A Little Ghost Help

~9~

Warning: Self deprecating thoughts, mentions of scars, and panicking. Have fun!

Patton pov
My head hurts. I try to shift in an attempt to loosen the tension in some way. Ow! Nope! Big mistake! Ow ow ow ow!!! Scratch that, all of me is hurting. I mean, that's not new, but still. I'm lying on my back… why am I lying on my back?! That's so stupid! It hurts so badly! Maybe my parents knocked me out for being so late, then they laid me on my back so that I would feel the pain from two days ago at full force? They have done it before. I don't want to move. It hurts so bad. Even the thought of moving hurts. I slowly open my eyes to find that I don't recognize the ceiling.

I shoot up, then immediately curse myself for it. Ow ow ow ow! I feel tears form at the back of my eyes. Do not cry at a stranger's house! I commanded myself. I look at the time to realize, it's ten am. I AM SO DEAD! I feel panic rise within me. I don't even know where I am and I'm worried about my parents? I could have been kidnapped for all I know! Well… my parents would probably find a way to punish me for being so stupid if that was the case. I check my pocket for my phone. It's not there. Crap.

I do a quick scan of the room. I was in a living room like area that was connected to a kitchen. There are multiple hallways going out from the kitchen and room I am in. I'm lying on a couch. There is a family picture on the wall, but I don't recognize anyone in it. There are five people in the photo. Two adults and three kids. I stiffen as I hear footsteps.

"Yeah, I'll call you as soon as he wakes…" the voice trailed off as I come face to face with a stranger. "He's awake. Come over quick." He then hung up the phone. The stranger wore a light brown sweater with a light pink tie. He had short black hair, glasses and a softened gaze as he looked right at me. He had a beautiful sepia skin tone. Even though he looked nice, that didn't stop me from seizing up. My parents look nice when around strangers, so I don't know if I can trust him or if he will hurt me too. "Hey Patton. I'm Emile, Remy's boyfriend. We have never met personally, but he has told me about you." He had a strange accent. "Don't worry, we have taken care of everything and Remy is actually coming over now! He might bring Sarah, Hannah, Marly, and Mary though. Do you know them?"

I finally found my voice, "I know them…" I let my voice trail off. Remy is a senior this year and I'm a Freshman, so I don't really know him well, but we talk sometimes. Even though he is older, I have still adopted him as one of my kiddos. I didn't know he had a boyfriend however. How exciting! Mary and Marly are also Freshmen, but considering how next week is summer, I guess I can call them and myself Sophomores. Hannah and Sarah are homeschooled, but by ages, Sarah is going into Junior year and Hannah is going into Freshman. Don't mistake their homeschooled-ness for not smartness. They can destroy you in any subject… well … except math. I'm looking at you Sarah! They are also deadly. Just… plain deadly. You don't want to cross them. I have also met Todd! He is an adorable kiddo! I took a deep breath before continuing. "Do… do my parents know I'm here?"

"Yes. They also seemed to be a little upset. But this isn't about them. How are you feeling?"

Well crap. If my parents are upset, that means I definitely am dead. "I'm fine," I tell him. I have to be. I am not allowed to not be.

"Mhm." He said, unconvinced. "Well, if you ever need to talk, I'm here for you. I can help. I'm actually studying to become a therapist." I nod. That's really cool, but I don't think he should have to deal with all of... me. No one should have to deal with this mess. This wimp… wait no. I'm not a wimp. I am many things, but a wimp is not one of them. I am brave. Brave enough to handle this on my own, sure. But I am also brave enough to face this. To be able to make it through this far in life without anyone knowing. I am brave, because the ghost showed me that I was. He proved to me that I'm not a wimp. I am not a wimp.

"Sure, kiddo." I reply as a door slams open. We both jump as Remy comes storming in.

"WHAT DID I MISS?!" He yelled, taking a long swig of his coffee. Emile walked up to him and gently took the cup out of his hand.

"Sweetie, how many coffees have you had this morning and how much sleep did you get last night?" Remy had a crazed look in his eye. His sunglasses had slid down his nose, almost at the point of falling off. His hair was a mess and his heels were on opposite feet. His clothes were also a reck, to put it in the nicest way possible.

"Hey, it was either that or a mur-dur." He took the cup back and took another drink, "Mary said no mur-dur so Sarah and I stayed up all night talking strategies." He looked lost in thought for a second. "Five."

"Five coffees?!" Emile looked shocked. Remy chuckled in response.

"No, silly. Five minutes of sleep. I had like, fifty of these bad boys." He held up his coffee cup and I caught a whiff of straight up black coffee. Emile took a deep breath, as if trying to process the fact that his boyfriend will never sleep again. "Now, babes, are you okay?" He turned his focus on me. Why does everyone keep asking me that?

"Yeah, I'm good. I'm just kinda confused. What happened yesterday?" The two shared a look. That's never a good sign.

"Well, I was walking out of starbies and saying goodbye to my peeps yesterday, when I heard you scream. You had just fallen and knocked yourself unconscious so I panicked and called Emile. We then brought you back here and called the gurls over. Mary took control and told us to call your parents, so that's exactly what I did. I swear, it took everything in me not to mur-dur them last night. I ended up chewing them out and hanging up on them." That's it. I'm dead. I leave everything to my imaginary dogs and cats except for my books and Watson costume which will go to Logan, my Mickey Mouse ears which will go to Roman, and finally, my pocket knife and makeup kit to my strange dark son, Virgil. 

I swallowed and winced at the dryness of my throat. Emile noticed this and quickly brought me a cup of water Remy had also handed me my phone, which he had in his pocket. I placed it in my Jean pocket and thanked them. I then drank the water thirstily. I felt like I had just army crawled through the desert with my mouth wide open, collecting sand in it as I traveled. My throat was scrapy and so dry. The water did little to help, and I was so hungry. Is this what dying feels like? If so, I don't want to do it often. Maybe just once in my life. I internally laugh at the dramatic description. It sounds like something Roman would say, the dramatic little kiddo he is. Logan would probably say that he is dehydrated and requires a larger portion of water than normal. Virgil wouldn't say anything. He would just grab a few water bottles and  disappear to his room for the rest of the afternoon. But me? I was already given a glass. I should be fine. I don't need to make them waste any more time on me when they let me stay at their house. I'm fine.

"I… I better get home." I say slowly, trying to ease them of the burden that is… me.

"I told your parents to not expect you until tonight, if you are to go back. You really scared us. And then… and then we saw your scars..." His voice grew muffled. No no no no no no no!! I'm dead! I am going to die! I let someone see them! No one is supposed to see them! My breathing quickened and my head spun. This can't be happening! The others had stopped talking and started coming towards me. Their faces were full of concern. Great! Now they're worried and upset and I am going to be punished for this!

"I'm sorry!" I choke out as I grab my crutch and rush to the door. Ow! Why does this hurt so much? I try to get as much distance between myself and their house as possible. I heard shouting behind me but I didn't focus on it. For crying out loud! Leg! Work faster! I felt my vision swimming as I turn the corner. As my head started going black, I thought I saw something. Is that… the Davis house?

1584 Words
What's this? Could it be? Fluff on the horizon? Maybe. You'll have to wait and see. Thank you guys for sticking around! I love you all!!

💖 Maybay4