• PREFACE

    Well I guess it didn’t matter that I was here, that I was alive, that I had feelings. I guess they just don’t care.
    I used to have a lot of friends, tons of them, but, I mean, how could that have all changed in a week? So much that, when the teacher said break into groups and leave no one out, no one even looked my way? That no teacher ever called my name out in class anymore? That when I try to talk to people, no one even listened? That people unthinkingly walked around me, and that my parents were sad and mopy all the time and didn’t even see that I was there? That they cried and called out my name, saying why, oh why, did I have to…
    Oh.

    CHAPTER ONE
    I looked up from my book that I was holding and thrust it back in its place as someone rounded the corner. No need to get someone all worked up. I stuck my hands into my pockets and walked out of the library. No one saw me anymore. It had been a long time since anyone had. I headed toward my favorite place to hang, because I could do anything, and even if anyone saw, it was “normal” and didn’t work anyone up. Well, most of the time.
    I looked up at the 30 story glass building, with the light shinning off it into everyone’s eyes. Then I pushed the door open and walked in, earning a startled look from the receptionist. Well, not at me, but at the door that had “opened on its own”. I sighed and stepped into the elevator, up to my place. As I watched the numbers change, I felt tired. The door opened and a little girl walked in, about 12. Okay, so I guess you wouldn’t call that little, being that I’m 16, but when you’ve been sixteen for 150 years, everyone is young. A grin spread across my face, this would be fun.
    She was wearing a pink hat, sideways like a gangster. I chuckled and grabbed it, throwing it across the elevator. It smacked into the wall and the girl went over to grab it. Then she turned around and looked at the elevator, with narrowed eyes. When it seemed to her that no one was in here, she closed her eyes. After a few seconds, she opened her eyes and stared directly at me, and stuck her tong out. I stood there with my mouth open as I watched her get off on her floor.
    She must be Cindy’s kid, I thought. Cindy was the woman who lived on the 15 floor, and she was clearly able to get in reach with the super natural. And apparently she’d taught her daughter. Great, I was clearly not as inconspicuous as I thought.

    *RIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGG!* That was the first bell of the day, and we all ran to class. Me, and all of my friends, running to beat the second bell that would mean that we were late to class. I sprinted into my home base and slid into my seat just as the bell rang. I looked up and saw that my teacher was giving me a dirty look, but hey, that happened everyday.
    As my classes bore on and on, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong about today, but what could be wrong? This was the last Friday before spring break! The atmosphere of the classroom buzzed with excitement as they all whispered to each other about what they were doing for break. Me? I was spending the break hanging with my friends, just doing what we do.
    “Hey Jen!” Melanie Walker called after me as I got in the lunch line. She jumped on my back, which pushed me forward into the wall. I laughed and tried to throw her off. Mel was a small petite little thing, and was way shorter and skinnier then all of the other 10th graders. Finally I got her off and she started babbling a mile-a-minute with a mischievous grin.
    “Guess what we’re doing today Jen!” she whispered, so no one else could here I guess. I rolled my eyes, she was probably coming up with a prank to do on our math teacher or something that would be worth of our trade mark.
    “What are we doing to day, Mel” I asked, humoring her.
    “We’re cutting class for the rest of the day!” she scream-whispered. I froze. Shock took over, and then I melted as a slow smile spread across my face. Yes, this was exactly what I needed. I started to walk forward in line and got my lunch before I answered.
    “Where are we going?” I asked excitedly. This was definitely something that would build up our status, our brand new reputation at the high school. We had only been here a little over a year and a half and we were already respected on all grade levels.
    “We’re going to go check out that creep house right outside of town” Mel said, practically bouncing up and down with excitement. “You, me, Bes, Max, and Josh are all going, they already said that they would, so we are all ready to go, just after lunch” as she was talking, the rest of the group that was skipping joined us at the lunch table. They were all smiling and were muttering excitedly.
    “All right, now lets get it all planned…”. 15 minutes later we were all walking toward the bathroom. There were security cameras all over the school, in almost every hallway. But, I knew which one had absolutely no camera, and it was one of the hallways that lead to an outside door. We walked casually through all of the hallways and then came out into the camera-less hall. With a final look around, we slipped out of the school.
    “We made it” I sighed. Then we all started running. Down across the fields and up to the fence where we started climbing. Up and over, then we were safe. We let out whoops of excitement and sprinted to get our cars. Josh and Mel rode with me, and Bes rode with Max. We all knew the way, so without further discussion, we speeded down the road, into the woods.
    As we came up to the woods we slowed down, because it was starting to freak us all out. I looked out the window, into the peaceful forest. Well, it should have been peaceful. I didn’t see a single animal, not a squirrel, not a bird, not a single deer. Strange. I shrugged it off and revved the engine, getting a shriek of excitement from everyone, and then I skidded into a park, right in front of the house.
    I looked at it as I got out and slammed my door shut. It was dead silent, and every foot step seemed magnified. The house was a sickly brown, with peeling paint and parts caving in. It was three story’s high with a balcony on every floor. The story to this house was that it was haunted. The rumor was that there used to be a teenage boy and his parents living here. They were part of the town, just like all the rest. But then one day…
    “One day they all just disappeared” I whispered, not noticing that I was speaking aloud. “No one knew what happened, and the day they disappeared, there was a noise that no one else had ever heard. No one could put a name to it”. When I looked up, everyone looked wary as they stared at the house. I was now scared, but I would never ever admit that. I put on a brillient smile and marched forward.
    “Come on! We got a house to explore” and then everyone followed. I walked up the steps and they creaked, just a little. Then I put my hand on the door nob, and jumped back with a startled cry. Electricity. That’s what I felt. It was like a zap. I looked behind and everyone was staring at me, with wide eyes. I smiled, to tell them I was joking and quickly swung the door open. There were nervous giggles as we all stepped into our worst nightmare.
    Immediately, the guys ran up the stairs whooping and hollering. I laughed loudly and followed them up, then stopped when I didn’t hear footsteps following. I spun around to look at the rest of the group.
    “Come on, guys! We gotta check it out!” I said. They shuffled to the side and then Bess looked up and spoke.
    “It doesn’t feel…you know… right” she whispered. “This place feels full, like we’re trespassing”. I sighed, rolled my eyes and went up the stairs.

    I felt a tingling in my head as I reached my room. Well it wasn’t my room, but I shared it with a human that didn’t know I existed, so technically it was mine. Then I froze on the way in. Some one was in my old house. They were in and walking up the stairs. No, no, no, no. Whoever it was, they were heading toward they’re death. No, no, no, no…
    “NO!!!”

    I heard a step and looked to my right to find Josh stalking toward me. I laughed and prowled toward him. Then he took me and spun me around. And then froze, as we both saw a door open on its own, creaking on the way. Josh dropped me and stepped back.
    “V-Very Funny, Max” Josh stuttered. Then I heard a step behind us, but was too frozen to turn around.
    “What did I do?” I heard Max say. Right behind us. No where near the door. It was the door at the end of the hall, and now it had stopped moving. But then I heard another step, in front of us. Then, just as I was about to turn around and run, The next door down the hallway burst open. I shrieked, high and thin. Doors all down the hallway were being thrust open by something that I couldn’t see. Something horrible.
    “I’m getting out of here!” Josh shouted just as Max said, “Lets go!” and they both ran down the stairs, leaving me, paralyzed. The door to the right of me and two feet ahead, slowly swung open. My eyes were the only things that moved, following the movement of the door. All I heard was the girls screaming and the guys shouting to me to run, and run now.
    A thin, small sound had also started. It was getting louder and higher every second, quickly becoming deafening. Finally my arms were released from the frozen state and I brought my arms up to cover my ears, but that didn’t help at all. The sound was inside my head, it was coming from outside, but I couldn’t get it out of my head. Finally a sound so ugly, so high, so unlike nothing I had ever heard, came out of my mouth, and I dropped to the floor, thankful for the nothingness that took me.

    I crumpled to the ground as I felt the life force disappear. No one had step foot in that house since I had died there, along with my parents. Now a person had died, because of the mysterious thing that lives in that god forsaken house. It didn’t even deserve the title house, it was just a dwelling place.
    Then my head snapped up as I felt a golden glimmer. What is it? It was strong, and familiar. When I searched the glimmer of power harder, I realized it was the same person that had been killed, just minutes before. Her ghost, I realized. She wasn’t completely dead. I got up and walked to the window, staring out over the city. I had to get there, right now. She was going to be so confused, and heartbroken, as he had been when no one had even seen that he was there.
    I walked around, and then went down to the 15th floor, and up to Cindy’s door. I knocked, and the door swung open. I walked through and turned around to face her daughter. I made a face and wiggled my fingers at her. She scowled. I pointed to Cindy, and motioned that she come over here. Humans couldn’t hear me, no matter if they can see me or not. The girl sighed and called for her mom.
    Cindy walked over and nodded in recognition to me, then put her hands on her hips, waiting. I looked around, and then walked over to the counter. I grabbed up the pen and began to write.
    Cindy, I need your help.
    “With what?” she asked skeptically. I began to write again.
    You know how I died right? In the house in Chemis?
    “Yes, I heard the story”.
    Today, just now, a couple of people went in. 5 to be exact, and only 4 went out. Because one died, and now has come back like me. I need to get there somehow and help her. Can you help me?
    She was thinking, I could see that. But then I saw her nodding slowly, a decision being made. She nodded now in earnest, and I sighed, slumping into a chair.
    “Yes, yes I can feel her presence” she said. My head snapped up. A girl? “Ok now we just have to do a transportation spell”.

    I blinked slowly. Then my eyes opened all the way and I saw the brown wood above my head. I’ve never seen that before, I thought. I felt warm all over, like I was glowing with warmth. It felt nice. Confused with the wood above me, I jumped up to a standing position. Then my memory spun around me, and I remembered where I was and what had happened. I held my head, trying to get the memory’s to quiet down and go away. Finally they suppressed and I walked down the stairs and out the door of the haunted house.
    I looked around and found my car, the keys still in the ignition. Then I looked around for the others, but not even their car was here. Had they left me? I felt tears come up to my eyes, and then spill over. My best friends had just left me lying there? The hurt was a crushing force, but I got into my car and drove out of the forest.
    It felt good to get out of that forest, because right now, as I looked back, it looked dark to me. I reached into my pocket and fished out my phone and checked the time. Spring break was over. I had been lying in that house for seven days. And no one came out to get me. Bitches. I had two hours before school started, so I drove home. I opened to door and stepped into the empty house. My parents left for work early, but got to come home early too.
    Nothing was weird, until I got to school. I drove up and got out of my mini cooper. Then I walked up the steps and to my groupies, ready to get up a swearing storm. They were all talking in hushed tones, and all of them looked like they hadn’t slept in days. They all looked tired and horrified. I slowed my pace as I approached them. They took no notice in me. They just kept talking about random things, but no one really seamed all that into the conversation.
    “Morning guys” I said, but no one even flinched. No one returned the greeting, no one looked at me. I was about to punch one in the arm for not talking to me when the bell rang. I watched them go, and then began to follow. I sat in an empty seat in the back, expecting Mel to sit by me, but she just sat alone in another seat. Mel? I thought.
    “Okay, okay, settle down class” Mrs. Smith said, tiredly. The small conversations stopped immediately. “I’m taking roll” and she started down the list.
    She got through the hole list and didn’t call my name, but got choked up when my name should have been called. I cocked my head, puzzled. The rest of the day continued the same.
    When I got home I saw my parents in the kitchen, making dinner. It smelled delicious. I walked in and called out “I’m home!”, and heard no response. And after 20 minutes of trying to get their attention I ran up the stairs and into my room, tears spilling over my cheeks.
    This was just great, I thought. Well I guess it didn’t matter that I was here, that I was alive, that I had feelings. I guess they just don’t care.
    I used to have a lot of friends, tons of them, but, I mean, how could that have all changed in a week? So much that, when the teacher said break into groups and leave no one out, no one even looked my way? That no teacher ever called my name out in class anymore? That when I try to talk to people, no one even listened? That people unthinkingly walked around me, and that my parents were sad and mopey all the time and didn’t even see that I was there? That they cried and called out my name, saying why, oh why, did I have to…
    Oh.
    Am I dead? Is that why no one can see or hear me? But… aren’t dead people supposed to go to heaven or hell? Not that I was religious, but I had always believed that we left earth. But here I was, crying in my bed. A dead girl Named Jenny. Fabulous.

    Finally I was in the city Chemis. Finally. It had taken a week for that woman to get me here. I could have walked here in less time! Okay, so that wasn’t true, but it still took a long time. I walked, just letting the glimmer guide me through the city. The glimmer had gotten stronger this morning, so I guess she had waken up or something. It was night now, and she might even be asleep, though that was unlikely, she was probably freaked out.
    Finally the glimmer got brighter and brighter, and I walked up in front of the house that housed the girl. I took a deep breath and walked to the side of the house with her window, and began to clime up. It was easy to get up, and then I just melted through the window, turning to mist. Then I was inside, staring at a girl about my age, facing away from me. She had bronze hair and was very thin. I took a step toward her. I felt her stiffen and slowly turn toward me and I saw her face.
    She had incredible brown eyes, that had no stop, just kept going and going. She looked at me with defeat, and I saw an immense amount of sadness. Had she figured it out? No, she couldn’t have on her own. Then I saw her sigh and turn back around. Could she see me? Yes she could. She had to. I walked up to her and tapped her shoulder and sat down behind her on her bed. She turned around and looked startled.
    “You can see me?” she asked, tears in her voice. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. A protective instinct came over and I pulled her into a hug, where she cried hard. All I did was hold her.

    He took me into a hug and I went, letting my guard down and just crying. Crying for all of my pain and all the pain I had inflicted on others. I’m dead. I’m dead. I’m dead. That thought kept running through my head. The only other one was, He can see me, he can see me. A while later I sat up and wiped a hand across my face. I had calmed down, and important things were making themselves relevant.
    “Who are you” my voice sounded rough and tired. I felt him shift back and lean against the wall behind my bed.
    “My name or just who” he asked, sounding worn out. I leaned back too and stared at him. He had brown hair, worn long enough to fall into his eyes, and occasionally he had to move it out. He had light blue eyes and an overall attractive face. I trusted this guy, for whatever reason.
    “Both, please” I whispered. No reason to whisper, I thought wryly. No one can here me. Except him. Whoever he was.
    “Okay, lets begin with my name, shall we?” he said. “My name is Mathew Hall, but people call me Matt. I lived in a house out in the woods a long time ago” he said. I stiffened. An old house? In the woods? “I lived their with my parents, happily. Then one day, something killed us,” I stared at him. He was the boy, the boy who was killed in the house. No… He looked up at me.
    “You’ve probably guessed what house I’m talking about, since you died the exact way I did” and then he paused, waiting for some kind of reaction.
    “You’re the boy that died there 150 years ago” I said. “Does that mean we are… that we are…” I couldn’t say it, I was just too stressed. This was just to much to take on.
    “Ghosts” he said, and the silence after was deafening. Wait. If he died there, he must…
    “You killed me” I realized. “Yes, that’s exactly what happened. What other explanation is there?” My voice was raising, I was scared, so scared. I felt Matt take my shoulders and shake me hard.
    “No! No I did not! I just got to town today!” he shouted. “How could I ever do that to someone?!” he said, still shaking me. I slumped backwards. He was right, but then who had killed us? I was so confused, I just wanted to sleep…

    I watched her slip backwards and her eyes shut. She fell against me and began to sleep. I was startled. I tried to get up and let her lay down, but in her sleep she grabbed me with enough strength to keep me there. I sighed and guided her to lay down. Then I backed away slowly, but then she muttered in her sleep.
    “No… don’t… leave… me…” and she reached out. I reluctantly grabbed her hand. Then she tugged roughly and then I was all of a sudden laying there beside her. I froze. I should have been able to resist that. I shouldn’t have been weak enough for her to pull me like that. But suddenly I was tired, and I fell asleep still thinking how weird this was.
    When I woke up, I felt the girl right behind me, and I jumped out and onto the floor. She was still sleeping. Good. I don’t even know her name. Hmm, today was her day to tell me who she is. Then I sat in a chair and waited for her to wake up.
    As I sat there, for hours it seemed, I memorized everything about her. Her bronze hair had golden highlights, and it went down to her waist. She tost and turned a lot, so her hair was now spread all out over her pillow. She was about 5’6’ and very slender. Her skin was a darker color then mine, like she had a tan. But it was winter. Huh.
    My observations were interrupted when I saw her roll over and stretch out. Then, slowly, I watched her open her eyes and stare at the sealing. She just stayed there for a second, and then bolted up-right. Her head whipped around, searching for something, and then her eyes rested on mine, and she slumped a little.
    “You’re real,” she said, frowning. There was a stubborn note in her sentence that I hadn’t heard last night. “Well this is just great” and she flung her self backwards. I was puzzled.
    “Of course I’m real. You think you dreamed it or something? Ghosts don’t dream” her tone was making me angry. I was hardly ever angry. Ever. But right now this girl was making me mad, at nothing at all.
    “UGH! Don’t say that!” she wailed. Then she sat up and looked me in the eye. I saw determination in those eyes, and a strength that very nearly scared me. “I will find a way out of this. You just watch me” and she got up and walked to her closet. She hesitated, and then walked through it. I sat there in stunned silence. I waited for her to come back out. And waited. And waited. And waited. Finally she came back out in a faded jean mini and a red t-shirt with some black stilettos. Wow…
    “Are you with me or what?” she asked. I nodded.
    “Where are we going?”
    “To my school”.
    “But no one can see you” I said, puzzled.
    “Well we are going to make them see.” she said, and then jumped through the window.

    I jumped out the window and away from Matt, expecting him to follow. I was over the weakness that had come over me last night. I put back up my guard and walked toward the school, two blocks away. I watched people walk by me, and it made me mad. I could not be dead. I was too young.
    I looked down at my hands, they were solid. Well, to me they were. I tried to gather what I had learned. I could walk through walls. I could jump down from a two story window without getting hurt, or snapping the heal on my shoes. No one could hear me or see me. No one except Matt, that is. My teeth locked together, I was in charge of this. I may have cried in front of him but I was not showing weakness again.
    We arrived at the school and I walked up the steps and right through a 10th grader, who looked around afterwards. I had to smile, he looked a bit confused. I could feel Matt following behind me, but he was avoiding the students, as to where I was just walking through them.
    “Hey!” Matt said, trying to catch up. I smirked.
    “Hey what”
    “Slow down”
    “Nah, I have somewhere to go.” I said, but then felt a hand tugging on my shoulder. I stopped walking and spun around, my expression hard.
    “Would you at least tell me what we’re doing?” he asked. “And would it be too much to ask who you are?”. I sighed, this wasn’t going to take long, but I liked to be on the move, working toward a goal. This was slowing me down.
    “Fine. My name is Jennifer Brownell, and I used to be a 10th grader at this school. I was the bad girl, the queen of the trouble making group. I died in your old house, as you know. Right now, we are going to pull my friends out of class” and I turned to walk towards Mel’s first class.
    “Ok Jennifer-”
    “It’s Jenny”.
    “Fine. Ok Jenny, how exactly do you intend to get them out of class, write them a note?” he said sarcastically. I nodded.
    “That’s exactly what I intend to do” and I turned into Mel’s class. Mel was sitting in the back of the room, her face bone white and she had purple circles under her eyes. She must have not slept in days, I thought, feeling bad for the girl. She was bent over her textbook, but she was looking through it. I walked over and shut her book. She jumped, and looked around for the person who had shut it.
    I picked up her pencil and stared to write on her paper.
    Hey, use an excuse to get out of class. I need you.
    -Jenny

    She squeeked, and started crying. She looked around frantically to see who was playing the joke. I shook my head sadly and watched as she got up and walked up to the teacher. The teacher looked up, and, seeing the tears about ready to come, dismissed her with a worried look. Melanie walked out of the classroom and stopped in the hall, looking around. I grabbed the bad of paper and walked out.
    She looked over at the pad of paper and looked like she was going to pass out. I began to write again.
    Mel, I need you, ok? Its really me, jenny. I’m here with Matt, the boy who died in the house before me. Can you handle this or do I have to go away?
    “You can’t be Jen, she died” Mel stated. I groaned internally. I pulled all of my will into this one thing I was doing, and felt the power build up, then I sent it all out in one surge. Then Mel gasped. “It’s you!” she squealed. I smiled in satisfaction as I saw that she could now see me. I went over and hugged the girl gently. She couldn’t feel it, but she could see it.
    She hugged me back, but her arms went through me, and I momentarily turned to mist. Then I reformed and laughed because Matt was staring at me with a surprised expression.
    “You didn’t think I’d just disappear did you?’ I asked teasingly. I felt the energy in the air begin to pull toward Matt, and then felt it surge back out. Matt had done it too. Mel gasped.
    “Huh, never knew we could do that” he said. Mel just stared with bug eyes, then talked.
    “He’s gorgeous” she whispered. I laughed. I looked at Matt and saw that he was looking quite uncomfortable. I was glad my plan, well stage one anyway, had worked. I told Mel to meet me at her house tonight, and then Matt and I turned invisible again and walked off.

    She was the strangest girl I had ever met. I was 150 years old, and she had figured out something I had never known we could do in a day. I felt out stepped. At least right now I was away from her. She was a strong girl, and she was making me agitated. She still hadn’t told me what she was planning on doing, and she said she was going alone to Melanie’s house. So now I was just going through her room, looking through her things.
    I picked up a stuffed animal of hers and laughed. It was a tiger. This is what I was now going to refer to her as, “the tiger”. She certainly had the attitude of a tiger, tearing up anyone who got in her way, I thought wryly.
    “What are you doing?” Jenny demanded, standing behind me. Right behind me. I jumped and dropped the stuffed animal like it was covered in acid. Jeez, how did I miss her coming?
    “Er…”
    “Were you looking through my stuff?!”
    “No” I said stupidly. She groaned and sat on her bead. I turned around and looked at her. “So, will you please tell me what you are planning?”

    No. I thought. No I can’t because… well because I haven’t thought all that much about it. All I have is faze one and two, both in motion. Faze one had been to get Mel in on it, then faze two was to get the rest in on it. I needed human reinforcements. That was as far as I had gotten, and there was no way I was owning up to not having a fully mapped out plan.
    “We are going to find, and destroy, whatever is in that house of yours. That is, of course, your with me?” I framed it as a question, because underneath all the sarcasm, I wanted him to come. I hopped he couldn’t hear that. I looked up though my lashes, and saw that he was staring at me. Unlike my hard brown eyes, his blue eyes were soft, and I felt myself settle into a lower state just staring into them.
    “Yes, I’m with you” he said. I sighed. It was late, and I was tired. Odd. Then I heard my parents coming down the hall toward my room, and I froze. What were they doing?
    “I just have to see her room!” my mother was saying. A tear rolled down my cheek. “I just can’t believe she’s gone,” she choked up on the last word.
    “Darling… that’s not a good idea, I don’t want you to upset yourself,” my father protested. More followed that single tear. I watched as my door opened and my mother walked in looking around. She looked old, haggard, and sad. She was a very young mom, she had me when she was 20, but now she looked no younger then 60. I opened my mouth, and then shut it, know there was nothing I could do.
    Well, there was something, but it would upset her even more that I didn’t even dare do it. I walked up to my mom and stared her right in the eye. Although I knew she couldn’t see me, she stared right back. I put my hands up to either side of her face and placed them on her cheeks.
    “I’m fine” I whispered. “Go to sleep, I’m coming back”. She relaxed into a slouched position, as if she’d heard me.
    “John, I’m ready for bed” she said tiredly, then trudged into her room down the hall. My dad followed. Matt cleared his throat. I looked at him, blinking hard.
    “Well… er… where am I sleeping tonight?” he asked, looking embarrassed. I wonder why. Hmmm… where did he sleep last night?
    “Wherever you slept last night, I guess,” I said as I got onto my bed, laying down. I heard a laugh and I looked over.
    “Yea… um I think I will sleep in the chair tonight,” and he sat down.
    “Well where did you sleep last night, the floor?”
    “No.”
    “Then where?”
    “Doesn’t matter.”
    “Yes it does!” I said. It didn’t really, but I was really curious. And he was really embarrassed.
    “Goodnight.” He closed his eyes and feigned sleep. Confused, I lowered my head to my pillow and rolled to face the wall. Lots of things passed through my head as I fell asleep. Right before I fell unconscious, I remembered where he had slept last night, but I was to far gone to say a word. Then I was out.

    The light came in my window and my eyelids turned red, but that’s not what had woken me. There was a second tap on the window and I opened my eyes. Immediately they went to Matt, who was sitting in his chair, fast asleep. He looked so cute, so innocent in sleep. I had to smile, then there came a third tap. I looked at the window and sat up.
    “Maybe she’s not here?” Mel’s voice was muffled because of the window. Then another voice:
    “Pft, you were lying, I knew it!” It was Bess. I got up and lifted the window and heard gasps. I sucked in energy and sent it out again, and I shimmered into existence. More gasps, and Bess fainted. I smiled down at her.
    “Don’t doubt Mel, you little b***h” I said sweetly. Bess looked up at me and scowled. She’d always pretended to like me, but I knew she only did that so she could be a part of the group. Now she had no problem hiding her hatred.
    “Jen?” Matt said, as he shimmered into existence beside me. When Bess looked at him, her expression turned into one of sweet seduction.
    “Well, hello handsome,” said Bess, and she gave him one of the smiles that would grab any boy at our high school. I looked at Matt to see his reaction, but he just looked at her and waved.
    “Hello…?”,
    “Bess,” she said, and fluttered her eyes. I gagged and Mel snickered. He was dead, for gods sakes!
    “Well, it is very nice to meet you, Bess,” he said, rather bored. Then he turned to me and said, “You gonna let them in or let them freeze?”. I laughed and stepped aside from the window. Mel crawled in, followed by Bess, who winked at Matt, and following Bess was the guys.
    “Alright everybody, I need your full attention and nobody better faint again or I will have to woop somebodys a**, got it?” I shouted out my orders and stared around at everyone. They all nodded. “Good”.

    I sat in the chair I had slept in and watched Jen go into combat mode. I was so glad she hadn’t figured out that we could read thoughts, yet. I smiled and picked apart the humans brains.
    First, I entered Bess’s brain… and pulled right back out. Ugh, I couldn’t stand it! She had a very dirty mind and right now that dirty mind was focusing on me. Fabulous. At that moment she had been wondering why I hadn’t responded to her flirting. To be honest, I hadn’t noticed.
    Then I picked through one of the boys brains. The first thing I got a reading on was he was so happy that Jen wasn’t dead that he was basically drunk in happiness. This young man loved Jen. I could tell that he had been about to ask her out, but then she had died and he’d never gotten the chance to tell her how he felt, but here was his chance!
    But then there was me. Wait, what? I listened further, and he thought I was a potentiol threat. He was trying to figure out if I liked her, or if she liked me. Then he was focusing on Jen again.
    Wow.
    Next was the other guy, who was thinking that she looked awfully pretty for a dead person. This young man was quite dim witted.
    Next, was Mel. Her brain was so simple. She was happy that Jen was not really dead, she was mad at Bess for being a slut, and she was scared in the general sense. Huh.
    “Matt? Did you hear any of that?” Jen asked.
    “What?” I said, coming back down to earth.
    “Matt…” she shook her head and sighed. Then she looked at the others. “Thank you all for helping! Its early, and school is starting soon… so off you go! The plan starts tonight, please do your parts,” and with that they all climbed out the window. The boy with the crush on Jen hesitated, looked at me, and then left.
    “What’s that last boys name?” I asked, curious. She looked over at me, her hair falling in her face.
    “Who, Josh? The boy that last left?” she asked. I nodded. “Why?” she puzzled.
    “Oh, just wondering.” I was actually wondering if I should tell her or not. Best not to tamper with high school drama, but… oh it was just too tempting.
    “Josh, is it? Yes, yes. That Josh boy likes you very much,” and I had to smile. How anyone could stand this girl was clearly either mad, or saw past her hard shell. She rolled her eyes.
    “Of course he does,” she said, and at first I thought she actually got it, but then she continued, “We have been best friends for, like, ever!” and I laughed and looked down.
    “Ah, you are so dim witted. He loves you, Jen. He wishes he could kiss you, could hold you, could spend time with you, got it?” I looked up at her astonished face and smirked. In my day, it was so much easier. If a boy liked a young lady, he would send flowers everyday, and make her feel special. That boy would not hide his feelings.
    “No, no you have got it wrong.” and she turned around.