12- Isn't It Over?

As the wick burns, sparks fly around the library. The candle light was luminous in the dark, it looked like someone was casting spells. The worries fade away, and I didn't feel scared anymore. "I think it's over," Dane said.

Looking over, I notice Leo standing in the doorway. I knew he couldn't have been bad, I could tell he regretted scaring me.

"It's okay," I say, smiling at him. Leo turns back into his spirit form, smiling back at me. "I didn't mean to scare you, I was just protecting you. My demon form is the only way I can." I nod my head, "I trust you." Leo waves before disappearing down the hall, he must've had unfinished business to tend to.

I fell asleep in the living room, Dane stayed to make sure we were safe. I was iffy about sleeping by myself after what happened, what if someone was in there, waiting for me?

"Nicole, let's go for a walk." Dane says, taking me to the garden. We admired all the new plants Lilac grew, how beautiful they truly were. He talked about our childhood memories, how we've always seen things nobody could explain.

Sitting down by the pond, we both took a deep breath. "I declare a stress free night. We'll watch movies and eat popcorn, deal?" Without a doubt I wanted that. "Deal," I grinned, enjoying my brothers company. We stayed at the pond for the rest of the afternoon, and into dusk, talking about our dreams.

The night was still, the moon as bright as the stars above. As I lay Nate down for bed, he smiled. "Thank you for letting me sleep in your room again, I'll go back to mine tomorrow, I promise." He rolls over, watching the fireplace, peacefully drifting to sleep. Quietly closing the door, I walk out and see popcorn on the table. "Ready for our movie night?" Dane smiles, handing me a bowl. "What are we going to watch?" I ask, getting comfy on the couch.

"From the look of it, we're watching a Chick Flick." I giggle softly, "Why?" He starts going through all the channels, going back to the same movie again. "It's all horror, unless you wanted to watch that?" I nod my head, "nope. Chick Flick it is." We sit through most of the movie before falling asleep, I wished I didn't.

"My throat hurts, Nicole." I put my hand on his forehead, he had a fever. Grabbing the cough syrup, I give him some. "Here," I put Nate's favorite TV show on, "just relax, buddy." He smiles at me, curling up in his blanket. Coming back from the shower, Nate looked worse than before. He was pale, and still had a high fever. Putting an ice pack on his head, he smiles at me. "Thank you, Sissy." I kiss his cheek, then go to find mom.

"Mom, Nate's not doing well, I think we should take him to the doctor." Mom nods her head, "if his fever gets any worse, we'll take him." Grabbing moms hand, she was as cold as death, and pale like Nate. "Mom?" She looks my way, her smile creeping me out. Grinning at her, I start walking backwards toward the office. "Dad," I yell down the hallway. "Nate and mom are really sick, will you go check on them?" Dad shuts his laptop, "Nate is sick all the time, mom probably caught a bug."

Walking into the office, he was as sick as mom. As dad stood up from his chair, my heart started to pound. He had a look on his face I would never forget, a terrifying smile like the devil. Turning back, mom was standing in the doorway. She had a bottle in her hand, it had a skull on the label. "You look ill, let's get you some medicine. Mom put her cold hand on my shoulder, breathing deeply in my ear.

Pushing mom out of the way, I run to Nate. Caressing him in my arms, I shut us in my bedroom. "Don't worry, we'll be okay." I say, tucking Nate under the blankets. "Nicole, are you okay?" I heard Dane outside the door. "We're safe, hurry in." Dane slams the door behind him, locking it.

"Dane, what's going on?" I ask, shaking like a leaf. He turns away, "I don't know, but I'm here." As he turns back to me, his eyes were pitch black. A machete hangs from his side, blood dripping from the end. Shielding Nate from what I was seeing, I close my eyes, trying to hold back the tears.

Dane lunges at me, the knife pierced my skin briskly. As I look down at Nate, his eyes turn dark red. Sitting up, he pushes the machete completely through my chest.

Screaming for help, I start to lose consciousness. My body was numb, and my voice was was becoming weaker. "Goodnight, Nicole." Dane and Nate say together, twisting the knife.

"Hey!" Dane yells, waking me up. Sweat dripped down my forehead, goosebumps covered my arms. "It's just another nightmare, take a deep breath and tell me about it." In detail, I tell him about my dream. "That's really messed up," he says, shaking. I nod my head, thinking the same thing.

Hopping off the couch, I make my way into the kitchen. It was a disaster, dirty dishes laid out everywhere, boxes not put back in the pantry. I felt like pulling my hair out, how did it get this way? Grabbing a trash bag, I start throwing away all the plastic cups. "Want to help me clean up?" I yell for Dane, he stands in the hall. "There's nothing else to do in here anyway," Dane shrugs his shoulders, picking up trash from the floor.

"This isn't fun without music," Dane sticks his tongue out, blasting rap through his speaker. It helped us both get in the cleaning mood, we were finished in no time at all. "I'll cook breakfast, my treat." Dane rubs his hands together, "will you make bacon dippers?" He asks, I playfully roll my eyes, knowing he'd request that. Grabbing a box of pancake mix, and bacon from the fridge, I start cooking. "Wanna start on the chocolate sauce?" I ask, mixing the batter. He nods, "I'll try my best."

Mom walks through the door, I could tell she wasn't feeling well. "Are you okay?" I sat her down at the table, handing her a glass of water. She nods, taking small sips. "Come with me," I follow her into the bathroom. She pulls out a pregnancy test from her purse, handing it to me. "I think I might be pregnant." I grin at her, handing the test back. "I'll be right outside the door, just breathe." I say, shutting the door behind me. When she finishes taking the test, mom opens the door. "I haven't looked at it yet, will you tell me?"

Standing next to the counter, I was nervous to look down. What if it was negative? She would be crushed. Forcing my eyes to look, my jaw drops. "Mom, you're pregnant!" I yelled, hugging her. Moms eyes widened, tears fell down her chin. "I can't believe it," she smiles, holding her belly.

"I have to tell your dad, but I don't want to do it alone." I nod my head, knowing exactly how she feels. "Come on, let's go tell him together."

"Hello, dad." I say awkwardly, mom shoots me a look. "Hey, guys. Is this an interrogation?" We all giggle, "mom has something important to tell you." Mom hands dad the pregnancy test, "I'm pregnant." Dads jaw drops, he hugs her tightly. "Really!?" He smiles, "that's fantastic!" His face lit up, he was happy.

Letting mom and dad have some alone time, I sit down and watch TV. The thought of having another brother or sister made my stomach jump, I was nervous, yet excited. Finishing my episode, I walk upstairs to take a shower.

Letting the water run down my back, all the stress disappeared. The steam felt nice, like a blanket on a cold day.

Wrapping up in a towel, I walk into my room to find something on the bed. A doll lays there, she looked exactly like me. It was weird getting dressed with her sitting on the bed, she had an evil smile. Picking up the doll, I take it to mom. "Is this some kind of joke?" I hold the doll in moms face, shaking my head. "Joke? I've never seen that thing before, where'd you get it?" She asked, just as confused as I was.

I shrug my shoulders, "it was just sitting on my bed." Mom takes the doll from me, "I'll just set it here." She says, putting it on the counter. As I looked at it, the doll just got creepier. Her blue eyes were wide open, just staring at me. Nate walks into the kitchen, he sees the doll. "Sissy, it's you!" I grin at him, patting his head. "Did you leave her in my room?" I point at the doll, he nods his head. "No." I wondered who was responsible for this, who was trying to scare me.

Nate and I walk back upstairs, immediately looking at each other as we look at my bed. "How?" We both ask, confused. I left the doll downstairs, how did it get back in my room? "Can I have her, Sissy? I think she might just want a friend." As much as I wanted to tell him no, I couldn't. He really liked her, and maybe that's why she followed us.

"Sure, Nate." I hand him the doll, he runs off to his room. It was puzzling, seeing the doll in the first place. Why would an exact replica randomly appear out of nowhere? I knew it had to be a spirit, I guess the candle didn't work like we thought it would. I wanted to keep my mind off of her for a while, an idea popped into my head.

Pulling out my sewing machine, I thought about what to do. I've been practicing lately, making small pillows and little clothes for the kids toys. As I pull a piece of clothing out of the closet, an idea popped into my head. I wanted to make a toy for Nate, something from the heart.

Putting the finishing touches on the toy, I go and find Nate. He was holding the doll in his arms, her face expressionless. "Nate, will you come with me?" He nods his head, setting the doll on his dresser. "What's up, sissy?" I bend down on a knee, "I have something for you. She's a little different, rough around the stitches."

Nate nods his head, understanding she might not look the cutest. Grabbing the stuffed animal off the counter, I show Nate. "This is Fuzzy the sloth." Holding Fuzzy in front of him, he smiles at me. "I think she's perfect in her own way, I would never think differently of her." I hugged him closely, thankful he was so kind and doesn't judge by the way you look.

After Nate put Fuzzy on his bed, he came back with my replica in his hands.

"Does this doll talk to you?" He smiles, looking down at her. "She's funny, her name is Grace." Looking at Nate, I bend down next to him. Can you set her on the couch for a second?" I ask nicely, he nods and brings her in the livingroom.

"I'm going to get her to talk to me, find out what she wants." I say, hoping Nate would understand. "Okay, I'll go play in my room while you guys talk." He runs off to play with Fuzzy while I start a conversation with Grace.