Dream for the Dead (Completed/Editing)

34

"Tabs!" Mum woke me in the morning, excited. "I have something really special planned for your birthday. I just need you to make a decision, right now, and you need to be 100% sure..."
I rubbed my eyes and sat up. I hadn't slept much.
She looked at me and it was obvious she was thinking very carefully about something.
"Your...Father..." She began, "well, I want to know, for certain, if you really never want to see him again."
I didn't even think about it. "No doubt about it. He's a killer, Mum."
She looked at me for a few minutes more. "Right." She nodded. "I understand. And I'm so sorry-"
"Don't be. You're not the murderer." I smiled at her to let her know that I wasn't angry with her. Not anymore, after the decision I'd made last night.
"I love you, Tabs." She pulled me into a hug.
My eyes stung slightly. "I love you, too."

I walked along the hallway that led to the basement. I noticed the creaking floorboards and the aged wallpaper for the first time. I hadn't had the time to let the appearance of this side of the house really sink in, but now I looked properly. The long - and dark - history of this house had left its mark. I was walking where Seth and his family would have either been lured or dragged prior to their untimely deaths. I was walking down the hallway that Mary and Danielle would've been dragged; a hallway where unspeakable things had happened. I was walking through a real-life horror house. A real haunted house. I let a laugh escape my lips as I realised how ridiculous it all was; how unbelievable it all was. Was it even real at all? Was I going crazy? It'd make sense, I was going through a massive change-
"What are you giggling about?" Seth startled me from behind.
"Oh." I turned. "Everything." I laughed. "It's all so..."
"Unbelievable? Strange? Scary? Yeah. I can't imagine how you must feel."
"Seth, before I-" I cleared my throat, feeling awkward about the topic I wanted to discuss. "Before I leave. I want to do something."
"What's that?" He smiled his sweet, inviting smile, but I still didn't feel comfortable. If anything, it made me more uncomfortable; he had no idea what was going to come next.
"Well." I tried to muster up a smile, but I knew it wasn't a very convincing one. "I want to support you-"
"Tabitha, what are you suggesting we do?" His smile was wiped from his face, and his eyes looked scared. No, more than that. Terrified. I had a feeling he realised already what I was proposing.
"I want to offer you support and take you to see your Dad." It came out really fast, and I wasn't sure Seth had heard me properly. He did, however. He just didn't know how to react. I gritted my teeth, expecting him to secretly be another Elias and get angry, but instead, he threw his arms around me.
"You're amazing." He whispered into my ear. "Thank you."
I blushed. "So, do you want to go when I've finished school?"
He pulled away from me, but rested his hands on my waist. He had a massive grin plastered on his face, and nodded.
"Meet me outside of school, then."
"I will. And after, I want to go to the forest. With you."
"Sounds fun."
I'd already made a visiting order at the prison without telling Seth, posing as his Dad's cousin who would be turning up with her partner. Presumably curious, his Father had accepted my request. I decided that it wouldn't matter too much if I didn't turn up if Seth refused. But he hadn't, and we were going to find out why exactly Alexander did what he did.

I was filled with excitement and anticipation all day. All I could think about was hanging out with Seth, even if the first part was going to be horribly upsetting. As soon as the bell rang at the end of the day, I hurried outside. I expected to have to wait for Seth, (especially after the last time), but he was there already, waiting for me.
I could hardly contain my excitement to see him. "Hey!"
"Hi." I noticed that he was hiding his hands halfway behind his back. Focusing on them, I noticed that they were shaking slightly.
"Seth-"
"I want to do it. I have to, really. Not just for my peace of mind, but for Mum and Kim, too."
"And you're sure?" I touched his arm.
"Yeah." He gave me an enthusiastic nod. "I'm sure."
"And if you get emotional at any point, it's fine. It's understandable, it's normal. Well, I don't really know many dead people who were killed by their parents, but..."
We both laughed.

The walk to the prison was very quiet. I was worrying about Seth the whole time, but I didn't want him to feel patronised. When we got to the end of the street the prison was situated on, Seth suddenly came to a halt and grabbed my hand.
"Tabbi." He sounded panicky. "Tabbi, I don't think I can."
"We can go back. We're not in front of him yet, it's not something we have to do. Don't panic."
"No, no...I have to." His voice was shaky and kept breaking.
"Breathe for a minute." Though I was ordering him to do things, I kept my voice as soft and comforting as I possibly could.
He took two deep breaths, and all the while he squeezed my hand.
"Okay. Okay." He shut his eyes for a moment, taking another deep breath. "I'm ready. I can do this."
"He's gonna have a shock." I laughed.
Seth smiled at me, though a very small one. He finally looked towards the building, his shaking hand still in mine, and took a step.