September: Only What We Know
September: A Zak x Nick Fluff-Fic
Those Septembers had changed everything for the trio of paranormal investigators and their loved ones. From one investigation, comes tragedy. Another brings countless memories. And yet another makes the five of them regret what they’d started, the quest to find proof of life after death. But now those five know, there is such a thing as angels, and still others we recognize as demons.
It was early September, 2008. Zak Bagans, Nick Groff, and Aaron Goodwin were finally embarking on the wildest chase of their lives….simply to know the truth for the sake of the truth. Their chase was trying to capture evidence of the paranormal. But they weren’t alone, for each of them was dating someone or already married. That’s how they’d all met, actually. Zak had been a DJ prior to being a paranormal investigator, and he had DJ’d Nick’s wedding. They had started talking about their personal paranormal experiences, and soon wanted to go find proof for themselves. Nick knew Aaron, so he invited him to become their cameraman. And so the trio was established.
How the time passed away all the trouble that we gave
And all those days we spent out by the lake
Their first investigation took place at Bobby Mackey’s Music World, in Wilder, Kentucky. It was built on the shores of the north-flowing Licking River, and had formerly been a slaughter house, a nightclub and finally a honky-tonk bar which still stands today, where strange things continue. It was a place known for its history as much as the music that you hear there today. One female ghost is Pearl Bryan, a young pregnant woman that had been murdered by her boyfriend Scott Jackson and his friend Alonzo Walling. It is believed they cut off her head and threw it down the well (left behind from the days of the slaughterhouse) as a sacrifice to the Devil. Both men and Pearl are rumored to haunt Bobby Mackey’s today. The other female ghost is from the 1930’s. When it was the Latin Quarter, a girl named Johanna fell in love with one of the singers performing there. She became pregnant, and her father found out. Soon her father murdered the singer, whose name was Robert Randall. When Johanna found out, she poisoned her father and then herself, killing herself and her unborn child. Her father survived. But those were only legends, right? Wrong. The crew would find out that the ‘ghost’ stories were all too real, unfortunately.
Has it all gone to waste? All the promises we made, One by one they vanish just the same.
They’d all promised to stick together, no matter what. The trio as the brothers-in-arms against the undead or otherwise, the girls as their faithful counterparts. But one place would break those promised bonds, one by one. Bobby Mackey’s Music World. The boys been in the basement, investigating. Along with quite a few EVP’s of “I’m gonna kill Zak” the scariest and most startling EVP to the guys had been captured saying, “I’ma kill your wife”. But the only one that was married was Nick. Too bad nobody knew what was going to happen the next year.
Of all the things I still remember, Summer's never looked the same
The years go by and time just seems to fly, But the memories remain.
The boys and their girls built many memories during their investigations, some of which they’d never forget.
In the middle of September we'd still play out in the rain
Nothin’ to lose but everything to gain,
One memory had been filming in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. The crew had gone to investigate the Riddle House, in Yesteryear Village. They first consulted a physic to find the house’s original location, and ended up getting caught in a thunderstorm that lasted for only about two minutes. A split-second decision on the girls’ part led to the best kiss they’d ever shared with the boys, and by the end of it, they were all laughing, just enjoying being with each other.
Reflecting now on how things could've been It was worth it in the end
Well, at least at the time it was worth it. Zak, Nick and Aaron knew that. And so did the girls, following them wherever they went.
Now it all seems so clear, there's nothing left to fear
So we made our way by finding what was real
Zak and Nick at least had an idea of what waited for them on the other side of the veil; there was nothing left for them to fear after they died. Aaron, on the other hand, not so much. Nevertheless, the three continued investigating to find their way, by chasing what they knew was real. Until disaster struck.
Now the days are so long, that summer's moving on
For Nick, the days only got longer since that day in early September. On the anniversary of investigating at Bobby Mackey’s, tragedy struck close to home. Nick’s wife had been hit by a drunk driver while heading home for the night. She was in the hospital, and the doctor’s weren’t sure how long he’d be in critical condition or if she’d if pull through it. Nick had been at Zak’s, so when he heard, he and Zak rushed to the hospital. And Zak’s girlfriend had come along as well, because Nick’s wife was her best friend and was like a sister to her. When the three got there, all hell broke lose. Upon seeing his wife lying in that hospital bed, all the tubes and bandages scattered in and around her mangled body, Nick began to cry. Zak had never seen him like this, ever. So when the hour finally came when the doctors gave the news, (and it was bad…) Zak knew his best friend would never be the same.
We reach for something that's already gone, yeah
But Nick had known all along that while he’d been sitting next to her, holding his wife’s now-lifeless hand, he had been reaching for something that was already gone. And he had let it leave. But there was nothing he could’ve done to stop it. All he could do was try to focus on continuing to live life the way she’d want him to. But Nick didn’t know how.
Of all the things I still remember Summer's never looked the same
The years go by and time just seems to fly But the memories remain.
They buried her just over a week later, and at the service there’d been a picture slideshow of all the memories she and Nick had created. Nick knew that every summer would be different from now on, no more sharing an ice cream or walking along the hiking trails hand-in-hand. But he would always have the memories, Zak reminded him. So she’d never be completely gone.
In the middle of September we'd still play out in the rain
Nothing to lose but everything to gain
And as they lowered her casket in the ground, it began to rain. Nick was instantly reminded of that day in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. The thunderstorm, and the way she’d kissed him. Nick knew there really was nothing to lose…he’d already lost it. But now there was nothing to gain for it.
Reflecting now on how things could've been It was worth it in the end
Looking back, Nick tried to smile through the eulogies given by Zak, his father-in-law, and his wife’s sister. But when it was his turn, when Nick said, “I’ll miss you, and I’ll still love you forever,” his voice started to crack. Finishing his eulogy, he ran out to sit next to her headstone, where she lay beneath his feet. And started to cry, harder then he’d ever done before. Nick wasn’t aware he wasn’t alone, so when he realized Zak was sitting next to him, telling him ‘it’s alright’ and ‘let it out’ and not trying to calm him down, Nick actually smiled. He looked at Zak, who nodded, whispering, “C’mere”, and that one word said everything Nick needed to hear, because as a reaction to the invitation, he buried his head into his best friend’s shoulder and cried. And Zak held him, unaware he himself was tearing up. But not because Nick’s wife had been a good friend to him.
Zak was reacting to seeing Nick like this. They’d known each other so long; the bond between them was almost like they were twins. Aside from occasionally finishing each other’s sentences, they could always tell whenever something was wrong with the other. And that included reacting to each other’s feelings. So as Nick continued to cry, Zak found himself crying as well.
We knew we had to leave this town But we never knew when, and we never knew how
Zak and Aaron knew they needed to get Nick out of Vegas, away from the memories it held. But they didn’t really know how…until the girls helped them out. The boys tried to get Nick to take a break, he seemed dazed and often-times out of it lately. But again, nothing ever worked.
We would end up here the way we are Yeah we knew we had to leave this town
Until they all finally deiced to start investigating again, this time starting to film in December so the memories of the precious summers would be left undisturbed.
But we never knew when and we never knew how (never knew how)
Zak and Nick had deiced to chill and have a videogame night when they started talking about instigating again. Zak had tried to tell Nick they’d been invited to re-investigate at Bobby Mackey’s, but he ended up saying it in what he felt sounded like the wrong way, because he’d added an ‘I’m sorry.’ at the end of it. Nick stopped on the first step on the staircase when Zak had said ‘I’m sorry’, and turned to face him. Zak immediately noticed how Nick’s eyes didn’t seem to be showing any emotion, they were…calm, holding a steady, unbreakable determination within them.
“Zak, it’s not your fault, you don’t need to say you’re sorry. I knew we were taking risks when I started investigating with you and Aaron in Virginia City. It was only a matter of time until something really bad happened to one of us. In a way, I’m sort of glad it was me. Well, a part of me, anyways.”
“Nick, it should’ve been me. It’s my fault; I’m the one that started talking about ghosts in the first place. I just…feel so guilty about what you’ve had to go through. I feel like it should be me. It bugs me to see you like this, when you feel bad, I feel bad. Hell, when you sat by the headstone after the funeral and cried; I ended up crying, too! And then---” Nick cut him off.
“But Zak, that’s why it shouldn’t have been you. If you’d died instead of her….I don’t think I could deal with it. You’re my best friend. You’re the one that if I lost, I couldn’t continue. Don’t you get it?” Nick prompted, his voice firm in the attempt to get the message through Zak’s head.
“I get it, it’s just…it’s just I’m the same way. If I lost you…that’d be different then if I lost my girlfriend. If I lost her, sure I’d mourn, but I would move on. You, on the other hand…there’s just so much there…we’ve known each other so long, I think that if I actually did lose you, it’d damage me beyond repair.”
“So can we agree to say this is nobody’s fault and it was going to happen sooner or later to one of us?” Nick asked. Zak nodded, grinning like nothing had happened.
“I still think it’s my fault.” Nick sighed and rolled his eyes at his best friend, annoyed.
“But we just agreed that it wasn’t!” Zak laughed, a playfully spark shinning in his eyes, “You didn’t say we couldn’t agree to disagree.”
Of all the things I still remember Summer's never looked the same
Whenever Zak stole a glance at Nick, he knew a part of his best friend had gone missing forever. And although he knew it would never be recovered, Zak knew he could help Nick learn to live with the injury he’d sustained that day in the hospital.
The years go by and time just seems to fly But the memories remain.
So Zak and Aaron would help Nick recover, a little at a time.
In the middle of September we'd still play out in the rain
Nothing to lose but everything to gain
Between filming new episodes, keeping the girlfriends happy, and balancing everything else, Zak and Aaron’s jobs were pretty simple. But they also had one more title: best friend. And that posistion, both knew, had to be earned. It wasn’t something just given to you by someone you called a friend. You had to work for it.
Reflecting now on how things could've been It was worth it in the end
And the more Nick notices how Zak’s been there for him, the easier it’ll be to remember all the memories they’ve made, whether they’re good, or even if they’re bad. And there’s one thing Zak and Nick never will forget: They’ve each got a friend wishing to switch places when something goes wrong, and even when they can’t, they’ll still be there to help out. Just like the volunteers of the September 11th attacks, diving back into Ground Zero to find and help save more people. So maybe September isn’t all that bad after all, given Nick and Zak both know they’re there for each other, no matter what. So maybe everything the GAC’s gone through was worth it in the end.
Hey, yeah
It was early September, 2008. Zak Bagans, Nick Groff, and Aaron Goodwin were finally embarking on the wildest chase of their lives….simply to know the truth for the sake of the truth. Their chase was trying to capture evidence of the paranormal. But they weren’t alone, for each of them was dating someone or already married. That’s how they’d all met, actually. Zak had been a DJ prior to being a paranormal investigator, and he had DJ’d Nick’s wedding. They had started talking about their personal paranormal experiences, and soon wanted to go find proof for themselves. Nick knew Aaron, so he invited him to become their cameraman. And so the trio was established.
How the time passed away all the trouble that we gave
And all those days we spent out by the lake
Their first investigation took place at Bobby Mackey’s Music World, in Wilder, Kentucky. It was built on the shores of the north-flowing Licking River, and had formerly been a slaughter house, a nightclub and finally a honky-tonk bar which still stands today, where strange things continue. It was a place known for its history as much as the music that you hear there today. One female ghost is Pearl Bryan, a young pregnant woman that had been murdered by her boyfriend Scott Jackson and his friend Alonzo Walling. It is believed they cut off her head and threw it down the well (left behind from the days of the slaughterhouse) as a sacrifice to the Devil. Both men and Pearl are rumored to haunt Bobby Mackey’s today. The other female ghost is from the 1930’s. When it was the Latin Quarter, a girl named Johanna fell in love with one of the singers performing there. She became pregnant, and her father found out. Soon her father murdered the singer, whose name was Robert Randall. When Johanna found out, she poisoned her father and then herself, killing herself and her unborn child. Her father survived. But those were only legends, right? Wrong. The crew would find out that the ‘ghost’ stories were all too real, unfortunately.
Has it all gone to waste? All the promises we made, One by one they vanish just the same.
They’d all promised to stick together, no matter what. The trio as the brothers-in-arms against the undead or otherwise, the girls as their faithful counterparts. But one place would break those promised bonds, one by one. Bobby Mackey’s Music World. The boys been in the basement, investigating. Along with quite a few EVP’s of “I’m gonna kill Zak” the scariest and most startling EVP to the guys had been captured saying, “I’ma kill your wife”. But the only one that was married was Nick. Too bad nobody knew what was going to happen the next year.
Of all the things I still remember, Summer's never looked the same
The years go by and time just seems to fly, But the memories remain.
The boys and their girls built many memories during their investigations, some of which they’d never forget.
In the middle of September we'd still play out in the rain
Nothin’ to lose but everything to gain,
One memory had been filming in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. The crew had gone to investigate the Riddle House, in Yesteryear Village. They first consulted a physic to find the house’s original location, and ended up getting caught in a thunderstorm that lasted for only about two minutes. A split-second decision on the girls’ part led to the best kiss they’d ever shared with the boys, and by the end of it, they were all laughing, just enjoying being with each other.
Reflecting now on how things could've been It was worth it in the end
Well, at least at the time it was worth it. Zak, Nick and Aaron knew that. And so did the girls, following them wherever they went.
Now it all seems so clear, there's nothing left to fear
So we made our way by finding what was real
Zak and Nick at least had an idea of what waited for them on the other side of the veil; there was nothing left for them to fear after they died. Aaron, on the other hand, not so much. Nevertheless, the three continued investigating to find their way, by chasing what they knew was real. Until disaster struck.
Now the days are so long, that summer's moving on
For Nick, the days only got longer since that day in early September. On the anniversary of investigating at Bobby Mackey’s, tragedy struck close to home. Nick’s wife had been hit by a drunk driver while heading home for the night. She was in the hospital, and the doctor’s weren’t sure how long he’d be in critical condition or if she’d if pull through it. Nick had been at Zak’s, so when he heard, he and Zak rushed to the hospital. And Zak’s girlfriend had come along as well, because Nick’s wife was her best friend and was like a sister to her. When the three got there, all hell broke lose. Upon seeing his wife lying in that hospital bed, all the tubes and bandages scattered in and around her mangled body, Nick began to cry. Zak had never seen him like this, ever. So when the hour finally came when the doctors gave the news, (and it was bad…) Zak knew his best friend would never be the same.
We reach for something that's already gone, yeah
But Nick had known all along that while he’d been sitting next to her, holding his wife’s now-lifeless hand, he had been reaching for something that was already gone. And he had let it leave. But there was nothing he could’ve done to stop it. All he could do was try to focus on continuing to live life the way she’d want him to. But Nick didn’t know how.
Of all the things I still remember Summer's never looked the same
The years go by and time just seems to fly But the memories remain.
They buried her just over a week later, and at the service there’d been a picture slideshow of all the memories she and Nick had created. Nick knew that every summer would be different from now on, no more sharing an ice cream or walking along the hiking trails hand-in-hand. But he would always have the memories, Zak reminded him. So she’d never be completely gone.
In the middle of September we'd still play out in the rain
Nothing to lose but everything to gain
And as they lowered her casket in the ground, it began to rain. Nick was instantly reminded of that day in Royal Palm Beach, Florida. The thunderstorm, and the way she’d kissed him. Nick knew there really was nothing to lose…he’d already lost it. But now there was nothing to gain for it.
Reflecting now on how things could've been It was worth it in the end
Looking back, Nick tried to smile through the eulogies given by Zak, his father-in-law, and his wife’s sister. But when it was his turn, when Nick said, “I’ll miss you, and I’ll still love you forever,” his voice started to crack. Finishing his eulogy, he ran out to sit next to her headstone, where she lay beneath his feet. And started to cry, harder then he’d ever done before. Nick wasn’t aware he wasn’t alone, so when he realized Zak was sitting next to him, telling him ‘it’s alright’ and ‘let it out’ and not trying to calm him down, Nick actually smiled. He looked at Zak, who nodded, whispering, “C’mere”, and that one word said everything Nick needed to hear, because as a reaction to the invitation, he buried his head into his best friend’s shoulder and cried. And Zak held him, unaware he himself was tearing up. But not because Nick’s wife had been a good friend to him.
Zak was reacting to seeing Nick like this. They’d known each other so long; the bond between them was almost like they were twins. Aside from occasionally finishing each other’s sentences, they could always tell whenever something was wrong with the other. And that included reacting to each other’s feelings. So as Nick continued to cry, Zak found himself crying as well.
We knew we had to leave this town But we never knew when, and we never knew how
Zak and Aaron knew they needed to get Nick out of Vegas, away from the memories it held. But they didn’t really know how…until the girls helped them out. The boys tried to get Nick to take a break, he seemed dazed and often-times out of it lately. But again, nothing ever worked.
We would end up here the way we are Yeah we knew we had to leave this town
Until they all finally deiced to start investigating again, this time starting to film in December so the memories of the precious summers would be left undisturbed.
But we never knew when and we never knew how (never knew how)
Zak and Nick had deiced to chill and have a videogame night when they started talking about instigating again. Zak had tried to tell Nick they’d been invited to re-investigate at Bobby Mackey’s, but he ended up saying it in what he felt sounded like the wrong way, because he’d added an ‘I’m sorry.’ at the end of it. Nick stopped on the first step on the staircase when Zak had said ‘I’m sorry’, and turned to face him. Zak immediately noticed how Nick’s eyes didn’t seem to be showing any emotion, they were…calm, holding a steady, unbreakable determination within them.
“Zak, it’s not your fault, you don’t need to say you’re sorry. I knew we were taking risks when I started investigating with you and Aaron in Virginia City. It was only a matter of time until something really bad happened to one of us. In a way, I’m sort of glad it was me. Well, a part of me, anyways.”
“Nick, it should’ve been me. It’s my fault; I’m the one that started talking about ghosts in the first place. I just…feel so guilty about what you’ve had to go through. I feel like it should be me. It bugs me to see you like this, when you feel bad, I feel bad. Hell, when you sat by the headstone after the funeral and cried; I ended up crying, too! And then---” Nick cut him off.
“But Zak, that’s why it shouldn’t have been you. If you’d died instead of her….I don’t think I could deal with it. You’re my best friend. You’re the one that if I lost, I couldn’t continue. Don’t you get it?” Nick prompted, his voice firm in the attempt to get the message through Zak’s head.
“I get it, it’s just…it’s just I’m the same way. If I lost you…that’d be different then if I lost my girlfriend. If I lost her, sure I’d mourn, but I would move on. You, on the other hand…there’s just so much there…we’ve known each other so long, I think that if I actually did lose you, it’d damage me beyond repair.”
“So can we agree to say this is nobody’s fault and it was going to happen sooner or later to one of us?” Nick asked. Zak nodded, grinning like nothing had happened.
“I still think it’s my fault.” Nick sighed and rolled his eyes at his best friend, annoyed.
“But we just agreed that it wasn’t!” Zak laughed, a playfully spark shinning in his eyes, “You didn’t say we couldn’t agree to disagree.”
Of all the things I still remember Summer's never looked the same
Whenever Zak stole a glance at Nick, he knew a part of his best friend had gone missing forever. And although he knew it would never be recovered, Zak knew he could help Nick learn to live with the injury he’d sustained that day in the hospital.
The years go by and time just seems to fly But the memories remain.
So Zak and Aaron would help Nick recover, a little at a time.
In the middle of September we'd still play out in the rain
Nothing to lose but everything to gain
Between filming new episodes, keeping the girlfriends happy, and balancing everything else, Zak and Aaron’s jobs were pretty simple. But they also had one more title: best friend. And that posistion, both knew, had to be earned. It wasn’t something just given to you by someone you called a friend. You had to work for it.
Reflecting now on how things could've been It was worth it in the end
And the more Nick notices how Zak’s been there for him, the easier it’ll be to remember all the memories they’ve made, whether they’re good, or even if they’re bad. And there’s one thing Zak and Nick never will forget: They’ve each got a friend wishing to switch places when something goes wrong, and even when they can’t, they’ll still be there to help out. Just like the volunteers of the September 11th attacks, diving back into Ground Zero to find and help save more people. So maybe September isn’t all that bad after all, given Nick and Zak both know they’re there for each other, no matter what. So maybe everything the GAC’s gone through was worth it in the end.
Hey, yeah
♠ ♠ ♠
* I don't own lyrics or the GAC boys*