Beyond (Niall Horan) (COMPLETED)

Chapter Thirteen

So, do you guys like the new cover? (:

Mariana's POV

Niall looks at me, eyes wide. He brings his hands down slowly and wipes at invisible tears. I can't see the tears, but I heard the sobs and his eyes look watery. He looks away from me, avoiding my gaze.

"You can't be here," he mumbles, still refusing to look at me. I take a step forward, fingers itching to touch him, to hold him, but I know I can't. Either my hand would go straight through or I would be able to touch him like I had during the one time prior, but I knew he wouldn't let me. There was no question about that.

"Niall, I know you're upset. I-"he cuts me off with a bitter laugh, throwing me a glance from over his shoulder.

"You don't know shit. Stop acting like you do and leave me alone," his tone is bitter, but there's an undertone. An undertone that he doesn't want me to hear, but I can detect it. He's upset.

"Niall, I know why you're afraid," I murmur, trying to sound comforting as I come forward and kneel down beside him.

His glare disappears from his face and his eyes widen, though I can't tell if they widen in shock or in fear. He shakes his head, his whole body starting to tremble, "N-No," he mutters, trying to convince himself to believe a lie, "You d-don't. You d-don't know a-anything."

"But I do Niall," I mutter, looking at him. I know the situation at hand, the legends told in the book I had found were very serious and very frightening, but I didn't care about that. All I cared about was letting Niall know that I can help him, "I found a book…"

"What book?!" He snaps, glaring at me again. But this glare is only half hearted…his eyes show fear and hope. Fear because of the serious situation we both knew that I could be putting us into and hope because he wanted help. I knew he wanted help, even if he wouldn't admit it out loud.

"I went to the library with my brother…after you screamed at me…" I cringe at the words and Niall does too. What he had done was frightening, but he seemed to be sorry for it, judging by his actions, "He was doing a project for school and I wandered around the library a little…I found a book that had a bunch of legends in it. Legends about the afterlife and what happens after…after a person dies…"

Niall stiffens, but I continue, "I found one legend…i-it said that there were two types of ghosts who stay on the earth, even after they die. Those who stay for the sole purpose of haunting and those who are…who are lost-"He cuts me off for a second time.

"Show me the book," he commands. I look up at him.

"What?" I ask. His eyes narrow as he looks down at me.

"Show. Me. The. God. Damn. Book." He demands, each word slow and spaced out. I nod, standing up. "Where are you going?" He asks, standing with me. Seeing as I'm only five foot five, he's a few inches taller than me…even when he's not floating in midair.

"I need to go get the book," I explain, "It's in my room."

Niall nods and I run out of the attic and down the stairs. Throwing the door that connects my room to the attic stairway open, I look around for where I had left the book. At first, I don't see it and a horrific thought crosses my mind-maybe Eric had somehow broken into my room and snatched the book while I was in the attic.

But no, after a few minutes I spot the book. It is lying on my bed, right where I had left it. Rolling my eyes at my stupidity, I cross the room and pick up the book. The page where the legend starts is bookmarked and I head back up the attic stairs with it, after double checking that my bedroom door is still locked. It is.

Walking back up to the attic, I soon spot Niall. He is standing right where I left him. His eyes widen once he sees me back up in the attic, the book of afterlife legends tucked under my arm. He comes over to me, staring down at the book in shock.

"You really do have it?" He asks, his eyes drifting up from the book and to my eyes. I nod, holding out the book for him to see.

"It's all right here," I state, opening the book to the page where the specific legend I had looked at starts. Niall's face now shifts to an expression that is unreadable as he nods and crosses the attic, motioning me over. I follow him to a little crate, that is used as a makeshift table to set the book on.

"I-I can't believe it," Niall murmurs, though his statement is directed more to himself than at me. I look up at him and ask a question…a stupid one, but I find the need to ask it.

"Do you want to read it?"

He looks at me as if I had just asked a little kid if they wanted an ice cream cone. The answer was, of course, "No shit."

I can't help, but chuckle a little at his response. We sit side by side, him reading the legend and me flipping the pages every once in awhile so he can continue reading. The legend is long, but we finally finish it after a few minutes.

I close the book as I look up at him. His face isn't expressionless anymore-It's a face of panic. Sheer panic. That's the only way I can think to describe it.

"Niall?" I ask once the attic has been silent for a few minutes. He blinks a few times before looking at me.

"This is bad. This is very very bad."

"H-How?" I ask. I know the situation is bad, horrible even, but I know that Niall would know more about the legend then I did. I only knew the facts that the book gave me-he was probably familiar with it.

His face is grim as he looks at me, "Mariana, we need to get you and your family out of this house."

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