January 20th, 2019
Patton sighed as he hovered at the back of the class, unseen by all that were inside. He missed being alive.
Sure, being a ghost was fun when it came to moving objects and walking through walls and whispering in people's ears to freak them out, but he didn't get much joy out of making people suffer. He'd much rather lay in the sun and actually be able to feel its warmth than to make people think there's a floating pencil in front of them. He'd much rather hold another person's hand and be able to feel their pulse under his own than walk through walls.
Patton just wanted his life back.
Unfortunately, you can't undo death to his knowledge, so he was stuck between the realm of the living and the realm of the dead for eternity he supposed. He had to find some way to pass the time, hence why he was hovering around a quiet classroom that was full of silent, test-taking students.
One in particular caught his eye; a young man in senior year named Logan. He'd seen him around occasionally before.
Patton floated over to hover about his shoulder, intrigued by him. He noticed then that he seemed to be drawing a blank on one of the questions, and by the panicked look in his eyes, he just couldn't remember the answer. He bit down on his lip, wanting to help him.
Thinking quickly, he hovered over to the teacher's desk where she was grading the previous period's tests. His eyes widened as they landed on the test key, marked with all the correct answers.
He grinned as he made his way back to Logan's desk. "It's B," he whispered almost inaudibly into his ear.
The boy went rigid and looked over his shoulder, frowning upon not seeing anyone. He then looked down as his test with wide eyes. It was clear that being told the correct answer had triggered the memory of the information that he had been struggling to recall. He marked the correct answer and continued taking the test.
Patton made a point to follow him on the way home, tapping him on the shoulder. "You're welcome for helping with your test," he said, making sure he was visible to the boy.
Logan jumped and turned his head toward him. His eyes widened to saucers and he blinked several times, clearly freaked out by the fact that he was floating about the ground and slightly transparent. "W-Who... who are you? And is this some kind of joke?"
"No, no joke?" he said, smiling with a little bit of confusion. "I'm Patton! I'm a ghost! Or a spirit, or a phantom, whatever you want to call me!"
He sighed and kicked his legs up as he hovered above the sidewalk. "You see, I'm dead, but stuck between the living and the dead," he explained. "Which is why I'm a ghost! Anyway, you're welcome! I gave you the answer to question 26!"
The senior scowled, clearly looking skeptical. "What was the answer then?" he said, raising his eyebrow.
"Oh, it was B!" Patton replied, grinning. "Yeah, I looked over at the teacher's key and then whispered it to you cause you looked so upset that you couldn't remember and I didn't want you to be upset."
Logan's cheeks grew colored as he cleared his throat. "Well then, Patton, was it? Could you... join me and my family for dinner?"
"You want to tell your parents about a ghost you made friends with?" he asked, tilting his head with a giggle. "Okay, sounds good to me, so long as I get a hug in exchange."