Ghosts

Call Ended.

Thinking.

I've been thinking for over three hours. My hands have not left the bottom of my steering wheel in three hours.

I looked to my right at the house that used to be my own through the cloudy window of the car and sighed. I didn't want to be here. I didn't ever want to come back to see that what I had was now gone. It's no longer mine.

It looked incredibly different from only the minor changes that have happened. Our broken down, old porch was torn down and replaced by a nice walkway with stair leading to the house. Construction workers surrounded the area as they bulldozed over some other areas. But in reality, I'm just staring at nothing. Because to me, this is nothing.

The clock in my car read 6:12. I was already late. I had told Meredith that I'd meet her here between 5:45 and 6:00, but I couldn't stop staring at the house. No, I didn't want to go in, but I knew I had to.

Turning the ignition off and hopping out of the truck, I locked the door and slowly sauntered up the new path. As if on queue, Meredith opened the front door with her usual clipboard in hand and smiling pink lips.

"Oh, Francesca. I'm so glad to see you! I was getting concerned that you would not show up, but I knew you'd stay true to your word." She joked and waved her hand gesturing for me to come with her. "Come, I'll show you all that's been done."

I followed behind her and looked at the dirt piles on either side of me.

"So, like I said on the phone, most of the outside renovations are finished. We just need to clean this all up a bit, and the guys inside are working with the mold and pipe lines so you can come in and take a look if you want."

No, my inner voice said, but I hadn't come here from nothing so I might as well.

'Being pleasant is an important trait, Frankie. You'll always need it in life. Being a bitch will get you nowhere but hell and the bottom of the social pyramid.'

It was funny to think that my mother actually thought I would care about climbing up the social ladder. I didn't, but I guess she didn't know me like she did before.

Meredith and I made our way into the house, and let me tell you, it was empty. It's rare that you walk into your home and feel completely nothing, completely empty, but as I watched the men running back and forth inside my old home with helmets and dirty t-shirts, I felt nothing.

"This is Joel and the rest of the mold removal gang. They've been working their you know whats off." Meredith giggled to herself while pointing me to the burly man with a mask strapped to his face.

"Hi, Joel. Nice to meet you. So this is your house." He asked, though, he already knew the answer.

'Yes, it's all of ours. This is our home, Frankie, and you are getting rid of it like it means nothing to you.'

I hesitated because I knew that wasn't true. I knew it. It wasn't my home anymore, but they always seemed to make me think otherwise.

"Not for long but for now." I said emotionlessly hoping to God he would not ask me anything further.

"Okay, well, our work is slowly progressing. We have finished the basement and half of this floor which were mainly the problems, but upstairs still needs to be finished."

Listening to him drone on about the work that had to be done was absolutely pointless. Of course, I was polite and listened to what Joel and the Clark The Pipe Guy had to say, but I didn't need to because Meredith would take care of it regardless.

'This house holds so many memories.'

I was emotional as it was, and I couldn't take that thoughts that just wouldn't leave my head.