Six Years Earlier
Coming home from school I clutched the straps of my backpack close to me. Another day of teasing, another day of torment, but it was over and I could go home in peace. Walking quickly I took a shortcut cutting across an empty lot and ducking between a split in a chain linked fence. Sometimes the boys would chase me, teasing me, sometimes the girls would walk alongside me saying mean things. Either way when I came home I prodded my laptop like a dead animal scared to look at my Facebook, or Twitter. Mean comments and horrible things about how I was a freak, and worse things.
Caught up in my thoughts I almost didn't hear the crying that came from behind a stack of planks and boards in the lot. It was grievous and heartbreaking, I recognized that type of cry. I'd cried myself to sleep many nights like that out of loneliness. Who was crying?
Crawling over the planks I saw the crier. It was a boy, no older then me. Springy wild hair, T-shirt and jeans. A boy, a transparent, a ghost. I held my breath. He didn't look as I crawled but just continued to cry. My dad had always told me to not talk to ghosts, but I always felt bad for them, especially the ones that cried.
"Excuse me," I called to him. He looked up and stared at me confused for a moment.
"You can see me?" he asked questioning me.
"Yes. I can see you. Don't tell anyone though, I'm not supposed to be able to see ghosts." I smiled warmly at him and he smiled back. My heart sank, a teenage boy had died. I thought back a moment to the news, to what I'd heard from grownups hearsay. Then I remembered about a boy who'd gone on a sports trip to the regional championship for track at school. They were driving to New Jersey, and got hit by a semi truck driver who'd fallen asleep at the wheel. There'd been a whole assembly to honor him and everything since he'd gone to the same school as me, the boy's name had been Isaac. "You're Isaac aren't you?" I asked hesitantly.
"Do I know you?" he asked perplexed.
"We went to the same high school," I explained.
"I'm Cassandra Day."
"I think I remember you," he said nodding. "You were Ghost—" he frowned quickly as he looked at me, but I remained straight faced. Ghost Girl, that's what they called me at school.
"Yes, I'm Ghost Girl," I nodded.
"Sorry about the teasing," he apologized.
"I don't remember you teasing me," this much was true, I remembered everyone who teased me, their faces burned into my memory.
"Yeah, but I didn't do anything to help you." He admitted. "I was just a bystander."
"Don't worry. Most people don't like getting involved in stuff like that, but I guess it's because they're scared." I knew this was true, but I said it half-heartedly.
"So you really can see ghosts." Isaac hovered in the air sitting cross-legged.
"Yeah, I can," I sat down on a plank that wouldn't give me splinters the moment I got up. "why are you still here?" I asked, Isaac gave me a look of confusion and I explained.
"Ghosts are people with unfinished business, they're normally looking for a way to crossover, but can't because they still have something to do,"
"Well I don't know what my business is." He said childishly.
"Oh, that's normal for a ghost..." I thought a moment. "I have a body, I can go places where even you can't. If you like I can find out why you're still here," It was a long shot, but maybe if I did this for Isaac he'd want to be my friend and then we both wouldn't be so lonely anymore.
"Would you do that for me?" he asked tremulously, I nodded.
"Only if you promise to be my friend," I offered, he smiled and I smiled.
"Alright Cassandra, I'll be your friend. I'm glad I have a friend even as a ghost,"
Everyday I went to school with this fueled energy to find out something about Isaac and everyday I did, in fact, learn something about him. He had a freshman sister who went to my school, but she seemed kind of aggressive and I didn't know how to approach her with another conversation starter besides "You know your brother who died last year? Well I'm friends with him now, and we'd like to ask you a few questions."
Isaac and I met at our empty lot, sometimes we walked in the parks we'd both gone to when we were little, but the lot was where we could talk freely without interruption.
"You know if you eat an Otter Pop like that it cuts the insides of your mouth," he warned me one day.
"It's the best way though, I can slurp it up like a straw and not leave one drop behind," he smiled at me as I finished.
"Are you seriously just going to let the other one melt?" he asked me pointing to the blue one that would've been in his lap if he had a body.
"That one's yours," I said simply.
"As much as I appreciate the sentiment, that's just a waste of a good Otter Pop," he laughed.
"Oh, but..." I thought I'd done the right thing bringing him, but now it seemed stupid.
"Go ahead, have it," he offered.
"Only since you say so," I said opening the drippy plastic wrapper like a teething puppy. Isaac laughed again and I felt self-conscious.
"Don't get embarrassed, it's cute," he reassured.
"You make me very happy Cassy,"
He said I made him happy, and that gave me motivation to try and find out why he hadn't moved on, I didn't want to let him down, he was my only friend, and when you have friends you don't want to do anything that'll make them upset with you. One day as we were talking, feelings spilled over, and I didn't realize it at the time, but I was getting in too deep.
"Okay your turn. Truth or dare?" He asked me. I smiled as I lay on my sun worn plank staring up at the big blue sky, not a cloud in sight. Isaac mimicked my position. If he was tangible our heads would've been touching
"Truth." I nodded sure of myself.
"Have you ever kissed a boy?" he asked curiously, I burst out laughing.
"I'm the school freak remember? Who'd want to kiss me?" The sardonic laughter hid the pain that would so easily surface if I did anything else.
"But you're pretty, guys are stupid for not wanting to kiss you." He said it so simply I couldn't help but blush.
"Well, not every guy thinks like you do," I said quietly.
"Not every guy knows you like I do," he said gently.
"Um, it's your turn," I said quickly. "Truth or dare?"
"Truth." He barely uttered the words and my heart quickened a little. It was now or never, what harm could come from a simple question?
"Do... you have a crush on me?" It was farfetched, it was wild. In fact, it was absolutely ludicrous. Why would any boy, dead or alive, have a crush on me?
"Yes." Came the reply so unexpected I held my breath. Sitting up I looked to Isaac who looked at me seriously. No trace of mockery, not a note of cynicism. Could this actually be happening?
My face was burning with embarrassment and Isaac reached for me like he wanted to hold my hand, but it just went through my hand instead. I placed my hand over his, and it looked like we were holding hands, even if we weren't.
"I love you," the words came out before I could take them back, but not that I would. Isaac looked at me, nothing but gentleness and love in his eyes.
"I love you too," he said to me.
My heart swelled. I was completely devoted to Isaac and I'd do anything for him. As school went out and summer came in I spent countless hours with Isaac. We sat together and talked. It was all we could do, and it frustrated both of us.
"You don't know how bad I want to kiss you right now," he told me. No matter how many times he said endearing things to me I blushed deeply.
"I wish there was a way for us to Isaac, but we just happened to be ships in the night. Passing each other by without even realizing it."
"God, I wish I could go back in time, I'd never join the track team, I'd talk to you first thing on the first day of school, I'd ask you out. We'd go to homecoming, spring fling, and after school you would come over to my house and I'd come over to yours..." he trailed off lost in his big beautiful "what if" fantasy and I began to cry. "Don't cry Cassy," he begged me.
"I'm sorry, I just... it's so unfair we're not together," I sniffed.
"It's okay Cassandra," he said wispily. "I've come to realize that not all things go right for me. I tend to be a huge source of misfortune. I hurt my sister because I'm such a bad luck charm."
"What do you mean?" I asked warily.
"It happened at a party. Jacob Wilcox was throwing a huge Valentine's Day bash and for once freshman were invited, well mostly the popular ones, me included. My sister found out about it, begged me to take her. I told her she couldn't tell anyone she was an eighth grader and that she wasn't allowed to stand next to me the whole time. She agreed of course, but the party was much wilder then we'd anticipated. Alcohol, crazy stunts being pulled. The place looked like a scene out of Project X. I was offered some beer... stupid me accepted out of peer pressure. I passed out quickly.
When I woke up I discovered what a couple of seniors had done to my sister..." Isaac's fists clenched and I could feel the anger from him. Sticks skittered away from us. Had that been him? But ghosts couldn't move things.
"Hey, Isaac it wasn't your fault," I said trying to comfort him.
"But it is!" he screamed. A tree branch snapped and I screamed running away as it landed right where I'd been sitting moments before.
"Cassandra I—" Isaac might've been calling after me, but I was running too fast to hear him.
A whole week went by and I stayed away from Isaac. I was sincerely afraid of his anger, and didn't want to see him if he was going to almost hurt me like that. Another week went by. I spent more time with my family, my mom, although spacey, knew something was up.
"Running from your problems only gives them time to gather more troubles," she told me one day, sitting in her rocking chair. "Mrs. Florence says that if it's a young man even more reason not to leave him in distress." Mrs. Florence was only a person Mom and I could see, she used to live in the house before my family, and had died falling from the stairs. When I was little she always told me to be careful going down them, because they were steep.
"Truly Sandra," Mrs. Florence said to me gently. "I was quite popular with the boys when I was your age, and I'm telling you they just hate being ignored." I wasn't sure if her definition of "popular" meant flirtatious or slutty, but I didn't want to know. I just knew she was right, staying away from Isaac was like putting off the ripping of a Band-Aid, might as well do it while I still had the courage.
Going to the lot I thought carefully of what I was going to say to Isaac when I saw him. I couldn't be with him anymore, I didn't feel safe with him, at all. Maybe it wasn't right for us to be involved romantically. After all, he was going to have to crossover, I still had a whole life to live.
Arriving to the lot I didn't see Isaac so I went to the park. Not there either. I went behind the gas station. No cigar. I thought of one more place he could be. We'd only gone to it a few times since it made me uncomfortable. The beach.
I didn't like beaches, too many ghosts. Too many drowning victims, too many sailors who'd only been meters from shore. Too many tragedies and it was absolutely crowded. Looking to the beach I had slight trouble picking out the living from the dead, but sure enough there was Isaac hugging his knees and staring at the ocean. He'd found an isolated part of the beach, not many people, very few ghosts, maybe the aura he was giving was keeping everyone away.
Scrambling up the rocks he looked at me and stood up.
"Two weeks and now you show," he sounded so hurt, I felt so guilty.
"I'm sorry Isaac, I just—"
"I thought you loved me!" he shouted. "I thought you were going to help me!"
"I do love you," I cried, "But I just got scared." Isaac shook with rage.
"You haven't helped me at all! All you've done is hurt me! Don't you want to be with me?!" He yelled.
"I do!" The tears falling down my face, the tremble in my voice. People were staring, and I didn't care.
"Then let's be together." He said darkly.
The rocks under me shuddered and I shouted as the boulders started tumbling into the ocean.
Splash! Splash! Splash! Che-wish!
Bubbles tickled my ears as I sank below the waves. I couldn't swim away, ankle was pinned between two boulders. Below the waves, watching me, was Isaac. I gurgled scream escaped me as I tried reaching for him.
"Since you won't help me. I'll help you Cassandra. This way we can be together, and we won't need anybody but each other."
Darkness swallowed me as I struggled, pining for air. Heartbeat in my ears and then silence...
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