Luna's Ghost

24

"Thanks again for this," Madison said after we got off the bus and started heading home.

The sun was starting to set, casting rivers of orange, red, and pink across the sky. There was a slight breeze in the air, causing a slight chill, signalling fall was coming soon as September would turn into October in only three days.

I smiled. "I had a good time. Still a little weird you know Shaun, but it was still nice."

She winced. "I honestly had no idea he was your brother. And it is a little weird, and while I do like him, he might be too shy to want to start anything."

"He is shy, but give him time. If he really likes or wants something, he'll work hard to get it, and it did seem like he liked you."

"You think so?"

"He kept blushing when he was near you, and I saw he couldn't keep his eyes off of you the whole time we were there. I can tell he definitely likes you."

We paused on the sidewalk. She was staring at her house, a mix of foreboding and sadness on her face.

I gave her a one armed hug and said, "It'll be okay."

She gave me a sad smile. "It's bad when you don't even want to go to your own house, huh?"

"My door's always open if you need anything, but please, don't sneak over her unannounced again, okay?"

"Oh, believe me, I'm never doing that again. I really did feel bad when I got you grounded."

"I'm over it. But I mean it, call me, text me, come over, spend the night if you ever need to get away, okay?"

She set her bags on the ground and hugged me. "Thank you, Luna."

I hugged her back. I sensed, while she obviously still dreaded going back to her house, she felt lighter, that today lifted a weight off of her shoulders. I sincerely hoped all the problems in her life got better.

She pulled away and started walking back to her house. I watched as the front door flew open before she even walked up her porch steps. Mrs. Daniels stood in the doorway. From my standpoint, I saw her eyes narrow when she saw the shopping bags in her daughter's arms and I could tell there would be a full blown fight once Madison walked in.

Madison walked in and Mrs. Daniels slammed the door hard enough to rattle the small, rectangular window that was built in it. I winced, knowing the argument was going to be bad.

I was thankful for my relationships with Mom, Dad, and Grandma Marie. While there were times I would fight with them, get mad at them, and they get mad at me, we would never act like that towards each other, and we would always work things out with each other.

Grandma Marie flew the door open as I approached as well, her face pinched with worry.

"Are you okay?" she asked as soon as I was within hearing distance. "Were you safe?"

"I'm fine, and I was safe," I answered her as I walked into the house. She closed the door behind me and immediately prodded for answers.

"Did you find out anything? Did you find out where he lived?"

"I didn't find out where he lived. When Madison and I were at O'Charley's, Jackson was there, and so was Will. I saw that Will wore this watch around his wrist, and I think it's important. Come here."