The Journey Continues

Chapter 6: Time for Business

A.N: Sorry I haven't updated this in a while, writer's block hit me :P. But I'm back, and it's time to set things straight. Thanks for reading!

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As soon as I looked at Jake, I knew something was up, so I started pushing him to tell me what was going on.

"Jake, I know there's something going on. I can see it in your eyes. What's happening?"

Jake hesitates for a few moments, me assuming he's trying to think of the right words to say. Finally, he takes a deep breath and starts speaking super fast, me almost unable to understand what he's saying.

"I didn't tell you this before, but I can see ghosts. Once you said your brother dealt with ghosts, I panicked. I was afraid that if you found out what I could do, you'd hate me for it. I'm sorry. What's going on is Derek's ghost came to me, and he wants to move on to the spiritual world, but I don't know how to help him. Help me, please!"

I let this information sink in, try to process it, and realize that that was how he could see Derek. He was already a ghost, he just looked physical. As I look around, searching for Derek, I see him float up behind Jake, ready to scare him. I shake my head, telling him not to do it, but he does it anyway. He taps Jake on the shoulder, and he turns around, searching for the source. When he turns back, Derek is right in front of him. Jake nearly jumps out of his skin, and he falls to the floor, while Derek and I are laughing our heads off.

I walk over and reach down to help Jake up, and he slowly accepts, still disoriented from his fall. As I look at Derek, I smile, feeling joy in my heart at seeing him again. I wave to him, and he waves back, signifying his acknowledgement of me being there.

"So Derek, what happened? What do you need that you're still here?"

Derek shrugs, not knowing what happened, but he starts signing something with his hands. Me, not knowing sign language, panic immediately. That's when I remembered that I had a phone with me, so I looked up sign language translations. From what I got, he said that he was stuck here and he wanted to move on so he could see his wife and kid. Wait, kid?

At first, my brain goes wacko, trying to process information of wife and kid and stuck and everything. After comprehending everything, I start trying to come up with a solution. It's obvious gears in my head are turning, as it's gone completely silent. So silent that a pin could literally be heard if it dropped. That's when a light bulb went off in my mind.

"I've got it! What we need to do is find out if there is a grudge of some sort in the family! I've seen this before on a show called Ghost Whisperer, and then the ghosts move on! Derek, do you have any grudges that you know of?"

Derek seems thoughtful for a moment, then starts signing rapidly, almost too fast.

"Woah, horsey. Slow down, I don't know sign language, I'm just using a translator."

He slows down slightly, but is still signing pretty quickly, but I caught most of it. He was saying that there was someone in high school that used to bully him and his wife constantly, and it apparently happened in adulthood as well. His name was Patrick something. The last name was spelled as Songuno. Almost quicker than I can comprehend, I pull up Google and search his name. The first thing that pops up is a guy in an orange prison suit. I show Derek the picture, and he nods rapidly.

I look at the picture, confused. This guy is in prison, how are we supposed to talk to him? I look over at Jake, and he seems more confused than me, so I fill him in. Now he's even more confused than before, but the gears in his head start to move, as well. All three of us are trying to think of a solution, but that's when I'm assuming Jake's mom comes downstairs and nearly has a heart attack.

"Madota?! How are you here?! What happened?!"

I steal a glance at Jake, and I put my arms behind my head, trying to think of an explanation.

Oh boy, was she in for a surprise.