THE PAST.
Michelle lied across Jennifer's bed as the other blonde pulled different clothes out of her closet.
Tonight was the night of the last football game of year 1981. A bunch of freshman's were getting together to hype up the team especially since Wally Clark was going to be front and center.
Wally may have been a freshman but he was able to make his way onto the varsity football team with ease.
And Jennifer was dressing to impress. Cheerleader or not, Jennifer was going for gold tonight.
At this point, Wally and Michelle had been in the talking stage. They weren't dating, but it was possibly close, just waiting on someone to make the first move.
But in Jennifer's eyes, Michelle and Wally were friends, close friends.
"Can we go?" Michelle asked, "I thought you had be be there early?"
"I do." Jennifer answered, looking at herself in the mirror, "But I have to look my best."
Michelle sat upright, propping her arms behind her, "You're already your best." She smiled, "But I'll bite. Who are you trying to impress?"
Jennifer turned around with a smile, "You'll just have to wait and see." She teased.
Jennifer made her way towards her bed and wrapped her arms around Michelle's torso. She pushed the two of them back on the bed and back laughed.
They were friends. They were best fucking friends.
Michelle smiled at her friend as Jennifer turned to face her. Jennifer's smile never falling from her face.
"I believe he's the boy of my dreams."
"The boy of your dreams?"
"He's wonderful." Jennifer explained, "Smart and talented. Good at everything."
"I'm happy for you." Michelle smiled. She soon stood to her feet and pulled Jennifer up as well, "Don't wanna be late for Mr. Right now do we?"
And the duo left Jennifer's house and to the game.
And what a game it was. Intense cheers and football players spitting profanities at each other.
A minute left on the clock and Wally was able to get the touchdown that the school needed to win
In typical 80s' fashion, Spilt River High students rushed onto the field in excitement and joy. Some congratulating other players while other students embraced each other in their arms.
And Jennifer was in search for the boy of her dreams... Wally Clark.
She pushed through the crowd and finally found him and Michelle talking off towards the side.
Her smile slowly fell once she saw Wally pick Michelle up by her waist, spinning the girl around.
It happened in seconds. Wally didn't even have to think.
He placed a kiss onto Michelle's lips with ease.
Michelle kept her embrace with Wally close but backed away from kiss in shock.
Jennifer hoped that Michelle would just leave the boys side. That the kiss between Wally and Michelle meant nothing to her.
But it meant so much more to Michelle. She really liked Wally. They had been talking for months and she never would've thought that it would've led to anything of the sort.
She smiled up at Wally, his droopy, sweaty look now replaced with the same smile and the lips connected once more.
Jennifer watched with a clenched jaw and soon saw Michelle back away from the kiss and Wally grabbing her hands.
The two of them held a small conversation before Michelle nodded her head and pulled away from the boy.
Jennifer turned and soon Michelle caught up with her.
Michelle held a small, but it soon fell when Jennifer's expression hadn't matched her own.
"Did you ever talk to the boy of your dreams?" Michelle asked.
She had no clue that Jennifer had feelings for Wally. Maybe if she had, she wouldn't have acted on her own feelings, but she really did like Wally.
Jennifer had never expressed who the boy of her dreams was. She never told Michelle that she liked Wally. Not once did those words or anything of the sorts leave Jennifer's lips.
"No." Jennifer answered quickly.
She thought about her next words carefully. Her feelings were hurt and the fact that she had just seen her best friend practically making out with the boy she would die for pissed her off to an extreme extent.
"He was too busy with a slut." Jennifer added.
Michelle frowned, "I'm sorry about that. Wally invited us to party if you want to go... or we can stay at home and watch Pretty Baby."
Wally didn't invite Jennifer to the party. He'd only invited his now girlfriend and she asked if Jennifer could come along.
This was the first time that Jennifer had ever felt jealous of Michelle. It was odd, she never in her life had felt that way towards Michelle and now that jealousy was spreading throughout her body and it would only grow worse.
She had called her best friend a slut and didn't feel bad after the fact.
"Sure..." Jennifer sighed, "Pretty Baby it is."
"I'll let Wally know. I'll met you at the car."
Jennifer watched Michelle make her way back towards Wally.
He turned from his friends once he Michelle caught his eyes. He threw one sweaty arm over her shoulder and placed a quick kiss against her temple.
The conversation didn't last long and Jennifer saw Wally take his eyes away from Michelle and over towards her when Michelle had pointed over.
He threw his hand up as a wave and Jennifer threw her hair behind her ear and waved back, a small smile dancing across her face. Maybe there was still some hope, she thought.
But there wasn't. There never would be any hope of Jennifer.
Wally was in love with Michelle and Jennifer was so fucking sick of it.
So, she got rid of Michelle.
She got rid of the fucking problem with no remorse.
THE PRESENT.
Maddie decided to keep coming back to the support group.
She kept her ghostly friend circle small with Charley and Hunter being the duo she hung out with the most.
But the girl was there and today was doughnut day.
"There's an old cider mill off Route 47 and my parents would toss us in the Dodge Coronet. We'd each get a bag of warm, greasy donuts." Mr. Martin smiled, "That was my idea of nirvana."
The box of doughnuts had been passed around the small circle and finally, Wally handed Rhonda the box with the last donut inside.
"What's that about?" She asked.
"Is there a problem?" Mr. Martin asked.
"He always leaves me with the worst one."
"What do you mean?" Wally questioned, "It's lemon glazed."
"Nobody wants a lemon donut."
"Guys, the subject is nirvana."
"No, the subject is entitlement."
"Oh, Ok, I'm entitled because I like anything filled with jelly." Wally argued, "Yeah. that makes sense."
The two of them began bickering back and forth with each other before Maddie cut them off.
"Has anybody ever been seen by a living person?"
"That doesn't happen, hon." Rhonda said.
"Has anyone here ever talked to a living person?"
Charley smiled, "Oh, you know what? Is— uh— is this a blueberry or a raisin?"
"Dude, how many things could you possibly be allergic to?" Wally asked, "You know you can't die twice, right?"
"Too soon."
"Ok, I think perhaps you're asking the wrong question, Maddie." Mr. Martin interjected, "Let's rephrase it. How do we say goodbye to the living?"
"That wasn't my question."
"How do we close the proverbial book? Well, I'll tell you how."
And the entire time, Michelle hasn't said a word. She probably said thank you when the box of doughnuts was being passed around, but nothing much from that.
Hunter bumped his knee into Michelle's, driving her mind and attention from her donut and onto him.
"What are you thinking about?" He whispered.
Michelle only shook her head and finally bit into her snack.
And soon, the meeting was over.
Mr. Martin had asked Maddie to write her obituary and she was quick to say no.
The group had dispersed not long after.
Michelle had made her way onto the school's roof and sat there in a peaceful silence.
It was colder than normal, but she was dead and this type of weather balanced out with coldness seeping through her veins.
She soon heard footsteps approaching from behind and turned.
Maddie stopped in her place and Michelle began to stand.
"I can go." She said, "I was just leaving anyway."
"No you weren't."
Maddie approached the girl and sat down on the edge of the roof. She told Michelle that she could stay, she had been there first after all.
Michelle slowly sat back down and let her feet dangle off the edge of the building.
The two blondes sat in silence. It was kind of awkward seeing that the two hadn't really started off on the right foot.
But Michelle couldn't blame Maddie for not wanting to be here. Not many people are ready to die, let alone be murder.
It's what they had in common. Being murdered and all. They both wanted answer and with Maddie's recent events, she may be the only one getting them.
Maddie looked over at Michelle, "How long have you been here?"
Michelle looked up. The question hadn't shocked her. She knew Maddie would ask eventually. Charley asked once he arrived.
"I died in '83." She answered, "Decades, I suppose."
"Do you know how you died?"
Michelle only nodded, "I'm not as open as others to talk about it."
"I'm sorry."
"It's whatever now I suppose." Michelle said. She paused and looked over at Maddie, "So? You can see and here the living?"
Maddie explained that she was able to see and communicate with her friend Simon Elroy for a few minutes until it was over.
It had never happened to anyone in the support group and Michelle couldn't provide the answers that Maddie wanted to hear.
"That's special." Michelle said, "Trust me. If I could do that I would."
"Who would you talk to?"
Michelle sighed, "My best friend."
Her best friend who killed her with no remorse. From the time that she had taken her last breath and up to now, Michelle had always thought that she'd done something wrong for Jennifer to do such a thing.
If only she knew.
The blondes sat in silence again before around round of footsteps creaked against the pavement.
The duo turned and saw Wally standing close by. He raised his hand up awkwardly to wave at them and Michelle stood to her feet.
"I hope you're able to figure everything out Maddie." Michelle softly smiled.
She left Maddie's side and made her way towards Wally.
"Everything okay?" He asked.
"Yeah, everything fine. I'm totally fine." She smiled.
Wally's eyebrows furrowed in concern as he looked at Michelle. "Are you sure?" He asked.
Michelle hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, of course. I just needed to get out for a bit."
"Are you liking the new girl?" He asked, "Never seen you share the spot with anyone but me."
"She trying to figure out who murder her, I'm sure she just needs someone to talk to. Someone who can... kind of... understand what's she's going through."
"You're a good person." He smiled, "I've been a good person."
She smiled, smirking up at him, "I try."
The two of them laughed and Wally's gaze locked onto hers, his hand sliding down her arm and taking her hand in his. He leaned in, his lips gently pressing against hers. Michelle's eyes fluttered closed as she melted into the kiss, the worries of the world fading away in that moment.
When they finally broke apart, Wally rested his forehead against hers, "I love you," He whispered.
Michelle's heart skipped a beat at his words, "I love you too." She smiled.
The feeling of gratefulness flowed through the both of them. The repeated thought of luck was prominent within their relationship and they knew that. They would always have that and they would change that for anything.
The meaning of "'til death do us part" was something neither of them would ever experience, but this was probably what they meant when they wrote that down in the wedding book.
That no matter what, in life or in death, you'll love each other forever and ever.
THE NEXT day the five friends, Charley, Rhonda, Wally, Michelle, and Hunter all found themselves by the pool.
It was better than sitting in the gym for hours on end.
It wasn't rare that the five hung out. They were the youngest bunch out of the support group. The friendship was scattered, some being closer to others, but they were all friends nonetheless.
"Easy with the Coppertone, hun." Rhonda scoffed.
"Yeah, that bottle's gotta last her another 60 years." Wally joked.
"Don't be a cube."
Hunter sat on the metal bench with Charley. His head resting close to his thigh as he smiled.
"Ah, I love this smell." Charley said, "Coconut, verbena. I mean, you close your eyes, you could be anywhere. Miami, Aruba."
"Yeah, and then you open them and there's a Band-Aid floating in the surf."
Michelle's head popped up from the water in a panic.
"Is there a Band-Aid in the water?" She asked.
Rhonda gave the blonde a faint smile and gently kicked water towards her.
"You wish."
Charley sighed, "I miss a good sunburn."
"I miss Hannah Marsh." Hunter sighed. The group looked over and he shrugged his shoulders, "What? I thought we were talking about stuff that we miss."
Maddie soon ventured her way towards the others and Charley sat upright right.
"Hey, you." He smiled, "Where you been? Maddie?"
The group turned and found her staring a a girl.
"Friend of yours?" Hunter asked.
"Hardly."
"Ah, yes, the side piece." Hunter smiled, "The cheerleader."
"Ok, so you think that she helped your ex take you out?" Wally asked.
"I'm guessing she came up with the whole plan herself." Rhonda quipped, "Lady Macbeth used your plus one as a tool."
A man soon walked between the friends and Charley had stared the man down his entire walk of the pool.
"Dial it down." Rhonda snickered, "Just because you smell like an Almond Joy doesn't mean he knows you're here."
Michelle pulled herself out of the pool and sat next to Rhonda.
"Leave him alone." She sighed, "He's allowed to miss people, you know."
"That's Mr. Figueroa." Wally explained, "Emilio. He was Charley's crush when they were still students here. He sponsors the LG... T— B. BTQ Club and Charley never misses a meeting."
"Not everyone can have their Romeo and Juliet moment like you and Michelle, Clark." Hunter sighed, "God it would be glorious if we could."
Charley scoffed and faced Maddie, "I only go for the refreshments. And you know what? You're one to talk."
"Here it goes." Wally muttered.
"I mean, no, you hit the gym, what, three times a day to impress some boneheads who only know you as a name on a scoreboard."
"His parents donated a new one after he checked out on the 50-yard line."
"Five." Wally corrected, "It was the five-yard line, and I did not check out, Ok, I was crushed. Michelle was there to see it."
"Why are we suddenly talking about any of this?" Michelle asked, "We were talking about Mr. Figueroa and Maddie."
Michelle stood up from the pool entirely and stood near by Maddie, "I think you have to be careful. You can't trust everyone. No matter what you think."
The conversation swiftly changed and came to an abrupt stopped when panic started around the room.
A girl named Ava had seemingly hit her head against the pool and the six ghost made there way closer to the action.
It wouldn't be the first time that the majority of them had seen anything like this before.
From people passing out on the court side and others falling from the top of the pyramid.
The difference was that none of them had died from any actions.
And Ava wasn't any different. She ended up gasping for air after the girl Maddie claimed to be Claire had practically saved her life.
And because of that Maddie assumed that Claire hadn't killed her. That simple action made her think such a thing.
And maybe she was right.
— lucy has something to say !!
warning; spoilers for season 1 episode 8 of the show below
i don't think much of the past matters as of yet, but small flashback until i get to wally's death... so bare with it for now :)
okay i'm posting this today because the last episode came out and i need someone to talk about it
how the hell am i supposed to end the book now 🧍 i know everyone was like mr. martin is sus in my comments BUT I WAS GIVING HIM THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT OKAY NOW WHAT THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO DO 😭 i'm so unwell it's crazy and POOR SIMON AND MADDIE LIKE i don't know how to end the story right now but i'm sure it'll come to me eventually i might have an idea anyway let's hope xavier didn't die 😝
bye :)))) i'm still so unwell