Gone Isn't Forever

I couldn’t fall asleep that night. So many questions were stirred up in my head. I lay there, curled up against Arin, freaked out about what I had seen and heard. That creepy lullaby that woman was singing… What the hell was that about? The words kept playing over and over again in my ears.

I kept thinking about Jimmy and the call Johnny received from him. How was he able to do that, and who the hell were the Ale? I couldn’t figure it out. It looked like I needed to find an old library at one of these stops on the tour to do some research. It was obviously something celestial; otherwise Jimmy wouldn’t have called from the other side to warn me of them. That was what scared me the most. If he put that much energy into contacting me without communicating in person, there was something significantly wrong. But why hadn’t he just come to tell me that in person? Was he angry with me? I decided it didn’t matter, considering I damn sure was pissed at him. He just up and left me, leaving me in the dark about where or why.

The next morning I dozed off for a little while and awoke to an absent Arin and very solid Jimmy sitting at the edge of my bed. What the fuck was going on?

“Jimmy? Well what the fuck?! You leave me for several weeks and return as a real boy? When did you go all Pinnochio on me?” I was not happy with him. I had to be dreaming. This was some witchery shit right here.

“I got a deal cut out for me alright. It’s not permanent, but it will help us when we face the Ala.” He told me, completely ignoring the fact that I was giving him a hard time.

“Who are the Ale?” I questioned.

“The question isn’t who they are, it’s who sent them. The Ala is a female demon that can be quite dangerous. They typically enjoy feasting on children. My sources tell me that since Kirsten is pregnant, this Ala is going to be terrorizing her and her loved ones until her meal comes out of the oven. They love fresh babies. That was the incentive to make your lives miserable. I believe it has to do with me.” He replied. That just confused the crap out of me.

“Whoa, whoa, wait… we have a baby eating demon coming to fuck us up?” I about flipped my shit. I didn’t do well with ghosts, much less demons. “And why would it have anything to do with you?”

“Accentually, yes. Because I technically broke a rule. I escaped my fate. Remember how I told you I was supposed to go to hell and God gave me a second chance that I didn’t really deserve? There are some beings in the underworld that are pissed off about it. They may be trying to fuck my chances at a spot in heaven. Because if I fail you and those you love, I lose my position as an angel.” He attempted to explain further. My mind was all scrambled from intake of too much bizarre information. At this point, my head was beginning to hurt.

Suddenly I remembered how Kirsten had left yesterday and never came back. It dawned on me that she may be in some trouble if what Jimmy was saying was true.

“Jimmy, can you find Kirsten? Can you lead me to her?” I turned to Jimmy with a frantic gesture. He looked a little taken aback by my outburst and his eyes broke my gaze. He remained silent.

“Jimmy… what is it?” I asked him once he did not answer my question.

“I could…But it would take a lot out of me. The presence of the Ala may interfere with my search receptions. I’m not sure how accurate my findings will be. And with the Ala running around, being able to transform herself into any creature she deems appropriate for her entails, we may run into some trouble for the physical part of the quest.” He replied finally, his eyes cast down the entire time. This was serious. My friend could be in some real trouble here, and I could be her only hope.

“Well… we have to try, don’t we?” I asked Jimmy, reaching over to take his very solid, warm, flesh like hand in mine. He felt so real. It was almost impossible to contain myself. It was unnatural, yet it felt like a dream come true. All I ever wanted… was to be with him. Even with Kirsten’s life in jeopardy, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking that maybe I could be. At least for a little while…

Jimmy stared down at our hands for the longest time. I wondered if he could read my thoughts, and capture my feelings as he had all those times before. I had been getting closer to Arin, that was true… but what I felt for Jimmy, I didn’t have with Arin. It was so hard not to think about Jimmy having this new physical body. I knew it wasn’t a long term thing, but if I could be with Jimmy, even for just a few hours…

“No!” Jimmy burst out and yanking his hand out of mine, he stood up fast. “Stop it Melinda! You fucking know I would jump at the chance to be with you… But I can’t. I just can’t Mell. It’s not fair to you, and it’s forbidden. The dead can’t dwell among the living, building a life with that person when all life has left them. You say you don’t care? That as long as you have a night, or a few hours, or mere minutes to ‘be’ with me, you would with no questions asked? That’s insanity Melinda! This love you feel for me… it has to go away. We can’t-“ he trailed off and looked down at the ground, his hands receding into fists. He drew in a deep breath and closed his crystal blue disguise for a few seconds, then he turned his gaze back on me. “I can’t do this anymore Melinda. I thought if I left… perhaps you would find that you fancy Arin and forget about the love we’re not meant to share.”

“The love we’re not meant to share? What the hell is that supposed to mean? ” I could feel my heart breaking, as if someone had ripped into my chest and was squeezing it until it popped and left me to bleed out. I didn’t notice the moisture welling up in my eyes until Jimmy’s expression softened and he looked away, afraid to see me so upset.

“Melinda I… I just didn’t want-“ he began, until I cut him off.

“And you left me to try to push me into another guy’s arms?! As if I could just forget about you, as if I could forget this connection that wakes up every fiber of my soul? Because it’s that easy, isn’t it?” I raised my voice at him, not even caring who may be around to hear me yelling at a wall. Shit, I didn’t even know if I was the only one who could see him anymore. Jo saw him, why couldn’t everyone else. I guess I just wasn’t as special as he made me feel.

“Melinda, I’m sorry. Maybe this was a mistake…” he replied, with stain in his voice.

“What was a mistake?” I lowered my voice, my heart aching and my stomach churning.

“Maybe I chose the wrong person from the cemetery.” He spoke the words, but I couldn’t believe he had. It was as if the sentence was empty, as if he didn’t even believe the words he had spoken.

“Why would you… How could you even say… Well I guess that’s just it then! Go find yourself someone who’s actually worthy of your fuckin’ praise, your high ass! Maybe this time you can actually find someone who is immune to your spell, you jerk! Go ahead and leave then! See if I care! Maybe you should’ve just left me in my safe haven of independence and job hunting. I don’t mind being less fortunate, at least I’d be free of a demon called love!” I blew up. I couldn’t contain my hurt anymore. He had done this to me, and I didn’t look forward to picking up the pieces when he left.

At that moment a flash of lightening accompanied by a loud clap of thunder introduced itself. The lights flickered and then we were left in the dark. I hadn’t noticed that there was another storm rolling in. It had been non-stop thunderstorms ever since I heard that creepy lullaby.

Jimmy reached out to touch me and I pulled away from him.

“Don’t. Touch. Me.” I hissed.

“But Melinda I-“ he started and I cut in.

“Just go back to your cold, dark, earthy grave and stop torturing me!” I shouted at him before turning to bolt out the door. It was pouring once I exited the tour bus. I was wearing my Gir hoodie, so I put my hood up and ran to nowhere in particular. I went as far and as fast as my short legs could carry me. I didn’t know where I was going, nor did I care. I just wanted nothing other than to get away from Jimmy as fast as humanly possible. It bugged the hell out of me to know that if he wanted to, he could just pop up wherever I was.

I needed to focus on finding Kirsten and her now pregnant self. It was a little difficult, considering my mind was little occupied processing these overwhelming emotions. I just hoped she hadn’t done anything rash, considering the condition she was in when she left. Before I could finish my thoughts on Kirsten, I was interrupted.

The rain beaded down on my face, since the hood had slid back and gotten soaked and it was no longer useful in keeping any part of me dry. The wind slapped my cold, wet, dripping hair in my face and I was soaked head to toe. The sky was clouded and the world around me was grey. I couldn’t distinguish the rain drops on my skin from the tears that ran down my cheeks.

Not paying attention to where I was going, I slammed full speed into something, or somebody so hard that I ended up with my back on the ground and my feet in the air. I remember feeling very confused and whoosie. The last thing I saw before all of my senses died and my world changed from grey to black was a pair some quite familiar eyes staring down at me.