Everyone Tells Ghost Stories

After the encounter with Olivia in the library, there was a lot of confusion still floating around Dillon High. Colorado doesn't hardly get earthquakes, and the fact that no one knew the origin of the quake was a mystery.

A mystery to everyone else.

Hey, Laura. Jamie McKinely signed to me during Biology the following Monday. He's one of the only guys I knew who could sign as well as a deaf kid. Do you know what happened last Friday? He asked. I waited until Mr. Briar had his back turned to the class to respond. Why do you think I would know? Personally, I hate it when people answer questions with questions, but I had to do something to keep Jamie off my back. Jamie shrugged. You're the only one who isn't all freaked out about it. Its pretty scary- Jamie's gesture got cut off due to Mr. Briar scolding him for not paying attention. I've always been able to hear things, just not as well as everyone else. Its like being underwater, and having conversations beneath the surface. Its amazing that I can speak almost as well as anyone with perfect hearing.

Jamie, I don't know what to tell you. I don't know what happened. I was in the library and then things just started shaking. I think its easier to lie with you hands, because your voice can crack and falter. Jamie believed every word of it, waved goodbye and headed off down another hallway. I sighed. I didn't like lying, especially to guys as nice as Jamie. He's one of the only people I can talk to easily, not only because he signs, but because he's a good listener (if you can call it that) and is very understanding towards me.

Wait a second.

Do I like him? No, I can't like Jamie. I can't like anybody. If I do, and we end up getting close, I might let slip something about my secret, and he may think I belong trapped in one of the Cirque Du Freak books. Nobody close to me knows about what I can do, and I plan to keep it that way.

~

During Geometry, Mom texts me. "Come to the hospital after school." it read. Greeeeeat. My mother just so happens to be a doctor, and works in the biggest hospital in Dillon. Hospitals means dead people. And dead people mean lots of lost souls with unfinished business. All of them will be able to feel my energy and believe I can help them, then follow me around and talk all at once. No wonder I get frequent, intense migraines. "This is tonights homework. Due tomorrow. Don't forget the test on Friday!" Mr. Jederberg shouted over the ringing bell. I packed my things as Jamie stopping by my desk to talk. Are you okay? You seem out of it and edgy. He signed while I jammed my Geometry book in my messenger bag. I'm fine. I signed quickly, wanted to get away from him. Jamie walks home, and his house is on the way to the hospital, meaning he's probably going to want to walk with me, or I'm going to have to take the long way. Look, I got to go, my little brother is at home, sick. I lied, rushing out of the room. Jamie nodded as we parted ways, him to the front doors and me to the bike rack. I really hated lying to him, and it was becoming increasingly harder to do so. I knew I was developing an infatuation with him, and I was doing my best to fight it, but lying to someone that gives you butterflies in your stomach is not easy.

I bike the long way to the hospital so I don't risk running into Jamie again. I chain up my bike on the front gates of the courtyard and make my way in, bracing myself for the wave of ghostly energy that was about to hit me. Walking through the front doors of a place that contains so many spirits and feeling their energy all at once makes me dizzy and gives me a headache that will eventually develop into a migraine. I always hesitated before opening the doors, and when I did so today I felt so much more energy than the other times I've been to the hospital that I almost fell over. There were so many voices and so much intense energy my head was overcome with dizziness and pain. I fell to my knees in the entrance way, grasping my head and fighting a scream. Why were there so many spirits there? A nurse rushed over and asked me if I was all right. I nodded as she helped me up. I quickly asked where my mother was, and she directed me to the pediatrics ward. I bolted to the elevator, sighing in relief when the doors slid shut and my dizziness faded and my migraine slowly shifted back into a normal headache. I closed my eyes and let myself slide to the floor, relieved that the pediatrics center was on the seventh level.

"Hey, Mom." I said, finding her in a cancer patient's room. "Oh, hey, sweetie." She replied, her eyes fixed on the chart in her hands. Mom had long, brown, curly hair that almost fell to her waist. She always wore it up in a ponytail or a bun so it wouldn't get in her way. She had it done up in a messy bun with chopsticks holding it up. Her bangs fell in front of crystal blue eyes as she messed with the kid's IV's, then gestured for us to walk out into the waiting room. "Where's Dad?" I asked, sitting down next to my mom in the waiting room. My dad was a surgeon in the same hospital and was one of the best, most trusted surgeons in the place. "Dad lost a patient today." Mom said gravely. I gasped. This has got to be the first fatality in almost two weeks. "In fact, he lost several. There was a major car accident on the interstate and twelve people died so far. Four of them were your dad's patients, six of them were Dr. Carlson's, and two of them didn't make it to surgery. There are still seven of them waiting for surgery and one is in a coma. There are more on the way still." That explains all the energy. When someone dies and they don't move on right away, their soul expends unthinkable amounts of desperate energy. When someone like me walks into the room where all the energy is centered, it affects my physical condition drastically. "Where's Ben?" I asked, dying to get off this topic. "The playroom down the hall. Take him home with you, okay? I have to get back to work."

About twenty spirits followed me throughout the first floor. I couldn't carry Ben because the spirits' energy increased as they realized I could see them and making my dizziness so bad I could barely walk out the door without collapsing. Ben was my one and a half year old baby brother and spent most of his time at home with Mom or the sitter. When Mom gets called into work and the sitter can't come in, she takes him to work with her and lets him play in the baby playroom with the other babies who are admitted to the pediatrician ward.

Ben and I run into Jamie on the way home. More like, he runs into us, literally. He was running from his house, looking behind his shoulder. "Oh my god! I'm so sorry! Laura?" He asks, flustered. His face is sheet white and covered in sweat and tears. I set Ben down and take his hand. "Jamie, what's going on? Are you okay?" I ask. Ben starts crying. "Oh, baby, no. Don't start crying." I say soothingly, picking him up again. He buries his face in my shoulder. "Crazy things are going on in there, Laura. Fucking crazy things. I can't go back in there." Jamie shouted, running a hand through his sweaty hair. "Come with me." I tell him, taking his hand and leading him away from the house. "Where are we going?" He asks, looking back at the house. "My place. We need to talk."