Seeing Ghosts

The last day of school had finally arrived. It had dawned very bright indeed, as these days you look forward to most tend to. I woke up before my alarm and threaded strands of yellow into my hair, to symbolize my happiness at the arrival of summer. I examined the effect in the mirror of the bathroom and smiled to myself.

I was glad that I could still find things like the last day of school enjoyable. My life was going to get a lot scarier, I’d accepted that. But at least I wouldn’t let it destroy my life completely. I’d find a way to live with it, for the sake of my friends and family. I mean, what kind of person would I be if I just tossed aside everything that I’ve been my whole life because of this clairvoyant thing? I’d just have to keep it to myself, for now. Only Corrine would know any the wiser and she’d promised not to say anything.

I went downstairs to eat breakfast and watch TV before Ria came to pick me up. I turned on the TV and started looking for something to watch. When I flicked to the Sci-Fi channel, I paused. Star Wars was on. I just laughed and left it on, only half paying attention to Luke Skywalker’s epic fight against Darth Vader as I ate my cereal. It didn’t surprise me to see the figure of a witty twelve-year-old begin to appear in the big chair in front of the TV that John usually took.

“You know this scene was listed as one of the most intense in all movie history?” Aaron said, conversationally.

“I’ll bet,” I said, still eating breakfast. I didn’t mind talking to him when there was nobody in the room to hear me apparently talking to myself. “Geez, were you a Trekkie when you were alive, too?”

Aaron’s semitransparent face snapped over in my direction. “I am NOT a Trekkie! I am a WARSIE! Big, big difference!”

“Ex-cuse me,” I said, giggling. “I’m sorry if my nerd-lingo is lacking.”

“You’re spared,” said Aaron, turning his attention back to the TV. “There’s nothing like the old Star Wars movies. The new ones are good but…they’re just not the same, y’know?”

“The new ones?”

“Yeah. Episodes I, II, and III.”

“How can you know about those? They came out way after you died!”

Aaron bit his lip. “Well…I, um, may have Recreated in a movie theater every now and again.”

“You go to movies!?”

“I don’t know if you’d get this, Gina, but there’s not a whole lot to do when you’re dead.”

“So when you’re not roaming around looking for Entities, you spend your spare time haunting movie theaters?”

“It’s not just me. Why do you think it’s always so cold in movie theaters?”

That almost made me choke on a Frosted Flake. I’d never look at movie theaters the same way again.

There was suddenly a loud honk and a bright yellow bus appeared just outside our house. Maggie’s school bus had arrived. I stood up from the table. “Maggie!” I called for her. “Maggie! Your bus is here!”

Maggie came running down, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. “Last day of school!” she cried, happily. “Gina, are you and your friend going to have fun in school today too? We’re having a class party!”

“Sounds like fun,” I told her, hugging her goodbye. “You have a good time, okay? I’ll see you this afternoon.”

“Will your friend be there?”

“Yeah, Ria will probably be there.”

Maggie opened her mouth to say something, but the bus honked again.

“You’d better go,” I said, giving her a soft swat on the back.

“Okay,” said Maggie as she opened the door to leave. “Bye-bye Gina!” she cried and then she turned away from me and stared at the chair by the TV where the figure of a boy could still sat.

“Bye-bye Gina’s friend!”

And with that, my little sister left the house.