hands move around my skin.

"It'll be sore and from what I've heard, your voice will be fine in a week. Right now, you need to rest your voice, but that doesn't mean you can't talk. I encourage some practice."

I carefully nod, although limited by his hands around my neck. Carlisle steps away and walks to his desk. I decide to stay on the bed, testing my new appreciation for my mobile neck.

"Are there always ghosts around us?", Carlisle enquires after a moment of silence. He doesn't look up at me, but instead continues to scribble on a notepad.

"Yes, but not in the sense you'd think", I answer after waiting for a heartbeat, staring at the door as if waiting for someone to walk through the door. Carlisle's eyes flit to the entrance, expecting someone to barge through and ask him why they died at his hands. Of course, no one does.

"To me, they are like birds. Ever present, and after awhile, you hardly notice the ones that mix in with the background noise", I explain to him, clearing my throat as if a spiderweb has formed in my lungs.

"It is only when there's a persistent one, that demands your attention and sometimes even peck at your skin, that you take notice."

Carlisle stares at the ground for a moment, absorbing my words. I use this opportunity to look around the room, noticing that there are a few framed photos on his desk of his family. Rosalie smiles at the camera as she stands with her arms around Alice's and Bella's shoulders. Edward and Jasper doesn't seem to notice the camera in another photo, as they arm-wrestle and their faces are pulled taut with concentration. Emmett is alone in a picture, smiling brightly at whoever is behind the camera. I notice a few with Jack and Esmé too, but I'm surprised to see a photo of myself on his desk as well.