Into the Void

Joshua flashes his pearly whites. "I'll see you tomorrow?" He asks innocently. I watch the expression change on his face when I did not give an immediate answer. The whole day was strange; no living person has followed me around like that. It made Jessica so angry though. His body slumps, too disappointed to seem real.

"Yeah, " I say, smiling as real as I could. I'm almost certain it came out as a grimace. Quickly, I step over his legs and walk off the bus. As it leaves he waves though the window. I ignore him. He was absolutely fine and all; just very odd.

It made me miss Stefan.

As soon as I thought of his name, something cold brushes through me. "I'm goin' to haunt you!" I spin around, happier than ever to see Stefan. I almost forgot I couldn't touch him. "What up, love?" I grin, feeling my neighbor's eyes watching me. I was too ecstatic to be mad at him for ditching me.

"What up with me?! Where were you?!" It was excitement that fueled me. Stefan did not answer. I grew angry so I sit in the grass outside. Looking up at Stefan, I see there is something off with him. There was a strange feeling I got off him. Stefan distances himself, toying with his hair again. I know he is going to drag this out. The good feeling I just had is now gone. I open my bag and take out my homework. If Stefan wants to play that game, I will.

Stefan sat himself down eventually. "How was your day, love?"

I did not look up. "Answer me. You cannot leave people like that. It's selfish. I thought the worst."

A growl starts from the pit of his stomach. I hit a nerve. Suddenly his form started to change, he was darker now. "It was Shadow People business. I'm here now. Come on, lets go inside." I shake my head, continuing to do my homework. It was actually going nowhere, so I just pretended.

I take a deep breath. "Where were you?" I persisted.

"In Summerland, escorting new souls." Stefan sat down now, not looking at me. I never understood why he couldn't just tell me the first time. It would save time. Time he had, but I did not.

I look away now, thinking of my mother. She most likely is in Summerland. I ask Stefan the same question every time. "Did you see her?"

"No."

I got the same response every time too. Angrered, I stand and stomp away from him. "Like it even matters, I met a new boy. His name is Joshua and he is very nice. He stuck around me all day." I spit, walking through the front door.

Arthur is on the couch again, watching TV. He looks over at me and gives a faint smile. "I bought egg noddles for dinner." I weakly respond and head for my room. Stefan is on my bed waiting for me.

Ignoring Stefan, I throw my bag down. Right through him, Stefan hates that. I walk back out and wave to the new spirit that awaits me. "Hey, I'm Aimee. You want to walk somewhere else?" I ask in a whisper. The young man smiles and nods.