Scratching The Surface

Chapter 10

That night, Jason slept heavily after a long day back at work. His light breathing was the only thing that assured Piper that he was still alive, his chest slowly rising and falling. He had a peaceful night for the first time at that house.

Leo had left after Piper had made him promise not to tell Jason about what had happened. It took some begging and some threatening, but the younger man gave in and left hurriedly. She hadn't heard from him since.

Piper quietly crawled out of bed around midnight and tiptoed out of the room, Jason not stirring. Once she got the door to their bedroom closed behind her, she let herself sigh in relief and made her way downstairs. The steps creaking under her feet made the only noise and the parlor below her was as dark as if it was stuck in the time before electric lighting. A candle cast a soft glow over the wood, a candle she didn't remember lighting. She would never have left it lit while they went to sleep.

Piper blew the candle out softly, plunging herself into darkness. The moon shining in from the windows allowed her eyes to adjust relatively soon, but it was still too dark to see much. Piper felt her way to the living room as her feet padded against the floor, trying not to wake anyone in her family up. The girls awake at midnight would mean hell tomorrow.

Her breath caught in her throat when she looked up into the dark living room. The large windows cast moonlight into the room to be reflected off of the picture frames and the metal in the fireplace. Crickets chirped, heat built up, a dog barked somewhere in the distance. Standing in front of the fireplace, behind the coffee table and couches, was the silhouette of a young man. She could make out the hair that hung in front of his face, the way one hand was rested on the mantel, the clothes that hung off his skinny frame. He looked as real as Jason, but she knew he would have had no way into the house. They had locked everything up good and no windows were broken.

"Piper...don't be afraid." his voice was soft, broken, and aged. "I'm not going to hurt you or your family."

Piper reached over and grabbed the nearest thing to her: a wine bottle behind the bar. "Who are you? What are you doing in here? This is my house, you hear? Me and my husband bought it. I know it's been abandoned for awhile, but now it's ours. You need to get out and get your own house."

The young man laughed, something he didn't seem to do often. "I wish."

"What do you mean?"

He stepped forward, his feet never making a noise. "Can you see me?"

"I'm sorry, what-"

"Turn the light on, Piper."

With no hesitation she flicked the switch up, illuminating the room at the expense of their electric bill. She wanted to see this boy, wanted to know who was in her house and his reason for doing so. He didn't sound dangerous, but trusting was never her strong suit.

The light revealed the boy in front of her, it revealed more of him than she expected. He looked to be only a teenager with dark hair and a face as white as snow. He wore a suit of old material and style, all black. His neck, however, was the first thing that put her off. A deep indentation spun its way around the base of his neck and heightened in the back, deep purple against his skin. Blood dripped down the front of his clothes in a steady rhythm, and some more dripped out of his sleeves.

"What...what..." Piper couldn't form a complete thought as she looked the boy over, motherly instincts kicking in. She wanted to help him, take him to a hospital or at least stop the bleeding, but she didn't know if she could, if she should.

"My name is Nico," he announced. "This may be your house, but it's also mine. Keep that in mind, Piper. See you around."

As soon as he was finished speaking he was gone, the room empty besides Piper. She stared at the spot where he had stood, her eyes wide and her heart racing. She had never believed in ghosts, never believed in the supernatural... But whatever...that...was... It wasn't anything normal.

Piper ran over and looked at the floor, frowning when she saw no blood left behind. When he was there plenty had fallen off him, but the floor was as clean as it had been when they moved in.

"Nico?" she looked around with no answer. "Nico, can we talk?"

The room remained empty. After a couple of moments, she heard movement above her and Jason's tired voice calling down for her. "Piper?"

"Jason," she turned around to find him walking into the living room, his hair a mess and his pants hastily thrown on.

"What are you doing down here by yourself? I heard you talking..."

"I was on the phone with my mother." Piper lied, walking over to him with her arms wrapped around herself. "She had a bat in her house and completely freaked out."

"Is she okay?" Jason asked, his voice low. He knew her phone was still on her nightstand where she had left it for the night.

"Yeah, one of my brothers is going to go help her." Piper kissed his cheek. "Let's go lay back down. It's been a long day."

Jason wrapped an arm around her shoulders and walked her back upstairs, his eyes looking around wearily. Who exactly was this Nico she was talking to, and how had he gotten in? "Yeah, let's go lay down..."