Chapter 1

[Present]

"Alyx, it's time for you to wake up!" I groaned, rolling over to the other side away from Hayley. Hayley responded by ripping the bedsheets off of me.

"Hayley, stop! Just let me sleep." I hurriedly grabbed the blankets pulling them over me to keep me warm. I started to fall back asleep, but right before I fully succumbed to the blissful state, I became completely drenched in cold water!

"Hayley! I swear if you weren't already dead, I would probably kill you myself!" Hayley scoffed in response.

"Whatever. You told me to make sure you got to your classes on time by any means necessary. It's not my fault I had to resort to extreme measures." I screamed out, annoyed, and threw my pillow at her. It didn't have any effect seeing as it just went right through her.

"Oh, I can't stand you! Leave so I can get dressed." Hayley disappeared in the blink of an eye.

I begrudgingly got out of bed and hopped in the shower warming myself awake. I was a peculiar person. Being hot made me wide awake, while being cold made me tired. I guess that's not the weirdest thing about me, though. Maybe it was being able to see and speak to ghosts, or maybe it was because my best friend, and really my only friend for that matter, happened to be a ghost. Regardless, this was my normal, and I wouldn't change it for the world.

I got out and immediately got to work to get the rest of the way ready. It didn't take long before I was back in the bathroom, looking at myself in the mirror. I didn't do it often because many of my features reminded me of him—my dad.

My full lips, my tanned skin that always looked like it was kissed by the sun herself, even part of my eyes was his. On the very outer ring of my eyes was a piercing grey like my mother's, but the middle and majority of my eyes were the same calming green as my father's. I sighed and dropped my head, looking away from my reflection. After 18 years, it still hasn't gotten any easier. I was only 4 years old when my dad left for work and never returned.

"Hey, it's going to be okay. We know that he's moved on and safe." I sighed and looked over to Hayley feeling the sensation of her hand on my shoulder. I gave her a small smile and nodded, letting her lead me out of the bathroom and my depressing thoughts.

"I'm so ready for college to be over. It's my last semester, and I am so happy!" I let myself fall back on my bed.

"No, no. Alyx, get up, or you're going to be late." Hayley had her arms crossed while giving me a disapproving look.

"Whatever, mom. Let's go." I rolled my eyes as I got off the bed. I grabbed my keys and made my way out of my apartment. I was locking the door as Hayley made her way through the door.

"Why do you always have to go through my door? Can't you just walk out with me?" Hayley flipped her black hair over her shoulder and rolled her amber eyes at me.

"I'm a ghost, Alyx. Walking through doors and walls is kind of my thing." I huffed and turned to make my way down the stairs.

"Speaking of moms. Have you talked to yours recently?" I picked up my pace, going down the stairs.

"You can't escape me or this conversation Alyx Malia Kennedy." I groaned out and opened my door, getting inside my car.

"Whatever, Hayley Lynn Beckett." I rolled my eyes, pealing out of my covered parking space.

"Okay, no need to drive crazy. I already know the answer. You should call your mom." I was still picking up speed and passed a person.

"Alyx! Stop." I felt my car start to slow down on its own, well, thanks to Hayley. I took a deep breath and started driving normally and not like a maniac.

"Fine. I'll call her after school." Hayley hummed.

"I'll hold you to that. You need to stop shutting out your mom." I gripped my steering wheel.

"She shut me out first." I heard Hayley let out a sigh.

"Alyx... You nor your mom have tomorrow promised. Don't hold a grudge that you could end up regretting." My anger immediately deflated.

"You're right. I'll call her, but I can't promise that she and I are going to magically be close again." Silence took over the rest of the car ride, which I welcomed happily.

I didn't have to take very many classes for my last semester, thankfully. I made sure to take a few classes over a couple of summers to make sure of this. I knew my lazy self would have a bad case of senioritis and not want to do anything.

"Thank god, finally my last class," I said to Hayley but made it seem like I was talking to myself. I've become very good at making it seem like I wasn't talking to an invisible person and being perceived as a crazy person. Yet, the amount I talk to myself, they probably think I'm crazy anyway. As I walked into my class that mainly focused on the supernatural, my professor waved and smiled at me. She was a little goofy, but she was the best professor I've ever had.

"Hey, Professor Knox!" I waved back.

"Hey there, Alyx, good to see you again!" She went back to getting ready for class, and I made my way to my seat in the lecture hall's front left corner. I always left a space to the right of me next to the wall for Hayley. I always put all my other course material on the desk to ensure no one sat there, but no one really sat close to me anyway.

"Alright, class! Today's topic is fun and exciting!" I chuckled at this, as did the whole class. She calls every topic fun and exciting.

"Ghosts... Are they real, or are they just a tale of fiction? Please give me an explanation of your answer. Henry! What do you think?" She always randomly called on people. Honestly, it was a good way to make sure people paid attention.

"Personally, no, I'm a skeptic. I've never experienced them or seen them." I scoffed at his response. Not because I'm some skeptic hater, but because this guy is hugely religious. One, I don't know why he is even in this class, and two, he believes in a person he's never seen before. It's just a little hypocritical. Okay, fine, I don't like the guy. I've never liked him even when we were younger. He was one of the people who made fun of me growing up. Much to my unfortunate luck, he ended up at the same college as me.

"Alyx! I see you disagree. Why?" I sat up straight and felt my face heat up.

"Umm... Well, for me, I've definitely had encounters with ghosts." I said nervously.

"I bet you have freak," Henry said aloud, earning a couple of chuckles. I snapped my head up towards him. If looks could kill, he'd drop right then and there. My nervous exterior completely dissolved at this point.

"However, even if I hadn't, I would most likely still be a believer. I'm not some hypocrite. You know, like Henry up there who believes in a God who he cannot see nor hear, yet believes in him." I then looked at him straight into the eyes.

"I guess you're the pot calling the kettle black." I saw his jaw tighten, and he was about to respond before the professor interjected.

"Enough. Let's get on with the lesson." Henry mouthed, "Fuck you," and I just laughed and flipped him off. Some Christian he is. Don't worry; I don't think anyone who's religious are freaks. Whatever you believe in, you have every right, and I'll respect you. I just think he is a freak. Well, actually, freak would be a compliment. I could think of a few choice words to describe him, but I won't waste my time going there.

The lecture was very intriguing, especially since it covered mediums, which is what I am. I've been this way my whole life. I've talked to many dead people, ghosts, paranormal beings, whatever you want to refer to them as. For me, I just refer to them as the departed. It seems less abrasive as saying dead and not as posh as saying lamented. Regardless I have been in contact with the departed my whole life; I've helped many of them contact relatives, find peace, and eventually move on. While the departed always come and go, none ever really sticking around long, I couldn't say the same for Hayley.

The rest of the school day went just fine—honestly, same thing, different day. I was glad I lived close to campus. Getting into my house was truly a relief. I got changed into some comfy clothes and started on my homework. I knew if I didn't do it now, I wouldn't do it later. Hayley always helped; of course, I'm smart, but she's a genius.

I was super confused as she grew up with me. I never knew ghosts to grow up, but when I was older, she explained that she took the form of her younger self to connect with me better. She said that it was like this energy flowed through her when she saw me, and instinctually she knew never to leave my side.

"You were what my age when you died, right?" She hummed.

"The answer is The Lochness monster, and yes, I was 22 when I died." She died sometime in the '80s.

"Do you think you'll ever remember how you died?" She looked up at me and sighed.

"I don't know, and I don't know if I want to either. Maybe I don't remember for a reason." I was always too curious for my own good. I know I would want to know how I died, no matter what. Just as I finished my homework, I heard my phone ringing. I looked at the caller ID and what would you know, it's my mom.

"Hey, momma! I was just about to call you." She hummed.

"I bet. Listen, sweetie, can you please come home over break and go through your things and everything your father left you?" I sighed. Hayley looked at me with empathy in her eyes.

"Yeah, mom, I'll come home next week." Hayley came up and drew small circles into my back with her hand.

"Thank you. I'll see you, then love you!" She hung up the phone right after.

"I love you too, mom," I said into my phone to no one. I sighed and looked at Hayley.

"This is going to be just amazing," I said, sitting down and turning on the tv.

"Don't worry; I'll be right there." That definitely made me feel better. I don't know what I would do without her.

"Breaking news! 15-year-old, Eva Denning, is still missing. We are a week into our search; if anyone has any information about her whereabouts or have seen her contact the authorities immediately." The news had my full attention.

"That's so sad. 15-years-old... I hope they find her." Hayley voiced out loud, sounding absent-minded.

"Yeah, me too. Wait, that's in Greensville! Wow..." I felt my mind drifting away too. That's my hometown. Nothing like that has ever happened in our small town. I really hope she's found and fast, but I have this nagging feeling that it won't be alive if she is found.