Torment

Chapter Seven

"Hey Kate, are you okay?" Matt asked me, raising his head from the sketch book that rested on his legs.

"What? Oh, yeah." I tried, my eyes finally meeting his. "Are you sure, you seem kinda out of it. Look, if it was about last night, I'm sorry I just stormed off to my room and never said goodbye." He added, putting his sketchbook on the grass and moving closer to me. "Hey, no, I'm totally okay, it's not your fault." I tried to smile. "Sure, what's wrong?" He asked, "Nothing's wrong Matt." I grinned. "Right, and I'm amazing at sketching." He replied. "But you are!" I continued. "Total crap, but you have to admit that something is bugging you." He said, "And how do you know something's bugging me?" I asked, "I guess I can just tell. I speak of experience." He grinned a sad grin.

"Lately, well, it started last night, I kinda got so angry... A-at something my aunt said. It wasn't normal, or at least I don't think it was. It scared me, Matt." I lowered, my lips quivering. "Hey, hey, no it's okay." He grabbed onto me and pulled me into a hug. "You're okay. Anger is nothing to be scared of." He lowered, gently rubbing onto my back.

"I'm sorry for acting like that, back at the park." I shyly added. "Hey, don't apologize for it." He demanded. "Archaeologists don't apologize for making a great find, do they?" He grinned. "That's so unrelated! It doesn't even make sense!" I laughed. "It made you laugh didn't it?" He smiled. "Whatever." I smiled back.

"So, where exactly do you stay?" He asked me.

And once again, my heartbeat raised.

"U-um over there!" I quickly pointed out. It was my 'frenemy's' house, the ghost who chased me away.

"Wow. It's crazy how we've just been randomly walking past your house for the last 2 days and I might've trick-or-treated here! It's strange that I've never seen you and that you've never said anything." He shrugged. "Well, I barely leave the house, and unlike you, I'm too old to trick-or-treat and besides, my aunt would kill me if she saw me with a boy." I lied, my eyes angrily looking at the top window, where she was. "Hey, I only trick or treated for Katy, and that's uncalled for, it's not like I'm your boyfriend or anything." He blurted out and then awkwardly paused.

"Get out of the way!" I heard a shrill cry and before I knew it, a metal frame hit me right in the stomach and I went tumbling to the ground with a sting piercing right through my skin.

I heard muffled voices, my vision was blurred, "Kate!" I felt Matt shake me back to life as his face came to focus.

"Oh my God! Are you okay?" Another face appeared, a girl, "Tell me she's okay?" She wailed, "I-I'm okay." I shook off the dizziness. "Kate, are you sure?" Matt asked. "Yeah, I'm fine." I shrugged and quickly got up.

"I'm so, so sorry. I should never ride again, I totally suck at it-" "It's her first time." Another person appeared, a boy; our age. She was our age too.

"That's okay." I smiled, "Are you sure you're okay Kate?" Matt asked again, holding onto my waist.

"Ah!" I wailed. "What?!" they asked in unison. "Er, nothing, it's nothing." I tried.

But it stung, it hurt, it actually hurt.

Ghosts can't feel physical pain. At least that's what 'frenemy' said.

"Let me see!" Matt demanded, and it certainly took me off guard. "I'm fine Matt!" I revolted, "If you're fine you'll let me see it then." He continued and I slowly lifted my sweater.

"Oh, my God!" The girl gasped and the boy instantly looked away. "Kate, you're not okay!" Matt argued. And I looked down at the attention-grabber.