feeling I had starts to ebb. I purse my lips and wonder if Luke is grouping me with all the other nuts who come here for help. “You know, I should go. I didn’t want to bother you, I just …”
I start to rise and he puts a hand on my arm, sending an electric shock through me. “Don’t go. I didn’t mean to make you feel like I didn’t want you here. I’m actually really glad you came.”
“You can read minds too?”
He gently tugs on my arm and I sit down again. “Not exactly, but with someone like you, I can get a general sense of how they’re feeling.”
“Someone like me?”
“Someone who sees ghosts. People who are closed to that plane of existence are really hard to read, but you’re pretty transparent—no pun intended—and when I met you in the costume room, it wasn’t hard to pick up on the fact that you were terrified.”
I picture the girl lying on the forest floor and nod. “When Remy came to me in that room she showed me something—something really horrible. And ever since, she’s been popping up more and more, and freaking out, and I don’t know why or what to do.”
He takes my hand, and a warm, prickling sensation runs through me. I think of Ryan and feel guilty for a second until I remind myself that this is just business to Luke. I let the feeling of calm radiate from his hand and know he’s doing what Nona did—taking away my pain. I know it isn’t fair to dump this on him, but it feels so good to be free from the pain for a while.
“What did she show you?” he whispers. “Picture it so I can see it too—take in all of the details.”
He takes my other hand and leans in closer to me, making me catch my breath for a second. I feel connected and close to him. I close my eyes. I see the girl and force myself to really look at her. Her outfit is different from anything that was on the rack in the costume room. The blouse, soaked in blood, is very detailed with eyelet trim and embroidered flowers across the top edge, instead of the garish red satin trim on the costumes.
Part of the blouse is unlaced and pulled aside to expose the jagged hole in her chest. I quickly move up to her face and gasp for a second, thinking it’s me, but it’s just a girl with dark hair like mine. The pale skin on her cheeks is spattered with blood, and her lips are parted—with more blood trickling down from one corner. Her blue eyes stare blankly up at the sky. I look away from her face and see the leaves and dirt of the forest floor marked with crimson.
I shake my head to erase the image and push up from the bench to stand at the rail of the gazebo. Tears sting my eyes as I look out on the gardens, trying to fill my mind with images of flowers instead of the dead girl’s stare. “ Why would Remy show me that ?”
The bench creaks, and Luke stands next to me, exhaling loudly. “Wow. That was the last thing I was expecting. I’ve seen some pretty weird stuff before, but …”
“I probably should’ve warned you.”
“Yeah, a little heads-up might’ve been nice. I gotta say, I’m surprised how well you’re keeping it together. I would’ve figured something like that might have you a little more freaked out.”
My eyes follow a butterfly flitting around in front of us, and I shrug. “Telling myself everything’s A-OK—no matter how freaky it gets—has been my mantra since Remy came back just after the accident. She was lying in her bed right next to mine, singing.
“For a second I thought the crash was just a dream and Remy was still alive and my dad wasn’t in the hospital. I was so happy, I called out for my parents. Only, my mom came in alone . She turned on my lights, and that’s when I found out I could see through Remy—and my mom couldn’t see her at all. My mom kept telling me I was dreaming and to wake up, but I still remember she looked at me like I was crazy when I insisted Remy was in her bed.
“After that, plus some forced therapy, I got used to pretending
I start to rise and he puts a hand on my arm, sending an electric shock through me. “Don’t go. I didn’t mean to make you feel like I didn’t want you here. I’m actually really glad you came.”
“You can read minds too?”
He gently tugs on my arm and I sit down again. “Not exactly, but with someone like you, I can get a general sense of how they’re feeling.”
“Someone like me?”
“Someone who sees ghosts. People who are closed to that plane of existence are really hard to read, but you’re pretty transparent—no pun intended—and when I met you in the costume room, it wasn’t hard to pick up on the fact that you were terrified.”
I picture the girl lying on the forest floor and nod. “When Remy came to me in that room she showed me something—something really horrible. And ever since, she’s been popping up more and more, and freaking out, and I don’t know why or what to do.”
He takes my hand, and a warm, prickling sensation runs through me. I think of Ryan and feel guilty for a second until I remind myself that this is just business to Luke. I let the feeling of calm radiate from his hand and know he’s doing what Nona did—taking away my pain. I know it isn’t fair to dump this on him, but it feels so good to be free from the pain for a while.
“What did she show you?” he whispers. “Picture it so I can see it too—take in all of the details.”
He takes my other hand and leans in closer to me, making me catch my breath for a second. I feel connected and close to him. I close my eyes. I see the girl and force myself to really look at her. Her outfit is different from anything that was on the rack in the costume room. The blouse, soaked in blood, is very detailed with eyelet trim and embroidered flowers across the top edge, instead of the garish red satin trim on the costumes.
Part of the blouse is unlaced and pulled aside to expose the jagged hole in her chest. I quickly move up to her face and gasp for a second, thinking it’s me, but it’s just a girl with dark hair like mine. The pale skin on her cheeks is spattered with blood, and her lips are parted—with more blood trickling down from one corner. Her blue eyes stare blankly up at the sky. I look away from her face and see the leaves and dirt of the forest floor marked with crimson.
I shake my head to erase the image and push up from the bench to stand at the rail of the gazebo. Tears sting my eyes as I look out on the gardens, trying to fill my mind with images of flowers instead of the dead girl’s stare. “ Why would Remy show me that ?”
The bench creaks, and Luke stands next to me, exhaling loudly. “Wow. That was the last thing I was expecting. I’ve seen some pretty weird stuff before, but …”
“I probably should’ve warned you.”
“Yeah, a little heads-up might’ve been nice. I gotta say, I’m surprised how well you’re keeping it together. I would’ve figured something like that might have you a little more freaked out.”
My eyes follow a butterfly flitting around in front of us, and I shrug. “Telling myself everything’s A-OK—no matter how freaky it gets—has been my mantra since Remy came back just after the accident. She was lying in her bed right next to mine, singing.
“For a second I thought the crash was just a dream and Remy was still alive and my dad wasn’t in the hospital. I was so happy, I called out for my parents. Only, my mom came in alone . She turned on my lights, and that’s when I found out I could see through Remy—and my mom couldn’t see her at all. My mom kept telling me I was dreaming and to wake up, but I still remember she looked at me like I was crazy when I insisted Remy was in her bed.
“After that, plus some forced therapy, I got used to pretending
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