Falling For a Ghost? How Is That Even Possible?

Needless to say, I practically ran out of the bathroom.

I kept telling myself to breathe, to calm down, but it didn’t work that well. Something was going on! I was hearing a voice in my head and now I just saw a figure in a mirror. What the hell was going on?!
I quickly grabbed my Home Ec. book out of my locker then rushed to class.

“Hey, Amy,” Austin said as I walked into the room. He was over in the mini kitchen and getting ingredients out of the fridge and cabinets.

“Hey,” I returned. Oh yeah, we’re cooking today. “What’s on the menu?” Maybe cooking would help me calm down. God knows I needed it.

“Extra chocolate cake and chocolate milk.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Seriously?”

He nodded. “I picked it just for you.”

Freaking YES! I didn’t know what it was about cake that I loved so much. It made me happy and content. And cake was just plain good! Perfect for getting over a boyfriend…or hearing voices in your head.

By the time we got all the ingredients out, everyone else was already in their seats and working on book work. Haha, suckers.

“I need two cups of sugar,” Austin said.

I picked up the large glass measurer and dumped it in the sugar. It shined and sparkled as it toppled over itself. After getting the right amount, I dumped it in the bowl. “Here you go, captain.”

Austin chuckled. “Thanks.”

After we combined all our ingredients, I stirred the batter. It was dark and brown and…I dipped my finger in it and licked it.

“Hey!” Austin said. “Now you just ruined the whole cake!”

I rolled my eyes and continued stirring. “You should try some, it’s really good.”

“No, that’ll just ruin the surprise taste of the cake when it actually is finished.”

I put the bowl down and took the spoon. “Come on, just try it.” I put the spoon near his face.

“Nope.”

I made a pouty face. “Please? For me?”

He hesitated then finally leaned in and licked the spoon. “There? Happy now?”

I grinned. “Ecstatic.” Austin smiled back and rolled his eyes at me.

As I popped the cake into the oven, I couldn’t help but notice a change in the air. Or maybe it was the atmosphere. Everything was so happy a second ago…but now it felt cold. I felt like I had just done something wrong, but I didn’t. I felt… weird.

“Are you okay?” Austin asked.

I looked at him with a smile. “Great. Just anxious about this cake getting done.”

He studied me for a moment then nodded. “Yeah, me too.”

After the cake was done, I made the frosting and Austin made the chocolate milk. Stirring chocolate syrup into milk…what a difficult job. Anyways, I couldn’t wait until the cake was cooled off all the way, so when I put the frosting on, it slid down the sides.

“Good job,” Austin said with a pat on my back. “Our cake is officially the most disgusting looking cake ever concocted.

I cocked my head and watched the frosting slid down the sides. “But I bet it tastes delicious!”

And it was. That extra chocolate cake was freaking awesome!

After Home Ec., I decided to skip the rest of my classes and head out to the park. I needed to clear my head and just be…somewhere.

I ended up on the swings. There was hardly anyone at the park. There were a few people jogging and others eating their lunches at the picnic tables. But I was the only one alone. I was swinging gently back and forth in the middle swing, while the swing to the left and right of me was empty. I sighed. I was always alone.

Suddenly and highly unexpectedly, my swing and I were pushed forward. I gripped the sides and turned my head to look behind me.

“Hey stranger,” Cale said. He was wearing white washed jeans and a fitting pale green T. His black hair was blowing gently and his grey eyes held mine.

“Cale?” I asked surprised. “What are you doing here?” My swing slowed and he slid into the swing on my right.

“Probably same thing as you,” he answered casually.

I raised my eyebrows. “Skipping class?”

He shrugged. “Sometimes you just need to get out, you know?”

I nodded and looked out across the green empty field. “I know exactly what you mean.” We stayed like that for a while. The silence wasn’t awkward like I thought it’d be, but it was nice. I felt comfortable with Cale, even though my heart was racing. “Say, why’d you come here? I mean, I’m sure there were tons of other places you could have gone.”

He didn’t say anything for a second. “Would you rather me not be here? Cause I’ll leave if you want me to…” He stood up and started walking away.

“No, wait!” I raced from my swing and grabbed his hand…Or at least I tried to.

Cale turned around to face me.

I looked at my hand with a blank expression. “Cale…” I whispered. “What’s going on?” I looked up and into his grey eyes.

“What are you talking about?”

“I just grabbed your hand…”

He frowned at me. “Amy, what are you talking about? I would have felt it if you grabbed my hand…Are you okay?”

I closed my eyes and tried to force the tears away. Something was happening to me. “I…I need to go…” I walked past Cale and went to my car. Confusion, anger, and all other complicated emotions filled me. I just needed to sleep. I needed to…

I felt a pair of cold, strong arms wrap around me as I fell towards the ground. The arms lifted me up; one slid under my knees and the other went under my back, holding me against the cold body.

“Cale…” I whispered.

“Everything’s okay, Amy,” he said. “Trust me.”

Blackness was surrounding me, threatening to cave in. “Sure,” I mumbled.

And then the black, cold void embraced me.