So You're Leaving?

the cemetery

Dally looked around at the half dozen or so gravestones popping up through the brown and golden leaves. "Whoa! Check it out!" He headed over to the stones to read the names. The first one he came to appeared to be the oldest. The name on the front read Charles Hamilton. Johnny's grandfather, Dally thought as the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. "This must be the family burial site, huh?" he was so engrossed in exploring the cemetery that he hadn't noticed that Johnny hadn't moved from the spot he had stopped in. Dally finally glanced up briefly when he got no response. "Johnny? You ok, kid?" he asked distractedly, looking over the other stones. Coal sniffed eagerly at the ground, his nose burrowing under the leaves. He bounded from spot to spot, but stayed noticably close to the two boys. Johnny swallowed. "Uh...yeah." Dally heard the hesitation in Johnny's voice and looked up."It's just a cemetery. It ain't like there's ghosts or anything." He did not miss the fleeting horrified look he got from Johnny at that comment. Johnny took a breath and followed Dally. "Michael Cade... who's that?" "That's Grandpa Cade. He was Grandma's... second husband," Johnny said, still surprised over the fact that his grandmother had been married twice. "But he's like your step-grandfather, right? 'Cause this guy Charles Hamilton, he was your dad's father, wasn't he? He looks just like him in those photos." "Yeah, I guess, " Johnny said glancing nervously at the headstones. "So," Dally continued, pausing to think a moment. "You're not technically a Cade then. You're really a Hamilton." "Uh... yeah, I guess I must be," Johnny didn't really care at the moment whether he was a Cade, a Hamilton, or a Kennedy. He just wanted to get out of the woods. Dally just stood there for a moment, looking at him. "Huh," he said simply and then went back to studying the stones. "Emily Cade...beloved wife... died in 1955. Who was that?" "I don't know." Johnny said keeping close to Dally and watching the surrounding woods intently. Coal, sensing his discomfort, sat down beside him and whined softly. He nuzzled his nose under Johnny's hand so that Johnny would pet him. "Here's a little one... Christopher Cade." Dally said. "Do you know that one?" "No," Johnny said, but he made it a point not to go near the small grave. "Look, we gotta be getting back, Wendy's going to be upset if we're late. She always makes a big lunch on Sundays." "Will you relax? You're actin' like one of these graves is gonna swallow you up!" Dally lit up a cigarette and stared at Johnny. He could tell something was up. Johnny just looked even more jumpy. "C'mon, man, let's go!" "Fine." Dally sighed. On the walk back, Dally decided he'd had enough of letting Johnny keep to himself. "How'd you know that cemetery was there?" "I didn't." "Well, you sure acted like you were looking for something." Johnny didn't answer. Dally grabbed his arm to stop him. Johnny about jumped out of his skin. Dally let go of him immediately. "Sorry, kid, I... what's with you?" "Nothin', " Johnny said. Dally folded his arms. "Right." They just stood there for a good 30 seconds, neither one of them speaking. Finally, Johhny sat down on a nearby stump. He put his head in his hands as though he had a headache. Dally sat down on a big rock and waited. "You're gonna think I'm nuts," Johnny said softly. "Too late." Johnny lifted his head and looked over his shoulder in the direction of the house. They were close enough to the house now where he felt a little more comfortable. "I... saw something... a few days ago." Johnny hesitated. Dally waited. Getting information out of that kid had always been like pulling teeth. "I saw this... ghost thing... I think." "A ghost?" Dally forced himself no to let surprise be heard in his voice. "Where?" And it worked. Johnny only heard Dally's usual calm, cool tone of voice, and he took comfort in that. And in the fact that Dally wasn't laughing at him. At least not yet. "In my room. The day before you came." "That wasn't the only time you saw it, was it?" Dally asked, remembering Johnny's expression as he looked out the window the night of the storm. Johnny looked at him, surprised. "N-no. I saw it last night too." "Are you sure it was... a ghost?" "No, I'm not even sure I saw it, it was only for a second both times and I was half asleep... I don't know. It's crazy, I know, but last night... last night it was pointing into the woods." Dally would never admit it to Johnny, but he was a bit spooked. No wonder the kid was so jumpy. But Halloween was tomorrow, they'd been staying up late, it was probably nothing. He reached into his coat pocket for another cigarette. He offered one to Johnny, but Johnny shook his head. "Tryin' to quit," he said simply. Dally shrugged and lit one for himself. He took a long drag, blew a smoke ring and cracked a weak grin, deciding not to take the situation too seriously, more for Johnny's sake than anything else. "You probably need to get more sleep." Johnny just rubbed his forehead and looked longingly at Dally's cigarette. Dally offered it to him. With some hesitation, Johnny took it. He took one drag and handed it back. They sat in silence for a few moments as Dally finished it off. "C'mon," he said, tossing the butt in a nearby puddle. "Let's go get some food, I'm starved." They headed back to the house. Dally was suddenly glad to be out of the woods. He was cold and the drizzle was turning into actual rain. "Oh, and Wendy's right- no more horror movies for you." Johnny was sulking. "It wasn't the movies. I told you you'd think I was nuts." Dally slung his arm around Johnny's shoulders. "And I told you it was too late for that! Look, kid, I believe you that you saw something. I just... I'm sure it wasn't a ghost. I don't think you need to worry, all right? It's nothing." They walked quietly the rest of the way back to the house as thunder began to rumble ominously in the distance.