Dear Dahlia // B1

[35]

My phone buzzes in my pocket. I pull it out and check my notifications.

Julie - Just Now
Where are you?

"Oh, it's Julie," I say to Lydia. My thumbs quickly type a message back.

With Lydia. What's up?

...

"What'd she say?" Lydia asks.

"She's typing," I answer.

Go home.

"That's weird," I say.

"What? Let me see," Lydia says, taking the phone from my hands. She reads the message. "Who's Luke?"

"What?" I shout, stealing the phone back from her. The newest messages from Julie are:

Luke needs you.

He showed up at Flynn's house and told me to text you.

"Dahlia!" Lydia snaps her fingers in front of my face. "Who the hell is Luke?"

"I don't know," I lie, feeling my stomach churn. "I don't know who she's talking about."

I quickly turn my phone off and slip in it my pocket again. I feel bad for lying to my best friend, but I'd feel worse if I told her about Luke, Alex, and Reggie. The whole this is a ghost band from the 90's spiel may have worked for Julie when she told Flynn. But I know that it won't go well with Lydia. And she worries about me enough as it is, I don't need her thinking I'm some crazy person that thinks I can speak to the dead.

"He seems important," she says. "You're sure you don't know anything."

"Lyds," I stop walking down the sidewalk and grab her hands. Its the best thing I can do to keep my hot chocolate in my stomach. "I don't know anything."

"Lia, you're lying to me," she catches me.

"I-"

"Don't try to deny it," she waves her hand to cut me off. "You're a terrible liar, always have been. I'm surprised you didn't vomit just now."

"Trust me," I say. "It wasn't easy."

"Look, I'm not going to ask you why you lied," Lydia pats my arm. "But I am going to ask about Luke now."

"No," I whine. "Please no."

"He's the one right?" She asks, ignoring my plea. "The one you have the connection with?"

"I don't want to talk about it," I answer plainly.

"Can I meet him?" Lydia continues.

"No."

"Why not? I mean, he's obviously looking for you right now," she argues. "I mean, I could just follow you home until I see him, you know that right?"

"Even if you do," I shake my head. "You won't see him."

"I'm not blind, Lia," she laughs, waving her hand in front of her face.

"I'm not doubting your vision, Lydia," I nearly shout. I stop walking and take a deep breath. "It doesn't matter if you can see real people or not."

"What do you mean real people?" She asks, her face growing serious.

"I mean," I sigh. "Luke - he isn't-"

"Real?" Lydia's eyebrows raise along with her voice. "What? So he's like this imaginary boy or something?"

"No," I shake my head. "No, he's real. I didn't make him up or something. He's just not-" I pause looking for the right word. "Tangible. Or visible to most people."

"Okay, what?" She laughs. "Darling, are you okay? Because it sounds like this Luke guy is actually a ghost or something."

I don't say anything. When the reality of my seriousness sets in, her laughing dies out with a small "Oh."

"Please, don't freak out," I whisper.

"He's a ghost? An actually ghost," she says fast. "You're telling me this mystery guy that's preventing you from asking Tyler out is a freaking ghost? A GHOST! The kind that float around mansions and get sucked up by those creepy vacuum chambers in that movie?"

"Did you just reference Ghostbusters?" I ask.

"It doesn't matter Dahlia," she yells. "You're crazy. Actually off your freaking rocker."

"I knew you'd react like this," I look at the ground. "Lydia, please, can I just explain?"

"You can try," she says, crossing her arms.

"You know the hologram band that my sister has?" I ask. She nods before I continue. "They aren't holograms."

"What?" She asks. "But she walks through them and they disappear at the end of the song."

"Yes," I snap. "See, you already get it. Partially. The boys are ghosts. They were a band in the 90's and they all died together when they were a little bit older than us. Julie and I found them when we played they're CD. They came back here and now whenever they play music with Julie, people can see them. What's really weird is any time they play music, everyone can hear them too."

"Dahlia-" Lydia starts.

"No, stop trying to argue with me," I cut her off. "Just listen."

She nods once and closes her mouth.

"Yes, Luke is a ghost. And so are Alex and Reggie, which are the other two members of Julie's little band okay? But they're more than that," I rattle. "They're not these stupid little holograms that play music and get shut on and off for shows. They're people, even if they're dead people. And they're - well they're my friends damnit."

Lydia let's me breathe for a second before she puts her hand on my arm. "I believe you."

"You-" I stutter. "You do?"

"Yes," she nods. "As crazy and delusional your story may sound, I believe you."

Without thinking, I wrap my arms around her and pull her into a tight hug.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"Of course, Lia," she whispers back. "You're my best friend. I love you with all I've got."

"I love you too."

A.N.

HI!

So again, sorry about the little glitch in my Wattpad earlier. But NOW this chapter is ready and here for you to read.

Yay!

Hope everybody had and/or is having a great day!

😘

-Redd👑