Ghostly Love

Chapter 12. The Ugly Truth (Revised)

'Need something that I can confess

'Till all my sleeves are stained red

From all the truth that I've said

Come by it honestly I swear: Secrets- One Republic

It was late; around seven-thirty, when Austin had stopped mid-step and stared in awe at the small block we were at.

There were street lights, busy cars, diners, and even small stores that covered the entire block.

I stopped as well and glanced at Austin, curious as to why we stopped. 

"Why...."  I trailed off, pointing to the street and cars.

A faint of a smile pulled upon his lips as he seemed to be in a daze. It was sort of amusing, witnessing him trying to take in everything around him. 

"We're only a block away from my home." He whispered.

My eyes widened in realization and I snapped my head around to look at him. It seemed like he had so many memories of this place. So many cheerful, amazing memories.

 Until a few months ago. 

My subconscious reminded me. At that, my face grew glum. This was also the place, where his girlfriend was killed, and everything was ripped away from him at that moment. 

But, as I looked over at him again, seeing the smile on his face, I didn't feel that bad. The corner of my lips tugged into a small smile of their own. It seemed that his smiles were contagious. "So, we gonna keep going, or are you gonna stay and stare the rest of the time?" I grinned.

My voice seemed to snap him out of his daze, for he shook his head and grinned as well. "Come on. We should be there in a couple of minutes." We started walking again.

I suddenly started to feel a bit nauseous and scared. It wasn't because we were close to his house, it was because I knew I couldn't go in with him. His parents wouldn't be able to see me. I had to think of an excuse to not go. Maybe, I could just say that this was a family thing and that I'd see him soon.

It had only taken about four days to walk here. But, I guess it was worth it. Just to see a smile actually light up Austin's face.

I stared at all the buildings in mild curiosity and interest. The architecture was beautiful, even though the buildings were small. The colors were bright- even with the, every once in a while, graffiti covering some of the walls. 

"We're here." Austin's whisper broke me out of my daze and I stared in front of us, where a small one-story, white house stood.

But, the house itself looked broken. Every detail of it was dark and gloomy. The whiteness of the paint was wearing out, leaving some brown patches from the wood underneath it. Mold covered the side of the walls. The windows were blocked with black curtains and the grass looked dead.

It didn't really look like anyone was in the house; no lights were on, at least that I could see of.

I looked over at Austin. A sad smile stretched across his lips. His green eyes blazed over with so much pain and regret. "It didn't use to look like this." He whispered to me. 

I stared at him in confusion. He sniffled. "Our house used to be one of the brightest and happiest houses on the block. The grass was always green and healthy, we'd repaint the house whenever some of the paint was peeling off, and we made sure that the house wouldn't be covered in mold. The windows would be opened and not covered with curtains, showing the bright sun that cast in every morning." He summarized, looking at the house in wonder. "What happened?"  He murmured to himself.