A Profusion Of Souls

Chapter 2.

The thing that is scaring me even more than the fact that I just found the ghost of my best friend, is the bullet wound in the middle of her head, and her having an amputated arm. Tears start to rim my eyes as I continue to stare at my dead best friend.

“Ally? What’s wrong?” Anna and a classmate ask me in unison. My headache throbs harder as Anna starts to become worried. I hate having to feel exactly what a spook feels—with headaches on top of that.

The whole class turns their attention towards me, looking at me like I have two heads. I ignore them as Anna begins to think I’m crazy for looking at her and crying. I squeeze my eyes shut and reopen them, hoping this all to be a hallucination. She’s still there. My bottom lip begins to quiver as my mouth hangs slightly open.

“My hair doesn’t look that bad does it?” She goes to reach her hair with her amputated arm, and stops in shock when it doesn’t move. She stares at where her missing limb is meant to be with wide eyes and screams. The light above me bursts, and the windows on the wall shatter, startling everyone. Loud screams pierce my ears of the 25 students in the room, as everyone jolts from their seats.

“Class quiet! Everyone just calm down! I’m getting the principle, I’ll be right back,” Mrs. Costa unsteadily spoke as she rose from her chair and left the room. I look back at Anna’s desk and she was gone.

I jump out of my seat, leaving my books behind as I ran out of the room before I could give my classmates a chance to see me break down.

No, this can’t be happening. She can’t be dead.

My legs take me to the girl’s bathroom, and here I am standing in front of the mirror crying and using paper towels to wipe away my mascara tear stained cheeks. I haven’t cried this much over seeing a spook since mom.

Flashback.

“Your mother had a rough night, Allison,” The nurse in the old looking uniform tells me, holding her clipboard.

“She said she was feeling better. Yesterday she was out of her bed,” We hush our conversation.

“There are good days, and bad, it happens. She’s out like a light right now.”

“I told her I would stop by after school, so I don’t want to disappoint her.”

“We should really let her sleep. I’ll let her know you came by?”

“Do you mind if I wait a bit?”

“Would it matter if I did?” She smiles and I shake my head. “Make yourself comfortable,” She gestures towards the couches, before going over to the front desk and having a patient talk to her.

“Thank you,” I whisper, and sit down on the couch, sitting right on the edge waiting for Mom to wake up. A middle-aged man in a three-button brown wool suit, with an old brown and beige tie, and a brown Dobbs hat, sits across from me while smoking a cigar. He leans with an old fashioned posture, inhaling his cigar and then exhaling through the mouth. I watch as the clouds of white smoke escape his lips, concentrating and thinking whether or not if he was dead. He watches me right back in response. I think he is dead, just looking at his outfit basically gives it away.

“Ah, there you are.” Mom turns the corner and comes over to me, wearing her hospital gown. This woman has no shame.

“Hey, they told me you aren’t feeling well,” I say leaning into the arm of the chair and facing her.

“I just needed a nap. I was afraid I would miss our visit.”

“Mom,” I whisper, causing both of us to lean towards each other. “Do you see those people?” I gesture towards the man smoking the cigar, and the nurse I was talking to before who now has a patient talking to her.