GHOSTED

one

his pov

August 26, 2020

6:30 am

I wake up on the cold ground with one thing on my mind. I always wake up and go to sleep thinking of the same thing and this thing hasn't left my mind since I first laid eyes on her. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. More than sunsets, more than fields of tulips, and more than the moonlight on calm ocean waves.

Evelynn Paige Presley.

I only know this because I've seen her write it on school papers and worksheets countless times. Never "Evelynn Presley" or "Paige Presley," always the full thing, though her friends refer to her as Eve.

I also know this because I sit with her and her friends at lunch; though sometimes she looks at me as if she notices me, I know she doesn't. Sometimes I think about talking to her, God knows I want to, but I always remind myself that I can't.

One of the many rules of this Hell-like state is that you cannot interfere with the world around you, only observe. That's how I found her. It took me almost fifteen years to find someone like her and I can't even talk to her or tell her how beautiful she looks with her hair in a bun and no makeup on.

I have seen her best and worst days. One of her worst happening recently when her boyfriend Julian, who goes by Ian, finally broke up with her. She acts hurt and sad but her friends and I know that she wanted to end things since day one due to his toxic nature.

7:25 am

I have successfully walked around for an hour with nothing but her on my mind. I have wasted enough time until she finally got here. I walk out of the school I'm permanently stuck at in the same band tee and flannel that I'm fixated with.

I follow the same path I have every day to parking spot 47 at the math wing. Her spot. I see her car and glide through the passenger door to get inside. Yes, I'll admit that it's creepy but I just like to hear her sing. What she doesn't know won't hurt her.

She immediately notices the change in temperature and turns her air conditioner off. It kills me to see her cold and uncomfortable because of my presence. All I want is to reveal myself and tell her I'm the reason she's always cold.

I've had feelings for her since her freshman year; it's now the third week of her senior year. I only have until May to adore her and I'm taking every chance I can get. She turns off her music and begins to scroll through social media. She stops at a post and reads it. It makes her laugh so I read it and in turn, it makes me laugh. She looks straight at me with wide eyes and I freeze. She begins to look around and when she thinks it was just in her head, she returns to her phone.

7:55 am

I've been sitting in her car with her for thirty minutes. Thirty minutes of absolute bliss.

She notices the time and mumbles profanities under her breath as she scrambles to get everything she needs together.

She rushes out of her car and into her first class, calculus. Maybe I'll sit in there with her instead of waiting until lunch to see her. I catch up to her and we walk into her class together. She takes a seat by one of her best friends, Zoe. They start to talk about what they did over the weekend and I innocently eavesdrop to hear what Eve did.

The bell rings and their teacher walks in. He's in his mid-forties and packs a heavy beer belly that he seems to have gotten during his college days. I don't care to learn his name because I'm only here for one reason. Her.

12:25 pm

I have walked side by side with Eve up until lunch. She gets her tray and waits for her friends to arrive. Soon they all sit down and start talking and I unintentionally lean into her like I'm being drawn closer to her. I immediately notice her hair stand on the edge and get goosebumps from where I touched her. She shivers and I flinch, moving away so she won't be so cold.

"Guys it's so cold everywhere in this school." She says not looking up from her meal.

"Really? I'm hardly ever cold when I'm here. Maybe you have low iron. You should get it checked out." Her friend Ava replies.

12:55 pm

The bell rings signifying that lunch is over and I absent-mindedly follow her to her next class, home ed. She sits down and listens intently to her teacher, who explains that they will be baking a cake from scratch.

2:55 pm

Eve walks out of the school's exit at the math wing to get back to her car. I instinctively follow her out there and sit in her car with her. She waits for some of the traffic to die down before she decides to leave. I don't get out of her car to see if I'm actually allowed to leave this hell hole. She waits at a stop sign for her turn to leave and I pray that she never has the opportunity to. She gets a chance and takes it and I'm left at the stop sign, watching her car grow smaller until she is out of sight.

I guess I can't leave this place so I'll have to wait to see her tomorrow.