Out of the Darkness

28

 I laughed a little. "Yeah, I guess. I was supposed to go to have that merch meeting today, but I forgot about it. They called me a little while ago so I was just beating myself up about it." "Oh..is everything okay then?" "Yeah, everything is great brother. Don't worry about me," I answered, smiling and waving before I walked inside my room. I walked to my closet and set the board back on the top shelf, before closing the door and walking to my couch. I sat down heavily, and leaned my head back, covering my face with my hands. "UGH, they're all going to think I'm crazy if I keep talking to you Anna. We've got to be more careful." I heard her tinkling laughter coming from close beside me. I moved my hands and looked in the direction of the sweet sound. I saw her. She was sitting on the couch next to me, her emerald green eyes sparkling with her laughter. She almost looked...real. Besides the fact that she was pretty transparent. "I can see you," I said, my eyes taking in every aspect of her. Her long dark hair was flowing down her back and over her shoulder. My fingers twitched with the need to brush it back behind her ear. Would I even be able to do that? "Can you?" She asked, her eyes going wide with surprise. "Really?" Excitement spread across her face, as she jumped up and ran to my mirror. I never felt the couch move. You know how you can feel it when someone sits down or gets up? I felt nothing from her. For some reason, that made me a little sad. "I can see me," she breathed. I got up and walked over to her, meeting her gaze in the mirror. "This is what I look like." I watched as she ran her ghostly fingers through her hair, and leaned close to the reflective surface, pursing her lips and making a funny face. "You're beautiful," I said. She met my gaze again, and I swear, if she could've blushed, she would have. "Thank you," she whispered. "I didn't remember what I looked like so this is weird. It's like I'm seeing someone else, and not myself because I don't who I am. Ya know?" I stared at her for a minute before shaking my head. "No, but I think I understand what you're saying. You still don't remember anything?" She shook her head and bit her lip. "Not really. Sometimes, I'll get a flash of a place or a person, but I don't know what the flashes mean." She reached her hand out towards the mirror, like she wanted to touch her reflection, but her fingers slid right through the surface. She sighed, her breath a sweet whisper, before I saw her ball her fists up and stamp her foot. I bit my own lip to keep from smiling. I knew she was frustrated and I could only imagine how messed up her situation was. She was dead. A ghost that couldn't remember anything. But the cuteness that her annoyed actions exuded took me off guard. I really needed to get out of this house more often. She turned and walked back to the center of the room. I followed, but went past her and sat down on my bed. "What am I supposed to do Colby? I don't remember anything! I'm not even real." "Yes you are," I countered. "You're right here in front of me. I see you, I can talk to you. You're real." She put her hands on her hips and glared at me a little, before taking the few steps to stand in front of me. I looked up at her, just as her hand came towards my face. I felt a strong burst of wind, then cold permeating my cheek. "See. Not real. Real people's body parts don't just go through things. I'm a fucking ghost. A dead girl. I'm dead. Ghosts are supposed to be spirits with unfinished business, right? Well, how am I supposed to know what that unfinished business is, IF I DON'T KNOW WHO I AM?" She plopped down onto the bed beside me, and curled up into a ball. I went to put my hand on her back, to offer comfort, but stopped myself. It would probably just go right through her anyway. "It's going to be okay. I'll help you with whatever I can Anna. I promise." I had no clue how I was going to help her when she didn't have a clue who she was. I didn't even know where to start. She sat up and sniffed. She may have been a ghost, but she was still a girl. Her eyes sparkled with tears and I wasn't even sure how that could happen but I saw it. "What am I going to do Colby? Am I just supposed to hang around a house full of boys all day for the rest of my life? Watch you guys get married and have families, while I sit in the background? Or do I go back to that dreaded darkness that held me captive, until the Dark One comes to hurt me again? I just want to know who I am..." I wanted to help somehow, but I didn't know what to do. I couldn't even hug her, offer her comfort. "Give it time," I replied. "You said you're getting flashes, right?" She nodded. "Well, that wasn't happening before, was it?" "No," she said, her voice still doubtful. "Just give it time Anna. I believe you'll remember who you are and probably even more than that." "You think so?" she asked, a little bit of hope leaking into her voice now. I nodded, and smiled. "I really do." She surprised me by leaping towards me, and trying to throw her arms around my neck. The cold that went through locked up my throat, and sent me into a coughing fit. "Oh my God, Colby, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean- I was just thankful and I didn't think- I'm so sorry," she stuttered out. I held my hand up as I finished clearing my throat. There was still a chill, reminding me of that unpleasant sensation. "It's fine," I said, my voice raspy.