Where We Go

Chapter 5: Ghosts

Nova

It's cold out here.

I'm biking to the grocery to get our week-long supply of Twinkies (and other necessities), and it is freaking freezing. I feel like I'm in Game of Thrones: Winter is coming. 

The ghost really isn't helping.

She mostly just floats around, babbling in Russian. 

ЗЗдесь есть убийца. 

Он убил меня. 

Быть осторожен.

Он тебя знает.

And that's what she says, over and over and over again, until her voice blends into the background.

Sweet, blissful background.

The incessant noise is pissing me off. I wish I knew what she were saying. Maybe if I write it down, Jackson can translate...

But for now, I should focus on my noble quest for Twinkies.

Ah, Twinkies.

But before I can sink into my haze of Twinkie-flavored bliss, I hear the ringing of a bell behind me. I move to the side, figuring it's just a disgruntled cyclist, but instead...

"Oi! Nova!" Alek pulls up beside me, panting heavily. His dark brown hair falls into his eyes. I always tell him he should cut it. "Jesus fuck, since when were you so fast?"

I bike faster in response.

He struggles to catch up. "Hey! Who shat in your oatmeal?"

I glare at him. Twin lasers. "Go fuck yourself," I clear my throat and speak a little lower: "As it's probably the only fucking you'll ever get."

He grins. "Nice to see you're still an ass."

I turn up the heat on my glare. "Nice to see you still don't know when to leave people alone."

He grins even more, the insufferable bastard. "C'mon, Nova. You know you love me." He winks.

"If I love you, then where did this all-consuming hatred I feel come from?"

"Hate, love, they're both four-letter words, right?"

I bike a little faster. "Leave me alone, Alek. I'm not in the mood for your shit right now."

His grins loses some of its brightness. 

I continue. "Look, Alek, the last time I saw you, you were playing tonsil hockey with some skank you bought off Ebay. If you're going to cheat on me, at least have some class."

His grin disappears entirely. Good. He doesn't deserve my kindness, not today, not ever.

He clears his throat, his eyes filling with tears of apology. He looks down (dangerous move when you're biking), and takes a breath."Look, Nova, I... I'm sorry. I made a dumb mistake, and it cost me you. I know I don't deserve it, but... will you ever be able to forgive me?"

I've never been one for sugarcoating. As a rule, it annoys me, so I try to avoid in my life. So I'm speaking completely from my heart when I look at him, turn the glare up to eleven, and say:

"No. Alek, you say that line to every girl you cheat on. What makes you think it'll work any better on me?"

His apologetic expression disappears entirely, replaced with a grin and a twinkle in his dark blue eyes. "Ha! What gave me away?"

I bike as fast as I can, leaving him to choke on my dust.

...

Biscuits is the best store in town to buy food. Actually, it's Crumbles Corner Grocery and Supplies, but everyone I know calls it Biscuits. Don't ask me why.

The store owner, Mr. Crumble, is a sweet old man. He's owned this store since the 70s, when his father gave it to him, so all the years have made him a tad hard of hearing. Just a tad.

"GOOD MORNING MR. CRUMBLE! HOW ARE YOU THIS FINE MORNING?" I ask as I enter the store.

"Fine, just fine, thank you Nova. How can I help you?"

"TWINKIES, PLEASE."

Biscuits is operated strangely. After a series of thefts, Mr. Crumble moved all the stock to a back room (which he only unlocks when serving customers), where he grabs your food on request. He says for bulk orders people can phone ahead.

"Anything else?"

I read off the rest of the list in an absurdly loud voice. I swear I can see birds leaving the trees around me. Godzilla is nothing. I AM GODZILLA.

Mr. Crumble brings out the food in bags. I hand him two twenties - "KEEP THE CHANGE, MR. CRUMBLE." - and (with immense difficulty) load it onto my bike. The ghost is nowhere to be seen.

The ride home is a lot harder, weighed down by the food and the expectation of seeing Alek again. But home is soon within my sights, and as I reach the lawn I am greeted by a welcoming committee of Noah and Jackson, who help me unload my cargo.

Jackson glances inside a bag. "Yesss! Twinkies!"

Noah groans. "I don't understand why you two eat so much sugar. It should be medically impossible."

I fix him with a grave look. "Nothing is impossible if you just believe."

We go inside, joking and laughing all the way. My mind, however, can't help but to wander back to my encounter with Alek earlier. And even farther back, to the ghost lady. Who was she? What was she doing? Why was she only speaking in Russian?

What was she trying to tell me?

I can't shake the feeling that something big just started.