SPECTRAL

Chapter 14

 Slowly, very slowly, things were looking up. Noah has stopped isolating himself, seeking to spend more time with his family. He was caught countless times just staring at the large family portrait with a grin on his face. And Parker was slowly making progress on stopping the bullying in his school. Now he has two new teachers that have joined his cause, Mrs. Winters and Mr. Peterson.

Of course, Noah would not recover right away from the darkness that had invaded his mind. And of course, Parker wouldn't be able to stop the bullying instantly. But that doesn't matter. They are making progress. And that is all that matters.

Painting had become a routine in the apartment. There were many portraits of Charley and the ghosts. Recently, Mia started trying to paint herself, which spiraled into something the rest of the ghosts did. To do this, since she could not physically paint, she would guide either Noah or Parker to paint how she wants. "Mix the yellow and red together, no not that much red! I want more of an orange, not a red!" At first it was difficult, but eventually, it became easier.

"And add some freckles with that color," She would point at the color she was referring to, "In this area," and then she would gesture to the painting.

In the beginning, Parker and Noah were not interested in painting what the ghosts wanted. They just wanted to paint whatever they wanted. But soon they began to enjoy it and look forward to it. This was because the ghosts were making them paint people that they once knew. Parker painted Mildred's parents, Anthony's old pets, Joey's twin brother, and Josh's younger sister. Noah, on the other hand, ended up painting the patients that Mia became friends within the hospital, some of Mia's nurses, and Claire's grandparents.

While the two brothers would paint, they would hear stories about who they were painting.

"My mother wore her hair in a tight bun all the time. My father and I would joke about how much she looked like Darcy, the librarian, and she would scowl at us," Mildred would laugh. "Nobody, not even Darcy's husband, liked Darcy."

"He was my first pet. I never thought I would get a cat, always thought I was a dog person. But when Ol' Gray showed up at my doorstep, I couldn't turn him away." Anthony laughed, "I didn't have him for long, but he helped me get through a dark time."

"We were really close," Joey's voice would shake, "Always playing together and tricking our parents. And then we got sick. He was strong, stronger than I was an survived the disease. It was tough watching him grow up without me. Watching him slowly forget that I existed, watching as he became happier without me there."

"She died before I did. I thought that I would see her again in the afterlife, but I never did. I waited, for her, thought maybe she was just playing hide-and-seek like the good old days." Josh sighed, "But she wasn't. Some of us ghosts just aren't that lucky. But I still have hope that I will see her again. One day."

"Rosaline was the person who never let me stop believing that everything would be okay," Mia smiled, "She always said that even if our illnesses took us down, we wouldn't go down without a fight. Without her, I wouldn't have lasted for nearly as long as I did."

"My parents didn't want me." Claire would whisper, "Gave me up to my mother's parents. They accepted me. Of course, they would, they were the kindest people I knew. They really didn't have the money to take me in, yet they did anyway. We died in a car accident. I really thought I would see them in the afterlife. I didn't."

They were learning so much more than they ever thought possible.

Because of this, the two had finally begun to study ghosts. They didn't care how young Parker was or how impossible it seemed. Noah had taken to the science side of their research. In his free time, he could be found in a library or behind the computer, his eyes frantically scanning for any information that will help. He was looking for the reasons why and how. Parker was focused on the social side. While Noah would be researching, he would seek out ghosts and speak to them. He wanted to know what they knew, how they came to be.

Some people may say that they are crazy. Maybe they were. People began to stay away from the two boys as they dove into the unknown topic of ghosts. The librarian would call Noah a fool, the kids that spotted Parker speaking with ghosts would laugh at his face, and they were judged.

But that didn't matter, it really doesn't. What matters is that they will find a breakthrough. Mildred says it's crazy to believe they will find out why and how, but they know. Deep down, they just know they will. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but one day they will. One day everything will change.

---

Mildred never thought she was a sentimental person--well... ghost--but she truly was. So much has changed since the day little Noah ran up to her in his backyard and asked excitedly, "Who are you?" Noah was a mere toddler then, stumbling over his words. And that was all it took for Mildred to break.

She was never able to have children. Mildred had always wanted to nurture a child from birth to adolescence to adulthood. But she had been denied the chance.

But then, when Noah stood before her with a wide grin slapped on his pale, freckled face, she knew here chance had come. And she took it.

She was there for every monumental moment in Noah's life: his first day of school. When Joey and Josh came, his first living friends, when Claire came, when he got his first A, when he got Charley, when he was abandoned by his living friends, when his parents misdiagnosed him, when he felt alone, when he realized he could see ghosts, when he got his first job, when he graduated, when he moved out, when he met Mia, when he met Parker and Anthony, and when he adopted Parker.

Tears of reminiscence fell down her translucent face. She had seen him grow into the young man he was now. From innocent to understanding. From loved to unloved and back to loved again. From a single child to an older brother. From a shell into a man.

She loved him. More than his parents ever could have, more than his teachers ever showed, more than anyone that existed. She truly loved him. He was her family.

His life was flying by and she hated it. It only seemed like a year since he was the loveable toddler, the first living person to see her. But now his childhood had flown by and he was an adult, a grown man. She could only wish to whatever is out there that Noah would live a long life. And that eventually, when he dies, he will be able to see her still.

Mildred wiped her eyes as he thoughts traveled to one of the newest additions to her family. Parker. The young boy could see her. Although they weren't as close, he was still like another son to her.

The young boy had reignited the spark in Noah's heart. He had brought back Josh and Joey to their happiest times. He introduced a new member to their family. He related with Claire's experiences and let her let go. He brought back the joy of raising a child.

She couldn't believe that she had tried to stop Noah from adopting the boy. He was what they had needed, what everyone seemed to be missing.

And she would never tell them, but Mildred believes in the two boys. In her boys. She knows that they will find a breakthrough, that they will make the world see that ghosts exist. She tells them that it is crazy and that she doesn't believe they will do it. Not because she believes that but because that is what they need to hear to stay motivated. If she really knew the boys, and she would be damned if she didn't, then she knew that they needed to prove someone wrong.

So Mildred was allowing them to do that. Sure, they would rub it in her face when they finally did it, but it would be worth it. She would get to see them smiling, see them bursting with happiness.

Mildred wiped one last tear as she smiled. She really did love her family.