𝘌𝘋𝘎𝘌 𝘖𝘍 𝘎𝘙𝘌𝘈𝘛

𝐎𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐲𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐝

"Willie, what are you doing here?!" Alex exclaimed in an exasperated gasp. Willie looked taken aback for a second. "You okay, hotdog? You seem a bit flustered." Alex shook his head and nodded. "Yeah. Yeah-- I'm fine. There's just drama between Luke and Julie right now, and I was about to go off on him. I thought you were him. Sorry, overflow of emotions."

Willie smiled sadly and shook his head. "No need to apologize, Alex. I've missed you. I would've come sooner, but there's a lot going on at the club right now. It wasn't easy to get away." Alex smiled warmly as his friend wrapped him in a fuzzy hug. "I'm so glad you're okay. I was really worried Caleb had done something to you."

"Yeah, about that," Willie said as he pulled away from Alex, just a little enough to look directly into his eyes, "you guys are in danger. More danger than you ever were in before."

Alex narrowed his eyes as his heart started beating out of his chest. "What do you mean? H-- How? I thought Caleb was gone. After the Orpheum, our stamps--" Willie nodded as he interrupted. "Disappeared, I know. It's all Caleb's talked about since then."

"How does Caleb know? He wasn't the one to remove them, was he?" Alex asked in a high-pitched squeal out of nervousness. "No, of course not. That's what angered him so much. Only he knows why. He refuses to tell anyone else about it," Willie muttered with a sigh of exhaustion.

Alex frowned deeply. "So, what does this mean? How are we in danger? It's just me and the guys, right? Not Julie?" Willie swallowed nervously. "Um-- no, actually. Julie's in the most danger out of all four of you."

"What?! How?!" Alex shouted at the top of his lungs. A dark shadow crept across Willie's face. "Caleb--he possessed a kid she knows. He said they were working together. It's going to be really bad if his plan succeeds, Alex. He's going to use Julie to get to all of you. He wants to erase her memory and send you all to a place you can never come back from."

Alex started pacing back and forth all throughout the studio. "I-- I don't understand! How is that even possible? Who the frick is he possessing?!" Willie shook his head dismally. "I wish I knew more. All I know is that it has to do with Caleb's past. How he first became the owner of the Hollywood Ghost Club in the first place. I'm so sorry. I've gotta get going. He'll be back soon."

"Wait, Willie, please don't leave. At least not yet," Alex begged. Willie immediately walked over to Alex and carefully cradled his face in his hands.

"I'm so sorry, Alex. We're going to fix this. I promise. I'll work my hardest to figure out a way to get rid of him for good. I want to be with you, but I can't like this. He'll kill us both if he finds out. I'll update you guys every time I get the chance. I'll see you soon, hotdog. I promise. I'll miss you," he said before planting a kiss on Alex's cheek before poofing out.

Alex's legs started trembling in fear. How could this have happened? He was so glad that Willie was safe... but the fact that Julie wasn't was a really, really bad thing. Especially now that Luke wasn't absurdly acting in love with her. It was all too messy. Too many things at once. He felt the lights dim and as his breathing started to hasten. Seconds later, he was unconscious on the floor.

A deep golden sliver of light blinded Alex's eyes as he slowly blinked repeatedly. "Alex, are you okay? What happened, man? You had me really worried for a second there," a familiar voice boomed over him. Alex held his hands to his ears as he whispered, "Talk softer. I think I'm going to have a migraine."

The dark figure stood up and left the room, leaving Alex wondering not only who had just spoken to him, but also why they didn't give a rip about his pounding head pain. How rude. After the occurrence of recent events, he figured it must have been Luke.