Kissing the dead

Chapter 2 (Must have been a dream..)

When Mitchell woke up the next day he felt empty. A large, dark pit, had opened up in his mind. He didn’t dare to look into the pit. He knew that something awful was waiting for him there. For a few seconds he could not think it was. Then he saw Nicole’s phone on his bedside table, and he remembered last night. 

The ambulance. The police. All the hanging around. Waiting to give a statement.

Even at the time it had seemed like a dream. 

He’d wanted to go to the hospital with Nicole, but they’d said, ‘’No’’.  ‘‘You aren’t family’’. the ambulance man had said. Then he had added a different voice: ‘‘anyways. there’s nothing you can do.’’ 

The way he said it had let Mitchell known for certain that Nicole was dead. His friend. His best friends. Kind, funny, lively Nicole - was gone. One second she had been asking him for a kiss. Then she wasn’t there any more. 

It was only when he’d got home that he’d found he still had her mobile phone in his pocket. The battery had been running low, and for some reasons he’d plugged it in. 

Before he went to bed.

Stupid - as of that would bring her back! 

He got dressed. He could hear Uncle Dylan’s loud voice. They were having breakfast downstairs. When mum had fetched Mitchell home last night, Uncle Dylan hadn’t said a word. He sat reading a book, as if nothing had happened. Nicole had been right - Uncle Dylan was a jerk. 

Mitchell decided not to have breakfast. He wasn’t hungry anyway. 

As he left his room, there was a sound behind him. He knew that tune well: ''Save your kisses for me.'' 

Nicole’s phone! Someone must have set Nicole a test. But Mitchell had switched the phone off last night - hadn’t he? He shook his head. Last night was all a misty blur. 

Unknown Caller, it said on the screen. He flipped the phone open and read the text. 

‘’ Hi Mitch, Don’t worry about me. I’m OK  

    -- Just lonely. I miss you tho. I fixed your cash problem! Nicole. ‘’

Mitchell shivered. This was sick. Who had sent this text? Using Nicole’s name, too! pretending to be her. Who would do a thing like that? 

He slammed the phone back onto the table. 

Only -- how could they have known about his cash problem?  And what had they ‘‘fixed’’? 

Uncle Dylan stumbled into Mitch’s room just then. Mitchell had never seen him so pale. Most of the time, Uncle Dylan’s mouth was set in a thin, mean line. now it was hanging open. 

‘’ I was s-sorry to hear about your fr-riend,’’  mumbled Uncle Dylan. ‘‘Here -- here, take th-th-is-s.’’ he was holding out two $20 notes. His hand was shaking, and there was sweat on his skin. Mitch saw that Uncle Dylan kept looking behind him -- as if there was someone there. ‘‘Take it!’’ he said   ‘‘see, I’m giving it to you!’’ 

Uncle Dylan thrust the notes into Mitchell’s hand. Then he turned and ran out of the room. Mitchell went after him, and watched him bound down the stairs. 

Mitchell began to turn away. Then he saw the long mirror at the end of the landing. 

There was someone else in the mirror apart from himself. Mitchll blinked.  No. No, it must have been a trick of the light. 

Yet, just for second, he was sure there had been a face in the glass. A pale face, with a smile he knew very well.  

It’s bright red lips had been blowing him a kiss.